Technical Session – VI
GIS – A LOCAL AREA PLANNING TOOL
RESEARCH ISSUES IN SPATIAL LAND AND WATER MANAGEMENT, EXAMPLES FROM
THE UK, PANAMA AND SOUTH AFRICA
Ian R Calder
Centre for Land Use and Water Resources Research
University of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
ABSTRACT
Land use and land use change have profound effects on water
resources, not least if the land use is forestry or if it involves
forest related activities. This paper describes the application of
spatial land and water analysis techniques that have been, and are
being, applied to address forest and water policy issues in the UK,
Panama and South Africa.
In many ways the policy issues are similar in each of the countries.
They relate to how we can best manage forest lands to meet competing
demands, particularly as they relate to demands for, production
(e.g. timber and water), Conservation, Amenity and Recreation (CARE)
products and for supporting peoples livelihoods.
It is argued that with the help of these techniques we may be able
to work towards developing land-use and water management policies
that make use of our best science (rather than myth as is often
presently the case), that are not only upwardly and downwardly
compatible, from the local rural watershed scale to the global
scale, but are also consistent with other global and local policies
relating to sustainability, climate change, biodiversity, trade,
food production and poverty alleviation.
Commercial forestry has often been promoted by development
organisations on its perceived environmental benefits. Yet science
based research has shown that many of the expected environmental
benefits (which may in some cases be provided by natural forests)
cannot be achieved through commercial plantations. Increasingly we
are now becoming aware of the environmental dangers, rather than
benefits that have been caused by these plantations. Not only is
there usually a high cost in terms of lost water associated with
fast growing commercial plantations but, as has been recognised by
the government of South Africa, there may also be dangers associated
with “escaping” plantation trees. The South African Government has
found it necessary to fund a billion rand “Working for Water
Programme” for the purposes of controlling and eradicating alien
invading tree species.
The developments in South Africa and Panama indicate that slowly a
“Blue Revolution” is taking place in the way we manage land use and
water resources and in which science is becoming connected better to
policy. Major challenges still remain before this revolution can be
completed. How can we match resource based development objectives
with more people focussed, poverty alleviation objectives? When we
look towards forests for their carbon sequestration benefits in
preventing further global warming should we not also be considering
these benefits in relation to more local water resource disbenefits?
It is argued that these are some of the questions that still need to
be resolved.
RELEVANCE OF GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEM (GIS) IN PANCHAYATI RAJ
SYSTEM
S P Jain1 and V Madhava Rao2
1) Director, Centre for Panchayati Raj, National Institute of Rural
Development, Hyderabad - 500030., INDIA
2) Assistant Director, Centre for Micro Planning, National Institute
of Rural Development, Hyderabad – 500030, INDIA
ABSTRACT
The policy ambience of the Constitution 73rd Amendment seemed to be
oriented not merely to enshrining the Panchayati Raj system in the
Constitution, which is a land mark in its structural evolution, but
also to making the local bodies a functional necessity for
activising the contribution of the rural population to development
through the process of decentralisation. The Amendment is not
confined to the objective of mandating the elective process at lower
levels limited to the normally assumed values of participation, and
of promoting political education and so on; there is also an
implicit accent on rapid development of rural areas through the use
of science and technology. This thrust has been well brought out in
the Article 243(G) of the Constitution 73rd Amendment which reads as
follows:
"Subject to the provisions of this Constitution, the Legislature of
a State may, by law, endow the Panchayats with such powers and
authority as may be necessary to enable them to function as
institutions of self-government and such law may contain provisions
for the devolution of powers and responsibilities upon Panchayats at
the appropriate level, subject to such conditions as may be
specified therein, with respect to : a) The preparation of plans for
economic development and social justice; (b) The implementation of
schemes for economic development and social justice as may be
entrusted to them including those in relating to the matters listed
in the Eleventh Schedule.
In accordance with the provisions of the Constitution 73rd
Amendment, all states, have constituted the elected bodies at
different levels of Panchayati Raj administration. Accordingly, as
many as 2,14,300 Village Panchayats, 5,681 Panchayat Samities and
504 Zilla Parishads have been made responsible for making plans for
development of the area under their respective jurisdiction.1
Decentralised Planning
The Panchayati Raj system is not only an institutional innovation in
planning process at village level, it also interconnected democratic
and popular set up at the village, block and district levels
consisting of elected representatives and the officials of
administrative and development agencies. Despite Government's
commitment towards democratic decentralisation, the strategy to make
decentralised planning effective through people's participation
could not be achieved with full success. This is evident from the
fact that although planing of development progress has been an
essential function of the PRIs, these bodies could hardly make any
significant impact in planning and development.
The active involvement of PRIs in the district planning process has
been considered necessary for a number of reasons. Decentralisation
implies progressive devolution of decision making functions to
people's institutions. The district administration and the political
authority at the district level have to interact and mutually come
to terms. The very objective of democratic decentralisation is to
reduce the alienation between the two. In this context, the Dantwala
Committee (1977) observed, "All said and done, there is no getting
away from the reality that the political authority has to have a
decisive voice on all major issues pertaining to planing. After all,
in a democracy, the elected representatives of the people at the
national and state levels take the major decision on the public
policy, the form and content of planning, sectoral allocations and
their priorities and the mode of resource mobilisation. The civil
servants and technical experters, whether in the National Planning
Commission and State Planning Boards or professional institutes, can
at best spell out the implications of various policy options and
work out internal consistencies." It categorically stated that
active involvement of PRIs in the planning process would provide a
better climate for people's participation in the implementation of
the plan, a condition crucial to its success. Unfortunately, the
position was that, except in a few states, there is hardly any
worthwhile organisation of Panchayati Raj Institutions had been
formerly established, they had either withered away or were in a
moribund state.
The Asoka Mehta Committee on PRIs (1977) also observed, "… if PRIs
are involved in the development process, planning will be realistic,
programming will cater to the felt needs and priorities of the
people and implementation would evoke people's involvement and
participation."2 Similarly, the GVK Rao Committee (1976) observed,
"it generally accepted that various programmes of rural development
will become realistic and meaningful only if people's
representatives are actively involved in the local level planning,
design formulation and implementation of these schemes and in
selection of beneficiaries in the anti-poverty and employment
programmes. In order that the felt needs of the local people and the
area are articulated for planning, priorities are established and
effectively implemented, there is no better instrument to meet this
need other than Panchayati Raj Institutions."3
The Hanumantha Rao Committee (1984) on District Planning has
enumerated the following factors for peoples participation at local
level:
a) To take note of the felt needs of population;
b) To mobilise local resources for plan implementation;
c) To decrease the level of conflict during the planning the
implementation stages;
d) To increase the speed of implementation by securing the
co-operation of the people;
e) To increase popular resistance to decisions.
Participation in rural development planning can be achieved through
the following stages of programmes planning and implemented.
i) Participation in decision making;
ii) Participation in implementation of development programmes and
projects;
iii) Participation in monitoring and evaluation of development
programmes; and
iv) Participation in sharing the benefits of development.4
In the light of the policy emphasis on Constitution 73rd Amendment
to strengthen local self-government at various levels to bring about
all round development in rural areas, 29 subjects had been included
in the Eleventh Schedule of the Constitution. These subjects fall in
the category of productive, infrastructure, social amenities,
poverty alleviation sectors, etc. These are to be divided between
the three levels of local government – Zilla Parishad, Panchayat
Samiti and Gram Panchayats. Decentralisation is sought to be carried
forward on the basis of the Cardinal Principle that what is
appropriate at a given level of three-tier system should be done at
that level and not at the district level. Similarly what is best
done at village level should be done at that level and not at middle
level. The functions which cut s across more than one block, will be
handled at the district level. But all these functions cannot be
mutually exclusive rather they are complementary. Sometimes same
functions can be handled by involving all the three-tiers or
two-tiers, depending upon the subject.
The principle of using peoples participation as a tool of local
self-government has been recognised in the Constitution of India by
entrusting Panchayati Raj Institutions with the responsibility of
preparation and implementation of economic development plans. The
PRIs have been specially assigned tasks of preparation of plan for
socio-economic development of the area keeping in view the broad
parameters of social justice under the Constitution 73rd Amendment.
These bodies are expected to: (a) the preparation of plans for
economic development and social justice; and (b) the implementation
of schemes for economic development and social justice as may be
entrusted to them including those in relation to the matters listed
in the Eleventh Schedule. Besides, Article 243 (ZD) under the
Constitution 74th Amendment provides for constitution of District
Planning Committees (DPCs) which will be responsible for
consolidation of the plans prepared at the Panchayats and
Municipalities in the district and preparation of a draft
development plan for the district as a whole. Thus the Constitution,
by implication, has recognised the tools of peoples’ participation
both for purposes of local level planning by the elected bodies and
thereby using them as instruments of development process.
GIS in Panchayati Raj
The enactment of Constitution 73rd Amendment (1992) for
decentralized administration opened up transfer of decision making
power into the hands of local people and thus enabled them to play a
more decisive role in the process of development. Since last one
decade or so the country is experimenting with decentralized
administration but the results have not been uniform across the
States. States where literacy and awareness are higher appear to
have progressed well which those falling in the lower spectrum of
literacy and awareness are slow runners. But the real pivot lies
with political will of the State government which is likely to make
all the difference.
Empowerment of the three-tiers of Panchayati Raj system with
decision making power needs among other things, availability of
local level data and information on various aspects. Available of
this type of information will be help in taking decisions which are
rationale and based on local needs. Further the element of cost and
time overrun and the ease of use and interactive process necessitate
IT Tools like Geographic Information System (GIS) which has proven
track record of data storage, analysis, retrieval, decision
alternatives and presentations, by integration of both spatial and
attribute parameters that reflect the true representation of field
situation. Analysis of these databases help decision support system
with wide decision alternatives and it’s probable decision outcomes.
GIS by virtue of it’s potential capabilities prove to be a powerful
computerized decision support, analytic and scientific tool which
can be harnessed for various applications where time and cost matter
and where immediate and urgent decisions and monitoring is required.
GIS is an umbrella term encompassing the disciplines that acquire,
manage, and distribute spatially or geographically referenced data
including cadastral surveying, engineering surveying, geodetic
surveying, geophysical surveying, hydrographic surveying,
cartography, photogrammetry, GIS, and remote sensing.
India with it’s agrarian economy lives in rural edifice and the
development of rural areas and particularly in the increasing the
productivity and sustainability of agriculture has been the real
pivot of development fulcrum. Further, a vast majority of the people
living in rural areas, their multifaceted problems and the
complexity of data requirements, necessitate a scientific tool not
very complex yet takes all input information and reflect visible and
predictive outcomes and this in turn can act as decision alternative
for development administration for alleviating people’s and area’s
problems and enhancing their development, at appropriate time when
they require and in a cost effective manner with a cushion in
involving all stack holders i.e., people, political representatives,
voluntary agencies, government functionaries and funding agencies.
Though India raised it’s food production and has emerged as a nation
to meet it’s food requirements to it’s teeming millions, the net
economic gain in the agriculture sector is not substantial compared
to industry and services sector. Further economic access still
remains uneven and there are cases of hunger and malnutrition.
The ever increasing population, severe deforestation, soil erosion,
sedimentation of watersheds, floods, desertification and host of
related factors have been exerting pressure on land, water, forest
and bio-diversity, which are essential for sustainable agriculture.
Policies of green revolution increasing agricultural productivity
through large scale irrigation and extensive use of fertilizers has
led to alarming increase in degraded land/soil salinity/alkalinity
and water logging problems.
Further pressure on food crops requiring large quantum of water and
over exploitation of ground water has depleted ground water levels
and GIS can promise sustainable integrated development in problems
related to agriculture, soil, water, land and environment and help
evolve strategies in the conservation of natural resources and
environment. We have only one earth and human destiny is linked with
the sustenance of this earth. GIS can facilitate to think globally
and to act locally.
Timely and reliable information on cost effective manner in spatial
and temporal domain, which can act as a reliable baseline
information on natural resources at scale ranging from regional to
micro levels, can be generated by satellite remote sensing, which
can help integrated analysis for natural resources inventory,
management and planning the strategy for sustainable development and
stand as a proven effective administrative and management tool for
decision making.
Rural development mission has been to bring in all-round development
of rural people and the area and in the improvement of the quality
of lives of rural populace by appropriate economic and gainful
activities, advancement in literacy and health standards and through
information dissemination and empowerment.
The impending problems of this development spectrum had been that of
timely action, reliability of data, information flows, improper
monitoring systems, cost effectiveness, appropriate resource
management, lack of unidirectional objectives by agencies operating
i.e duplication of efforts, and lack of proper funding mechanism.
These parameters have diluted the development efforts with practical
no visible development outcome in rural areas, even after more than
50 years of independence.
This issues can be addressed by GIS in greater perspective and can
evolve workable solutions and alternatives to improve the decision
tools for development in foreseeable future, by its analytic and
decision generation capabilities and in aiding the decision and
operation managers on a real-time and cost saving manner.
As decentralization and empowerment of people is mandatory under the
Indian Constitution, all efforts at all levels of administration and
local bodies should gear up to perform their activities and shoulder
their responsibilities and bring development at the forefronts of
each and every initiatives, where modern tools like GIS gives a
fillip to the whole process and catalyses the implementation process
in a judicious and optimum manner bringing in great advantages of
reduction in the cost and time overruns.
The Planning Commissions efforts along with the Department of Space
on the Integrated Mission for Sustainable Development (IMSD) for
generation of local specific action plans for sustainable
development of land and water resources on watershed basis by
integrating thematic information using satellite data with
collateral information and socio-economic inputs. The IMSD action
basically recommends towards improvement of soil and water
conservation ensuring enhanced productivity while maintaining
ecological and environmental integrity of the area/region, which are
being implemented at grass-root levels by the district
administration and local agencies.
Another aspect of GIS efforts has been the National (Natural)
Resources Information System (NRIS), which forms the core
information system for national, regional, state and district level
databases of thematic and non-spatial data. Though the efforts are
on to cover the entire country, the GIS database organization in
priority districts has given useful planning capabilities for
resource management. Once completed, the database can form a
backbone for national natural resources information needs.
Another useful effort on bio-diversity characterization mapping at
landscape levels in selected areas like the North-Eastern Region,
Western Ghats and North-West Himalayan Region, using satellite
remote sensing and GIS aim at bio-prospecting and conservation by
biological richness modeling. This ambitious project expect to keep
India in the front runners of the GIS technological front.
Natural Resources Data Management System (NRDMS) - an S&T programme
of the Government of India has been launched by the Department of
Science and Technology (DST) to catalyse the evolution of
methodologies and techniques for formulating development strategies.
In a scenario of large diversity odd data sets, data users and data
generating agencies, the programme aims at developing and
demonstrating the use of spatial decision support tools for
integrated planning and management of resources at the local level.
The programme basically expected to cater to the following aspects
namely:
1. Develop district level resource profiles on natural resources and
other allied sectors based on the concepts of GIS
2. Provide software support for data management, modelling and
operation Research
3. Demonstrate the use of resource profiles and GIS methodology in
micro level planning.
4. Promote R&D in spatial data management technology.
5. Training of scientists and potential users.
6. Forge linkages with the users at different levels.
7. Documentation and dissemination of NRDMS methodology
Under NRDMS, database centres have been set up in selected districts
of the country for the development of databases and preparation of
computer based spatial resource profiles useful in formulation of
district level developmental programmes and schemes. State
governments like Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh
and West Bengal have been involved in setting up database centres in
the respective state. Several R & D projects have also been carried
out in areas like watershed management, ground water budgeting,
biomass utilisation, drought assessment and landslide control to
demonstrate the utility of NRDMS approach in micro level planning.
Special emphasis is laid on the training of potential users on this
emerging technology. Accordingly, specialised training modules have
been developed for the training of senior district level officials
and representatives of user departments.
The Forecasting Agricultural Output using Space, Agro meteorology
and Land Based Observation (FASAL) at national level by the
Department of Space for crop production forecasting based on
databases on soils, fertility, irrigation, yield levels and remote
sensing multispectral data can help generate crop yield forecasting
and crop growth simulation models, useful for sustainable
agricultural and sectoral planning.
The Karnataka State Government has evolved an Agro-climate Planning
and Information Bank (APIB) with large scale statistical and spatial
data for agricultural development, to provide area specific
information on all aspects of farm management that can be
implemented by the farmer himself and also help in the preparation
of developmental plans.
GIS Studies on Environmental Impact Assessment, ground water
exploration, suitability of sites for house construction in disaster
prone areas, disaster management, crop and land suitability,
monitoring and evaluation and related aspects have great relevance
to agriculture and rural development.
GIS solutions particularly in watershed management, drought
assessment, water quality monitoring, disease profiling, natural
resource management, and disaster management are most promising
areas of applications in agriculture and rural development scenario
where GIS can be a powerful decision support tool.
GIS solutions in infrastructure and facility management, networking
and logistic management is expected to improve the effective policy
and administrative decisions in all levels and help evolve cost
effective and timely decision alternatives for problems relating
rural areas.
Some of the critical applications of GIS and Remote Sensing can be
summarized as the following, which are embedded in Panchayat Raj
system of administration and peoples involvement in day to day
decision making process:
1. Agricultural development
2. Land evaluation analysis
3. Change detection of vegetated areas
4. Analysis of deforestation and associated environmental hazards
5. Monitoring vegetation health
6. Mapping percentage vegetation cover for the management of land
Degradation
7. Crop acreage and production estimation
8. Wasteland mapping
9. Soil resources mapping
10. Groundwater potential mapping
11. Geological and mineral exploration
12. Rural connectivity mapping
13. Rural infrastructure mapping
14. Thematic mapping
Among the trends in GIS, the following reflect the present status
which has greater significance in Panchayat Raj System:
1. Natural Resources Management
2. GIS based communication
3. Automated mapping and facility management
4. Virtual 3-D GIS giving prespective views of an area and its
features
5. Internet GIS for data communication and interaction
6. Spatial Multi-media for proper presentation
Conclusion
GIS as an integrating tool of remote sensing, IT, cartography and
earth sciences is a powerful computerized tool available for
decision makers and field level functionaries and development
planners and implementers at all levels.
The efforts made and pace of development of various spatial
databases and models under NRDMS, APIB, FASAL, NRIS, IMSD etc need
to be emulated for use and promotion at all levels of Panchayat Raj
System, which would push the decentralization process forward with
greater pace. However the basic problem remain with us is how the
present set up can cope with the requirement of GIS environment,
where data needs to be updated on real time basis and appropriate
analytic tools need to be adopted.
Proper technical and scientific manpower should handle the GIS
activities and interface with all user departments and clientele
groups for developing customized solutions for specific application
solutions.
Data standards and codification is of vital importance in developing
GIS activities and these specifications need to be familiarized
among the users and data generators, to be able to operate on all
platforms.
GIS is still in the infancy in India and there is a growing trend in
application areas in the country. It needs regular conferences,
workshops and seminars for bringing all key people involved in GIS
promotion on one arena and facilitate exchange of ideas among all
and to eliminate duplication of efforts.
General awareness on GIS need to be created among all development
initiators like government functionaries, peoples representatives,
NGOs, local bodies and users for identifying areas of probable use
and to seek help of GIS experts in devising methodologies for use it
their level.
GIS as it’s going to stay and be an integral part of all activities
in government, corporate and local bodies in coming years, school
and college curriculum too need to be incorporated as a premise of
knowledge dissemination.
GIS application may be made compulsory in all government departments
as such tools give timely and cost effective solutions and
systematize working methodologies.
It’s without saying that GIS is making life different in many areas
of our activities and agriculture and rural development and
government functioning will derive greater benefit of this tool and
improve their effectiveness and efficacy in the delivery mechanism.
Use of GIS by the Panchayats can change the whole style of their
working and be helpful in the task assigned to them under the
Constitution 73rd Amendment. It can also improve their efficiency
and effectively in terms of identification of local needs as well as
better utilisation of the local resources.
References
1. Jain, S.P., (2000). Participation, Decentralised Planning and
Panchayati Raj in India, Afro-Asian Journal of Rural Development,
Vol.33, No.1, Jan-June, pp.23-34.
2. Government of India (1978). Report of the Committee on Panchayati
Raj Institutions (Asoka Mehta), pp.70.
3. Government of India (1976). Report of the Committee to Review the
Existing Administrative Arrangements for Rural Development and
Poverty Alleviation Programme (GVK Rao), p.41.
4. Government of India (1984). Report of the Working Group on
District Planning, Vol.1, New Delhi, p.83.
IMPORTANCE OF GIS TECHNOLOGY AT LOCAL LEVEL IN THE
PRESENT CONTEXT
Yogesh Kant and B.L Deekshatulu
CSSTEAP (UN), IIRS Campus,
4 Kalidas Road, Dehradun 248 001, INDIA
ABSTRACT
Maps have been around since the dawn of civilization and GIS with
its roots in mapping technology has a surprisingly long history.
Developments in computer technology in the 1960s and 1970s made it
possible to automate the mapping process (digital cartography). New
trends emerged in the method of handling and using spatial data for
assessment, planning and monitoring as well as making it quicker,
easier and cheaper to produce and update maps, additional benefits
of automation soon became apparent. In India, the major developments
in the field of GIS have happened in the last one decade with
significant contribution coming from Department of Space, Department
of Science & Technology emphasizing the GIS applications for Natural
resources Management. Some of them are Natural Resource Information
System (NRIS), Natural resource Data management System (NRDMS),
Integrated Mission for Sustainable development (IMSD) and
Bio-diversity characterization at National level playing major role
in GIS through education and training programmes. Recently the
commercial organizations in India have emerged in many applications
like natural resource management, infrastructure development,
facility management, business/market and many GIS based projects
according to the user organization requirements.
Sustainable development of a region/country is the development of
methods/techniques to utilize its resources effectively and manage
judiciously. Moreover, in the recent years there is felt the need
for environmental sustainable development which aims at ensuring
human well being by protecting our resources and our environment.
Infrastructure plays a significant role in the development of the
economy and in the upliftment of society at the grass root level.
The conventional methods for planning/development have to be
reviewed to incorporate parameters arising out of social,
environmental and other related socio-economic factors. There is the
need of hour to use high technology for such achievement. Geographic
Information System (GIS) is a vital tool that provides the most
suitable platform for understanding the complexities of the problem,
manipulate with the data, take appropriate decisions and arrive at
appropriate solutions. GIS should be thoroughly investigated as it
is an effective tool in organizing data & giving solutions. It
should be used in organizing/management at local level which is the
ultimate building block of development of any society/country. Under
such studies, planning from the available resources should be
investigated.
The application of GIS in the real world is diverse. GIS has been
used in estimation of the Population Supporting Capacity (PSC) of a
zone for preparing a development master plan. The land is limited &
its ability to produce food is also limited hence, there is a
limitation to the number of people it can sustain in a given area.
Knowledge of these limits can provide help in the development policy
planners to formulate a land use plan. PSC defined the capacity of a
given area of land to support its population under a given
production system. It is dependent upon the total calorie production
in that area and on the per capita consumption. GIS can be used to
integrate the non-spatial and spatial information and arrive at
appropriate solution. The results can be used for analysing status
of food in an area, financial status of people in that area, etc.
Such models are really boon to the socio-economic upliftment. There
have been integrated modeling techniques for the prediction of crop
yield using the remote sensing data (as an input) and modeling using
GIS. GIS is used to integrate spatial and non-spatial data
pertaining to agro-climate, soil, etc with the satellite derived
information. Also, models are available that gives the optimum use
of the local resources and the type of crop or practices to be
accepted depending upon the local geomorpholoical, hydrological and
other related parameters.
Geoinformatics and related GIS technologies are been activated in
hazard prediction, monitoring and in mitigation programmes.
Preparation and documentation of all the relevant spatial &
non-spatial data is thus important. This can be complied at village/Taluka
level, district level and at national level that gives a better
understanding and judgement in the planning process. Bringing these
complicated technologies within the end-users requires very careful
and dedicated efforts towards synergization and customization. In
India, a systematic effort at Nation-wide scale, is being attempted
in the form of NNRMS, NRDMS, IMSD.
The usage /application of GIS at local level is of utmost
importance. The use of Decision Support System (DSS) are helpful in
deciding establishing tube wells, rural land use planning,
afforestation planning/schemes, reclamation of unused/wasteland
etc,. For these kind of analysis, single criterion or multicriterion
procedures are involved. Some developmental activities like
establishment of new schools, hospitals and other amenities could be
effective done through GIS so that the public can avail the optimum
path of road, railways, canals etc,. Further, incorporation of
remote sensing and GPS in DSS would amplify its scope manifold. This
new technology can reduce the time and cost to the planners in
organising the data in arriving at precise conclusion and decisions.
Land records and development of land information can be put in
digital form which can be quickly updated. These can be assessed by
an user and the latest information can be given in a shortest time.
These will surely reduce the ligitations pertaining to land and
related issues. Similarly GIS can also develop soil information of a
village/taluk which can help in scientific planning and development.
The information can be used to assess the capability of the area for
its shortcomings and hence to improve the productivity capacity. The
main course in India is its vast population. GIS can help in
effective implementation of family planning spatial information
related to child mortality (which relates to some environmental
condition that have caused this), higher fertility rates (cultural
preferences for large families), etc,. This information would be
used to adapt family planning outreach programs. More advanced
spatial analysis may include the combination of different data layer
say for example number of children in a certain age group exposed to
certain disease say Malaria. Climate and topographic data can be
used to determine the range of malaria mosquitoes. One such example
where the GIS can be effectively used at local level is development
of Panchayat Resources Information System (PRIS) which is a handy
tool for arriving at concrete decisions.
To make GIS comprehensive, more and more data from all government
departments should be essentially integrated. Like crime history can
be incorporated to analyse crime pattern and law & order management
can be assessed. In this fashion when the entire information is made
available on the net the cherished dream of e-governance will come
true. To disseminate the technology to grass root level, it is
required to popularize the technology through general awareness. In
such tasks government as well as NGO’s can play an important role.
GIS APPLICATION FOR URBAN LAND MANAGEMENT - A CASE STUDY OF
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM CITY REGION, INDIA
Srikumar Chattopadhyay, R.S.Resmi & A.S.Promodh Lal
Centre for Earth Science Studies
P.B.No.7250, Akkulam,
Trivandrum - 695 031 INDIA
ABSTRACT
Land Management to meet dwelling requirements of growing population
is one of the major concerns for urban planning all over the world.
With the increase in settlement, there are automatic felt needs for
water, road network, communication, other social infrastructure and
open space. Traditional management practices focussing on
centralised capacity building and investment in sectoral development
are gradually giving way to decentralised control and spatial
spread. Given the multiplicity and complexity of variables involved,
planning for urban landuse with due consideration to environmental
preservation requires multidisciplinary and multi parametric
approach. The present case study on Thiruvananthapuram city region
covering an area of 327 sq.km in the State of Kerala is one such
attempt. Data were collected by multidisciplinary study team through
field work, topo map analysis, remote sensing and from secondary
sources. As many as 19 maps were prepared to depict various themes
covering relief, geomorphology, slope, cover type, drainage, ground
water, landuse, population density, density of occupied residential
houses, transport network and industry. Information available from
these maps were synthesised through overlay and assigning values at
various steps in a GIS environment using PC Arc/Info software. A
sensitive zone map was prepared to demarcate the areas not to be
used for settlement. Environmental suitability for settlement siting
had been brought out by integrating factor maps in five step overlay
operation.
In step-1, maps showing geomorphology and cover type had been
overlayed and various units emerged in the process were regrouped
under three classes, namely, good, average and poor. Water
availability was added in the 2nd step. Three categories of high,
medium and low grade under land condition and water availability
were identified through reclassification and overlay exercises.
Subsequently, landuse map showing two classes, like, settlement with
mixed tree crops and agglomerated settlement; and population density
map depicting three classes, such as < 1500 person /sq.km, 1500-2500
per sq.km and > 2500 per sq.km were integrated to produce a map on
space availability for settlement siting with three grades of high,
medium and low. The final map on environmental suitability for
settlement siting had been worked out by overlaying the two
synthetic maps on land condition & water availability; and space
availability for settlement siting. Four types of areas were
identified through this exercise. These are (i) area not suitable
for settlement, (ii) area suitable with restrictions, (iii)
moderately suitable area and (iv) highly suitable area.
It is found that area under agglomerated settlement had increased by
155% in a span of 25 years and area under paddy fields/lowlands had
reduced by 35% during the same period. Around 16% of total area
distributed in various parts of Thiruvananthapuram city region is
not suitable for settlement. Another 17% area can accomodate
settlments with various restrictions. The peripheral zone in the
northern and eastern parts of the region accounting 49% of the total
geographical area of Thiruvananthapuram City Region is highly
suitable for settlements.
This paper, apart from presenting a case study, also addresses the
methodological issues involved in GIS application for urban land
management.
GIS IN INDIA: CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES
Ravi Gupta
Editor, GIS@development
G – 4, Sector 39, NOIDA 201 301 INDIA
ABSTRACT
Geographic information systems (GIS) is a computer system capable of
assembling, storing, manipulating and displaying geographically
referenced information, that is, data identified by their locations.
The computerised integration of information through spatial links
has the ability to greatly enhance decision-making across a wide
range of applications.
GIS saves money
Governments are spending billions on collection of geographic
information. For example, the US spends more than $4 billion per
year on geographic data acquisition. Recent estimates show the
global investment in GIS technologies by state and private sector
ranges from $3.3 billion to more than $8 billion with annual growth
rate reaching 30 per cent.
Surely these investments are not without reasons. A report by
Economic Studies and Strategies Unit of PriceWaterhouse on the
economic benefits arising from the acquisition and maintenance of
land and geographic information has estimated that for the period
1989-94 some $1 billion has been spent in Australia on investment in
geographic data. This produced benefits within the economy in the
order of $4.5 billion. The study also found that this investment has
saved users around $5 billion. This implies that there is a saving
of $5 on the investment of $1.
Governments realise that geographic information is an important
infrastructure for a nation's development. The government is the
biggest geographic data generator. It also happens to be the biggest
consumer. In India, for example, out of the Rs 14.30 crore revenue
of National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA) from sale of remote sensing
imagery in 1998-99, 83 per cent revenue came from the government
departments themselves.
Opportunities
The GIS market can broadly be categorised into three segments:
software, hardware and services. US firms dominate all the three
segments. According to NASSCOM, the global compounded annual growth
rate for the GIS services is expected to be around 10 per cent
during 1999-03. The total market for GIS services in North America
is valued at around $2.5 billion. The US and European markets are
offering the most attractive GIS services market for India.
India is emerging as a major data conversion centre for GIS. The GIS
firms from the US, Europe, Japan and Australia have either started
operating directly or are subletting work to Indian firms. This has
created enormous employment opportunities in the sector. Most of
these firms are currently engaged in data conversion, which may
include converting paper maps, aerial photos or remote-sensing
images to digital data in GIS formats.
According to the Electronics and Software Export Council of India
(ESC), the present export size of the Indian GIS industry is around
$75-80 million of which around $60 million is exported to North
America alone. The GIS export industry employs close to 7,000
people. ESC estimates a 15-20 per cent growth in GIS services
exports to North America. Industry sources believe a growth of 30-40
per cent can be estimated for the overall GIS services export market
over the next few years.
India has a good institutional infrastructure for GIS growth. There
is a huge network of institutions collecting geographic information
on every conceivable socially and scientifically relevant subject.
The Survey of India, Geological Survey of India, National Atlas and
Thematic Mapping Organisation, and National Informatics Centre are
some of major government agencies, which are not only the generators
of geographic data, but also the one of the biggest consumers of GIS
software, hardware and services. Hosts of other organisations under
various central and state governments are also involved in
geographical data acquisition. Moderate estimate of the budget of
the agencies is more than Rs 1,000 crore per year.
The Indian market potential in GIS is high. In 2000 alone, the
Indian government invited tenders worth more than Rs 200 crore in
this sector. It also estimates that the private players in
infrastructure, telecom and other utilities are spending around Rs
50 crore annually on GIS products and services. The growth rate of
the Indian GIS market is estimated to be around 30-40 per cent per
annum. The initiatives by NRSA and Space Application Centre (SAC) in
vendor development have been creditable.
Challenges
GIS without data is like an arrow in the dark. Government has
traditionally generated most of the geographic data. In India, it is
very difficult to access any government-generated data. Maps of the
'restricted' areas are not easily accessible. Aerial photography is
virtually banned. Digitisation of Survey of India toposheets can be
done only by a few government agencies. Digital data are not
available with most of the data producing agencies and at times even
analogue data are not accessible. These results in ad hoc
arrangements that benefit neither the government sector nor the
private sector, which functions in a climate of extreme uncertainty.
The major impediments to the widespread and successful use of
geographic information in India are not technical, but political and
organisational. There is a lack of concerted action and political
critical mass at both national and state levels. Attempts to develop
a coherent information policy are likely to be opposed by sections
advocating conflicting goals. There is no national mandate on
geographic information. This retards development of information
strategies and causes unnecessary costs, and stifles new goods and
services. Worse, there is lack of awareness among the
decision-makers at all levels. Geographic information arena in India
is still immature with broad set of issues yet to be resolved. There
is no cohesive GIS community that can take up these problems with
the top brass of the government.
Some hope
The possibility for Indian firms and experts to participate in
overseas GIS projects depends upon the exemplarity of the national
model and the capacity of firms to promote and sell it. Due to the
small domestic market for GIS, there's no training ground for firms
to experiment, learn from failures, take risks and innovate. Thus
Indian firms are unprepared to take on international competition in
higher value chain segments. The restrictive and unclear government
regulations inhibit the growth of the domestic market, which, in
turn, prevents Indian companies from showcasing their skills in the
global arena.
The government, of late, has recognised the importance of managing
and disseminating the geographic information and is taking steps to
develop a National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI), which will be
accessible to the masses. Still, the extent of private sector
participation in this mega project is largely unclear.
In spite of all types of hurdles faced by the GIS industry in the
country, and its teething problems and its growth remaining largely
unnoticed by the mainstream IT community, the sector has done well
for itself. The industry is already looking towards industry
associations like NASSCOM, CII and FICCI to take the lead in
addressing the problems of this sector which would not only make the
government services more cost- and time-efficient but also make
India the GIS hub of the world, the position which it truly
deserves. |
