“We look forward to India emerging as a mapping power, creating next generation indigenous maps of India and taking these new technologies to the rest of the world.”
It was heartening to read this statement in the press release from the Department of Science & Technology (GoI) on 15th Feb 2021. The revised Mapping Guidelines, in its entirety, can be accessed here. For an in-depth explanation of the release - you may read these articles published in The Times of India, Mint and Hindustan Times respectively.
Context
The Indian Mapping sector has remained highly regulated since the British times. For instance, The Survey of India is technically the only agency legally permitted to produce Maps in India. To create, modify or disseminate geodata, one needs approvals from the government (and you can imagine the hassles involving bureaucracy that one has to contend with).
To procure Satellite Imagery from any source, one needs to submit a request to the NRSC (National Remote Sensing Centre), the processing of which often takes considerable time - Direct Purchases from Satellite operators is not possible. Comprehensive PoI (Point of Interest) datasets are usually accessed by only those with deep pockets. Believe it or not, an authentic PoI dataset of New Delhi, the capital of India, will set you back upwards of half a crore rupees! Such datasets are very useful for performing geospatial analysis which benefit individuals, organizations and institutions alike.
In comparison, the Mapping sector in some of the other major economies around the world is much deregulated. Quality geodata is captured, updated, and disseminated by the government as well as private entities. For example, in the USA, geodata as granular as Household-level Ownership of Selfie Sticks is not only captured but is publicly available too. This means that, if one wants to, one can use this dataset to identify if there is a relationship between the ownership of Selfie Sticks in a particular neighborhood and its inclination to vote for a particular Political Party!
In India, besides the decennially published Census data, there is a shortage of authentic household-level geospatial data. The next census is due this year (2021) which means if I wanted to do any Socio-economic analysis using publicly available geodata today, I am likely t be compelled to use the old and significantly outdated 2011 Census data for my study.
These new Reforms give an impetus to Indian organizations to create, update and disseminate geodata at a fair price to those who can benefit from it.
Why now?
The Mapping sector Reforms are in line with the current government's 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' vision (that of a Self-Reliant India) which sees the likes of Twitter and Pub-G facing competition from domestically created apps today - Koo & FAU-G respectively. In the Mapping sector, there is a near monopoly of heavyweights such as Google, NASA and Planet Labs. However, the winds of change have already started blowing - ISRO has recently tied up with MapmyIndia to offer an indigenous Satellite-based Mapping service - the Indian alternative to Google, Bing and Apple Maps.
Even the adoption of NavIC (India's counter to USA's GPS - Global Positioning System) is going mainstream after the International Maritime Organization (IMO) recognized its capabilities and included it as a component in the World-Wide Radio Navigation System (WWRNS). This is a significant development in that it gives Indian Mapping companies an opportunity to develop an ecosystem around it - be it Chips, Receivers, Network Service, Analytics, and so on. More than 2,000 Trains in the country now have NavIC installed in it and Realme recently became the first mobile handset manufacturer to offer a smartphone with India's very own GPS installed in it.
The Role of Reforms
The vision of the current government pertaining to the Mapping sector, as captured in these Reforms, is appreciable for two reasons - a) it opens up avenues for the creation of high quality geodata of the nation and b) the beneficiaries of these Reforms are those entities who store and display the geodata within India.
While the rationale behind the latter - obvious economic and security implications - is well understood, the acute need for India to create high quality geodata is not something that has captured the attention of the masses.
As things stand, the availability of high quality, authentic and updated geodata is very limited in India. Geodata is nothing but normal data albeit which is linked to a position on, above or below the surface of the Earth. For example, where you reside is your Address - when this attribute is linked to positional information i.e. to coordinates, the data becomes geodata.
'What constitutes high quality Geodata?', you may wonder. Below are some of the prerequisites -
a) when geodata has 'Z values' which corresponds to elevation or depth - this makes the geodata informationally rich due to being three-dimensional (3D) in nature
b) When geodata has 'Time' information embedded to it - this enables the possibility to perform spatiotemporal analysis on the dataset. See this Map-based Video illustration which shows the spread of Coronavirus over a period of time or explore this interesting post on analyzing Road Accidents spatiotemporally
c) When the geodata is higher in resolution. Did you know the Indian origin Cartosat-3 satellite captures imagery with a resolution of 0.25 metres per pixel? - It is the highest in the world as on date
d) When the geodata is frequently updated, validated, summarized, processed and disseminated. These go a long way in developing authentic datasets which help towards the preparation of highly impactful workflows
Which industries can benefit from these Reforms?
Virtually any industry can benefit from these Reforms.
Strategic sectors such as Defense, Infrastructure, Logistics and Agriculture are some of the prime beneficiaries as the Reforms paves way for Private entities to capture High Resolution Street-level Imagery Dataset < 1m in resolution - this was barred until today. Smart Cities, Law Enforcement, Public Transport and Healthcare can also now access valuable geodata and improve their operations, performance and coverage.
As for the Private sector, organizations can now create, store and analyze geodata for market research purposes - It can aid in answering questions like 'Where do I locate my new store?', 'Where do I procure my Agri Raw Material from?' etc.
Aside from geodata over Land, significant opportunities are expected to arise from the capture of geodata over Water. The Government of India has already allocated nearly INR 6,000 crores for its ambitious Deep Ocean Mission project which 'envisages exploration of minerals, energy and marine diversity of the underwater world, a vast part of which still remains unexplored.'
Is everything rosy?
Government regulations for the creation and dissemination of geodata, which were an impediment, have now been relaxed. It remains to be seen how quickly the Indian Mapping sector can activate its dormant capabilities and leverage Hardware, Software and Human Resource Skills to usher in an era of Authentic, High Quality geodata creation. Just like Rome wasn't built in a day, it is anticipated that we will take some time to get up to speed with global counterparts. However, in my opinion, these Reforms were much needed and are definitely a step in the right direction.
Update - 9th September 2021:
What are the latest rules governing Drone flights in India?
Refer to this Policy Notification released by the Government of India on 25th August 2021. India's Drone Policy is subject to regular revisions. The latest release was met favorably by the stakeholders in the country's Drone ecosystem. Read the interpretation of the Notification here.
ABOUT US
Intelloc Mapping Services | Mapmyops.com is based in Kolkata, India and engages in providing Mapping solutions that can be integrated with Operations Planning, Design and Audit workflows. These include but are not limited to - Drone Services, Subsurface Mapping Services, Location Analytics & App Development, Supply Chain Services, Remote Sensing Services and Wastewater Treatment. The services can be rendered pan-India, some even globally, and will aid an organization to meet its stated objectives especially pertaining to Operational Excellence, Cost Reduction, Sustainability and Growth.
Broadly, our area of expertise can be split into two categories - Geographic Mapping and Operations Mapping. The Infographic below highlights our capabilities.
Our 'Mapping for Operations'-themed workflow demonstrations can be accessed from the firm's Website / YouTube Channel and an overview can be obtained from this flyer. Happy to address queries and respond to documented requirements. Custom Demonstration, Training & Trials are facilitated only on a paid-basis. Looking forward to being of service.
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