The National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI-V) workshop “National Spatial Data Infrastructure for Bharat Nirman” was organized by National Informatics Centre (NIC) from 18th to 20th December, 2005 at
Ramoji Film City, Hyderabad. The workshop was inaugurated by Shri Rajeev Ratna Shah, Member Secretary, Planning Commission and the concluding session was chaired by Shri V Sampat, Addl Secretary, Ministry of Urban Development. The workshop mainly stressed upon the policy and technical issues related to spatial data, standards and quality control to ensure interoperability across various sectors of planning. A number of Heads of Organization including Surveyor General of India, Director Forest Survey of India, Director General of National Informatics Centre and Members of Central Water Commission attended the workshop. Coordinates was the media partner of this conference. On the occassion, the NSDI special issue was released by Mr Rajeev Ratna Shah.

The workshop discussed various issues in various technical sessions:
i. Review of NSDI activities;
ii. NSDI for Urban Renewal Mission;
iii. NSDI for Bharat Nirman
iv. NSDI contents and standards
v. NSDI interoperability and OGC

The need for operationalising NSDI expeditiously has been voiced by all members. At the end of the workshop, on 20th December, 2005, all the delegates deliberated and decided to adopt the Hyderabad Communique as given hereunder :

1. NSDI-V reiterates the Lucknow resolution of quickly operationalising the NSDI through government resolutions;

2. Urges the SOI for the quick release of implementation guidelines for the National Map Policy which has already been approved by the Cabinet;

3. Further, urges Survey of India, the nodal agency for the Map Policy, to bring out technical procedures and mechanisms for the Foundation dataset and National Spatial Framework;

4. Recommends a national endeavour to generate and position a new series of 1:10,000 scale maps for the entire country - which is critical for locale specific planning and developmental activities and which will benefit at all levels from the village/ community to national level;

5. Position policies and structures for NSDI to evolve a systematic public-private partnership. The possibility of NSDI as autonomous independent agency from the government stake holder agencies which can independently evolve a business model for NSDI needs to be explored;

6. NSDI should demonstrate and show-case from conceptual level to all users and data providers by operationalizing the electronic clearing house developed with Canadian collaboration. NSDI data agencies are urged to populate sample data sets for the clearing house;.

7. Urges all agencies to quickly populate the metadata as per the established standard and operationalize it through NSDI clearing house within the next six months;

8. Develop fast track templates/ procedures for outsourcing of tasks to private industry and to provide various solutions and services;

9. Endeavour to integrate and modify the existing policies for ground survey data, aerial surveys data, satellite data, topographic/thematic/ census/cadastral maps and GIS database into a comprehensive and holistic National Spatial Information Policy which will provide a over-arching framework for generation, archiving, utilization and dissemination of all forms of spatial data in the country;

10. Recognize that the datasets generated in the private sector have got potential for many applications and thus be made part of NSDI metadata. The private industry should quickly come forward to populate the metadata as per the standard of NSDI which will reduce duplication of efforts;

11. Urges the NSDI Task Force to continue the standard definition process for NSDI and further define Standards for Content, Design, Spatial Framework, Quality, Exchange and Services etc for NSDI. Noting the importance and critical need for land records maps, the Task Force could also undertake defining standards for cadastral map and LIS. Further, the Task Force is also urged to prepare documents related to terminologies and toponymy for the NSDI. All these efforts would bring about a common understanding and further the goals of NSDI;

12. Continue the leadership in various international organizations such as the GSDI and PCGIAP;

13. Initiate action for a standardized capacity building endeavour so that the required number of professionals are available for furthering the NSDI goals;

14. Constitute a sub group under the Task Force to study/ assess the legal/policy issues of spatial data, in the context of NSDI, and come out with a comprehensive document detailing the legal, policy and IPR guidelines related to NSDI;

15. The NSDI Task Force is charged to initiate actions on the above and
coordinate the progress, review and completion of the actions;

This Hyderabad Communiqué for NSDI is adopted by 120 delegates from 35 departments/agencies on 20th day of December 2005.