Now, Indian private players can map & produce geospatial data: Deptt. Of Science & Technology

Indian private players can map & produce geospatial data Deptt. Of Science & Technology

The Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, has opened map-making process and producing geospatial data in the country for Indian private players. Prime Minister Narendra Modi appreciated the move and informed the country in a series of tweets calling the move a significant step towards making India Aatmanirbhar.

 Indian private players can map & produce geospatial data Deptt. Of Science & TechnologyAs of now, mapping was rested with a government preserve, handled by the Central government’s Survey of India. However, following the announcements from today,  any Indian entity can participate in the process and profit from it. Citing the reason for the move, DST said, on the principle that what is readily available globally need not be restricted in India.

The announcements by DST could probably lure the potential private players seeking maps and data that suit their specific purposes.

As reported by a national daily, according to Ashutosh Sharma, Secretary, DST, “Geospatial data is foundational and vital to all manner of planning, governance, services, infrastructure, and applications.” Speaking in New Delhi today, he said the ease of collecting data, using it, and sharing it was a key concern of the government as it took the decision to free the process. He also said that deregulation, i.e., not requiring prior approval for survey, was another criterion.

“Government agencies and private sector must collaborate very strongly to avoid duplication and also to bring in speed and scale in the whole process of collecting and using data,” he said.

Moreover, the Government of India issued some guidelines for the new rules to function. For instance, there is a restriction on revealing the attributes or features of sensitive areas even though there would be none on surveying the area itself.

Also, for terrestrial mapping and surveying, only Indian entities have been shown a green flag and the data generated from such processes can be owned only by Indians. However, foreign private players are allowed to licence the information but not own it.

Now, Indian private players can map & produce geospatial data: Deptt. Of Science & Technology

Des: The Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, has opened map-making process and producing geospatial data in the country for Indian private players.Indian private players can map & produce geospatial data Deptt. Of Science & Technology

The Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, has opened map-making process and producing geospatial data in the country for Indian private players. Prime Minister Narendra Modi appreciated the move and informed the country in a series of tweets calling the move a significant step towards making India Aatmanirbhar.

As of now, mapping was rested with a government preserve, handled by the Central government’s Survey of India. However, following the announcements from today,  any Indian entity can participate in the process and profit from it. Citing the reason for the move, DST said, on the principle that what is readily available globally need not be restricted in India.

The announcements by DST could probably lure the potential private players seeking maps and data that suit their specific purposes.

As reported by a national daily, according to Ashutosh Sharma, Secretary, DST, “Geospatial data is foundational and vital to all manner of planning, governance, services, infrastructure, and applications.” Speaking in New Delhi today, he said the ease of collecting data, using it, and sharing it was a key concern of the government as it took the decision to free the process. He also said that deregulation, i.e., not requiring prior approval for survey, was another criterion.

“Government agencies and private sector must collaborate very strongly to avoid duplication and also to bring in speed and scale in the whole process of collecting and using data,” he said.

Moreover, the Government of India issued some guidelines for the new rules to function. For instance, there is a restriction on revealing the attributes or features of sensitive areas even though there would be none on surveying the area itself.

Also, for terrestrial mapping and surveying, only Indian entities have been shown a green flag and the data generated from such processes can be owned only by Indians. However, foreign private players are allowed to licence the information but not own it.