SURVEY OF INDIA - GOVERNANCE
News: Survey
of India to remain the arbiter of maps that deal with State borders and
national boundaries
What's in the news?
● The
Survey of India (SoI), India’s 250-year-old map maker, while no longer having a
monopoly on making high resolution maps, will remain the arbiter of maps that
deal with State borders and national boundaries.
● They
will also maintain and provide reference stations that are vital to
cartographers to prepare higher resolution maps.
Key takeaways:
● In
December 2022, the Centre officially released the National Geospatial Policy of India that allows any private agency
to make high resolution maps.
● Before
this, the Survey of India made various categories of maps that, while available
for nominal charges, were relatively hard to access.
● Moreover,
maps made for “civilian purposes” were coarser than the “defence series maps”
that were more detailed but only accessible to the Defence Ministry.
Continuously Operating Reference Stations:
● The
SoI will continue to maintain CORS
(Continuously Operating Reference Stations) that are necessary to create
accurate digital maps.
● A
CORS consists of a GPS receiver operating continuously, and a stable antenna
for continuously streaming raw data.
● Such
reference stations are present all over the globe to monitor the Earth’s crust
to provide geodetic control, track manmade and natural structures, and
facilitate accurate navigation.
National Geospatial Policy:
● The
geospatial policy sets out goals and targets such as a high resolution topographical
survey and digital elevation model by 2030.
● It
also lays out a framework to create high resolution maps of the ocean floor
around India, its assets, and making “digital twins” or virtual replicas of
physical structures.
● It
allows any private agency to make high resolution maps.
Survey of India:
● It
was established in 1767 and is the oldest scientific department of the
Government of India.
● It
is the National Survey and Mapping
Organization of the country.
Administrative Control:
Department of Science & Technology.
Headquarters: Dehradun,
Uttarakhand.
Members:
● It
is headed by the Surveyor-General of
India.
● Survey
of India draws its members from the Survey of India Service cadre of the Indian
civil services and army officers from the Indian Army Corps of Engineers.
Functions:
● Its
chief responsibility is to ensure that India’s domain is explored and mapped
appropriately.
● It
also provides base maps for expeditious and integrated development of the
country by ensuring that all resources contribute to the progress, security and
prosperity of the nation for the present and the future.
● The
Survey of India acts as adviser to the Government of India on all survey
matters, viz Geodesy, Photogrammetry,
Mapping and Map Reproduction.
Projects:
● SOI
is the technology implementation agency for the SVAMITVA Scheme.
● Under
the National Mission For Clean Ganga
(NMCG), SOI is involved in generating High Resolution Digital Elevation
Model (DEM).
● Sahyog App
– SOI has developed the Sahyog App with which users can voluntarily support and
contribute in preparing, updating and enriching the national database of the
country.