Conference Proceedings: Map India 1998

We are moving from the world of atoms to the world of bits as pointed out by Nicolas Nigrponte of MIT. This moving to the world of bits brings in a new type of reality, the virtual reality. This movement has therefore changed the way business is conducted. For instance, in commerce we are moving from the economy as we know it to what is called the digital economy. Internet has revolutionised the way business is transacted. Certain business like publishing, for example, have undergone a radical change. In the earlier times books were first printed and then distributed. Now, in the internet you can distribute the book and it can be printed by those who are interested, by downloading the contents from their computers.

The idea of the geographical data on paper in the form of maps or tables is not new. In fact, ever since navigation started and the age of exploration followed especially in the eighteenth and ninteenth centuries, mapping has been s part of the ever expanding curiosity of manind. Maps however belong to the age of atoms. But now in the age of bits in computers and remote sensing satellites computer technology for the GIS has added s totally new dimension to the old idea of maps.

The National Task Force on Information Technology has rightly recognised the significance of the GIS. This is what the Task Force says "Geographic Information can be very useful in integrating , modelling, analysing, and visualising different types of data. Geographic information can be of strategic advantage for a number of applications, including spatial planning, command and control systems, environmental protection, utility management, traffic regulation etc.

The Survey of India under the Department of Science and Technology has been conducting topographical surveys on 1:2,50,000 scale 1:50,000 and 1:25,000 scales, Survey of India has started creation of Digital Cartographic Database of topographical maps on scales of 1:50,000 and 1:50,000. These digitised based maps will be made available for applications development, for planning and for Geographical Information Sytems purposes. Individual states have also set up agencies like the AP State Remote Sensing Applications Centre in the case of Andhra Pradesh which are engaged in the development of digitised bass maps.

There is no common standard for reference systems, scales, degrees of accuracy, formats and data structures for developing base maps across the states. It would be useful to define the standards for such parameters at a pan-Indian level. While defining the standards so that data can eventually be shared at regional and global levels.

Currently there are restrictions on making digitised Survey of India maps available for public use. The restrictions have been imposed in view of the reservations of the Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Home and the Survey of India in making such data easily available for electronic surveillance there is a need to have a rethink on this policy so that digitised geographical information is made readily available for development of Geographical Information Systems and for use in value added applications.

The Survey of India should make available digitised maps with a threshold scale, free of charge and free of copyright restrictions. This would stimulate the market for development of value added applicationsand create new products and services. Similarly the National Remote Sensing Agency should also make available remote sensing data for easy access by the public. With the development of the INTERNET in the country, both the Survey of India and the National Remote Sensing Agency, should use this medium for transferring apppropriate digitides geographical information to the public domain. The committee of Secretaries under the Cabinet Secretary set up a sub-committee on this under the chairmanship of DG, NIC, and their recommendations were approved by the Committee of Secretaries. Notification by the Ministry of Defence is pending for more than six months. This has to expedited."

The GIS provides an excellent opportunity to add totally new dimensions to the old concept of maps. While the old maps were static, the GIS, as accessible through the computers, offers an element which is missing in the maps ever since they were formed namely the element of flexibility and a dynamic approach. In fact, as a planning tool GIS is an excellent instrument because this allows the planners to visualise what the shape of the future would be if certain parameters are changed. For instance, in urban planning one can think of the impact of providing certain facilities in certain geographic locations and what the consequences would be. Earlier, in the manual system such exercises would have been very time consuming. Even more important is the fact that it provides to the planner a visual picture of the emerging scene.

In fact, the capacity to visualise in three dimensions is an extraordinary extensions of the human mind. It used to be said that the computer is the bicycle of the mind. But in fact, the GIS system is perhaps not a bicycle but an automobile for stretching the human mind. The special advantage of the GIS is this capacity of the GIS to process vast mount of data, integrate data and also display them in a dynamic way.

This, of course is the basic feature of the technology. But how we are going to use the technology depends on our imagination. I am sure you have heard the story of a rich man who sent to his old mother a present. This was a million dollar parrot talking parrot, a rare bird. After sometime h asked his mother how did she appreciate the parrot She said, "Oh! The parrot soup tasted very good". A tool like GIS is like that parrot. How are we going to make use of this technology? Are we going to be like that old mother or more intelligent?

In the Indian context I think that our focus should be on the following:
The first area to focus is the explosive one of urban development and the issues of urban planning and concentration. We have got mentally accustomed to the idea of the grid pattern in planning Prof. P. V. Iniresan has been arguing so far not very successfully for a change in the grid pattern and going on to a concentric circle pattern. In fact what is needed is not the squaring the circle but circling the square. Now, if we are able to use data available through GIS to project to the urban planners the consequences of the grid pattern versus the circular pattern, perhaps we will make a quicker breakthrough.

Apart from planning even for day to day maintenance, today many of our urban centres are facing collapse. At the same time, I have seen many of the Indian software companies are helping American Municipal Administration to change the code and bring the geographical data of their underground powerwater connections and so on up-to-date. Is such an effort being made in our country? We should be able to launch a massive programme especially with the recognition by the National Task Force on I. T., preparing for all our cities an up-to-date GIS system firstly for the better maintenance of the urban services like water supply, electricity and so on and also for medium to long term urban development planning.

Equally important is the second area which is the management of our water resources. The remote sensing satellites have given us a lot of information about the underground resources, and these maps must be freely available. For this first we must overcome the problem of secrecy. We might have mastered the technology of space and remote sensing but we have to master the technology of overcoming the bureaucratic obsession with secrecy. I was told once by Dr. Seshagiri that when Defence were refusing to release certain maps, he spent $ 10,000 (of course Govt, money) to get from United States the same maps which our Defence experts refusing to release. I hope the situation has now changed for the better- The I. T. Task Force also mentioned about getting Defence clearances about the release of maps. I hope some solutions have now been formed, because unless we are able to fine tune our babuware, we will not be able to take full advantage of the hardware and the software of GIS.

Thirdly, the role of GIS specially in managing our environment is another important aspect. With increasing awareness of our environmental degradation it is the satellite images that made us realise that we were losing one and half million hactres of forest land every year. I hope the situation has now improved. These maps should be widely utilised not only for planning purposes but also for generating greater awareness in the public a t large about the impact of the changes taking place in the environment.

Perhaps we should use the GIS as a tool to see that we plan a better India in the future. That brings us me to the final point about the potential of using technology like GIS. The imagination we have is the only limitation. Perhaps one way of enhancing this is the exchange of views and cross fertilisation of ideas. Programmes like Map India '98 are eminently significant in this context. After all, as the old Taitreya Upanishad says, " We have to come together. We must enjoy together, We must allow our strengths of intellect to suppport each other. Our intellect must be able to shine. If there is any poison of misunderstanding or hatred , that should be remove", That way lies progress.

Sahanam Vevatu, Sahanau Bhunattu,
Sahaveeryam Karvavehai;
Teiasvinam Aditamastu, Mavidh Vishavahai,
Om Shanti Shanti Shanti!
I wish Map India '98 all success.

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