Dr A P J Abdul Kalam, The President of India outlines the priorities
and mission for Indian cartographers while addressing the 26th
Congress of Indian National Cartographic Association
I am delighted to participate
in the 26th Congress of the
Indian National Cartographic
Association (INCA). My greetings
to the organizers, delegates of the
Conference, cartographers, scientists
and technologists, users of cartographic
products and distinguished guests.
India has a vision of transforming
itself into a developed nation
before 2020. There are number of
missions which need inputs from
cartography technologies that will
certainly accelerate the process of
development. The programme such as
Bharat Nirman Programme including
PURA (Providing Urban Amenities
in Rural Areas), networking of rivers,
infrastructure development in 63 cities
through Jawaharlal Nehru Urban
Renewable Mission, mapping of
earthquake prone areas and recurring
floods in north Bihar and Assam
require vital inputs at the stage of
planning and implementation level. The
mission of INCA should be to assist
the implementation of developed India
vision using their core competence in
cartography in partnership with ISRO,
NRSA, Survey of India, State Remote
Sensing centers, Thematic map making
organizations, Indian Remote Sensing Industries, Academia, Research
Institutions and other IT organizations.
Hence, I would like to talk to you on
the topic "Cartographers: Partners in
National Development". Let us now
look at some typical requirements
of rural and urban development
programmes of the nation, where
cartographers are major partners.
PURA (Providing Urban
Amenities in Rural Areas)
India is on the mission of establishing
7,000 PURAs (Providing Urban
Amenities in Rural Areas) in different
parts of the country integrating six
hundred thousand villages (2 lakh
village Panchayats). This integration
will bring prosperity to rural India.
PURA envisages four connectivities:
the physical connectivity of village
clusters through quality roads and
transport; electronic connectivity
through tele-communication with high
bandwidth fiber optic cables reaching
the rural areas from urban cities and
through internet kiosks; knowledge
connectivity through education, skill
training for farmers, artisans and
crafts persons and entrepreneurship
programmes. These three connectives
will lead to economic
connectivity through the
establishment of enterprises with
the help of banks, micro credit
and marketing of products. Since
the PURA Clusters need road
connectivity, the optimum road
alignment without damaging
the environment, uprooting
the trees and disturbing the
water bodies is a prerequisite.
The information has to be
generated for each block for
meeting the 11th plan demands of establishing number of PURAs
in the State. As a part of physical
connectivity, link roads emanating
from PURA clusters joining the main
roads have to be planned in such a
way that they can meet the growing
traffic resulting out of higher economic
activity in the PURA Clusters.
A combination of ground survey,
satellite remote sensing data, and
Aerial pictures has to be used to derive
relevant maps at larger scale better
than 1:10,000 and even at the level of
1:2000 as appropriate in a time bound
manner within the next two years.
Jawaharlal Nehru National
Urban Renewal Mission
The Government of India has
undertaken several initiatives
to encourage sustainable urban
development in the country,
including the recent declaration of a
national incentive-linked fund, the
Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban
Renewal Mission (JNNURM). The
JNNURM covers 63 of the largest
cities in India. The Ministry of Urban
Development (MUD) has been
designated as Executing Agency (EA)
for the infrastructure and governance
component of the JNNURM. India's
cities require structured infrastructural
development, environmental
upgradation and adequate urban
infrastructure, particularly the planned
sewage and drainage system. The entire
infrastructure needs improvement
quantitatively and in qualitatively.
Urban development and management
is necessary to deliver better quality
of life to our citizens, considering the
local and national economic growth.
Thus, JNNURM envisages provision
of modern drainage system, provision
of drinking water in each house,
electrical and electronic connectivity,
rain water harvesting and water
recycling and provision of congestion
free roads. JNNURM is a time bound
programme. It is very important for the
cartographers to provide cartographic
data for each of the 63 cities and
towns, using the satellite imagery
coupled with GIS. They should first
establish the existing road network with contours, green areas, location
of original water bodies, existing
sewage and drainage systems. New
alignment has to be provided keeping
a 50 years growth profi le in mind
updated at an interval of ten years.
Availing temporal information obtained
through satellite remote sensing will
enable better planning and regular
monitoring. Based on this study,
they must provide new connectivity
contours, the new sewage system
alignment, possible transportation of
sewage system remains after treatment
and above all a multi-layered road
system to remove traffi c congestion.
It should be made mandatory for the
city administration to use such data
and information for decision making.
Disaster Management
Earthquake
Though India is rich in natural
resources, many parts of India also
faces different types of natural disasters
such as earthquake, incessant down
pour leading to localized fl oods,
drought, avalanche and landslide in
hilly areas, storms and tsunami. It may
not be possible to avert the natural
disasters, but the suffering and misery
due to loss of life and adverse socioeconomic
impact can be minimized.
First the mapping of the earthquake
prone areas with suitable details
enables the detailed precautions in
construction and emergency actions.
A powerful-enough earthquake just a
few seconds in duration can still make
current maps suddenly out of date, at
the same time severing power lines,
gas mains and water pipes. Secondary
disasters such as landslides may have
taken place in some areas. Satellite
images can provide updated views of
how the landscape has been affected,
while images before and after the event
enable authoritative damage assessment
as a basis for planning remedial action.
Flood and water management
I have observed certain unique features
in the river system of Bihar. Though
Ganga, the main river is flowing from West to East, there are two types of
flows coming into the Ganga. Because
of the flow from both the directions
no water is saved and everything
goes to the Sea. Also, the main flood
bearing river the Kosi when it comes
into Bihar is already in the plains
and we have to find innovative flood
management techniques. Cartographers
should provide high resolution
maps in partnership with agencies involved in satellite imagery and
aerial photography for planning water
harvesting and water management
system leading to flood control even
in the steep slopes of hill area.
An Open Letter:
To: Dr A P J Abdul Kalam, President of India
Sub: India has a VISION
Ref: President Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam Address at INCA 2006
Dear Dr Kalam,
While reading with great interest your vision articulated at 26th INCA 2006, India
deserves nothing less than the best. The correct mapping of the Defense Series of
Maps (DSMs), which will be produced by Military Survey Directorate and Survey
of India as mandated in National Map Policy released last year, is extremely
critical. Any thing less can lead to "life or death" of a war fi ghter. I interpret
this "A dead war fi ghter would never return to tell us what was wrong".
Here, I would like to identify the contribution of geodesists of the Survey
of India (SOI) towards the fulfi llment of the VISION. They must stop using
the 19th century Indian Datum, 1980s "solutions" of the West, and an
un-valid datum, which does not exist. Only a correct and accurate newly
realized Indian Geodetic Reference System (IGRS) would provide the required
geodetic foundation. The cartographers will never progress, if they will keep
using the status quo or 16th century UTM projection with its problematic
grid system for the Indian datum. They would have to come out of the
bondage of the past and look towards the new concepts and solution(s).
Fortunately, starting of the new DSMs and OSMs has provided the
SOI a unique opportunity to lead the "change" from the OLD to
the NEW. Additionally, the SOI does not have to search for the new
revolutionary solutions, as they are already available. I might point
that the new "solutions" have evolved just at the right time.
My humble request, as an India born ex-SOI officer, is that my extraordinary
geodetic and cartographic expertise should be considered by India.
I am fully aware of all about the "Good Coordinates" for India and
have all the "right" solutions, which will make it possible to march
ahead with full speed. Considering all the aspects, I guarantee that my
contribution India will have the "best" IGRS, DSMs, and OSMs.
When you as President of India invoked a VISION, it must be
fulfilled. But, ALL this can only be achieved with sustained effort
and "revolutionary" new solutions. And, time is now for the Indian
geodesists and cartographers to start the "visionary" march.
With best regards, sincerely yours,
Muneendra Kumar, Ph.D.
Flood control through Layered wells
There is an urgent need to find longterm
solution to control flood, store
and utilize the surplus water during drought. In the Gangetic region, I
have recommended construction of
layered wells in the entry points of
Kosi river. Normally the flood water
has certain dynamic flow conditions.
The layered wells assist gradual
reduction in dynamic flow velocity
after filling each storage well. The
water thus stored will be useful during
shortage period. Similar solution can
be found for the north-eastern region.
The complex problem today is to find
out the location of multi-layered well
in the entry point of floods arising from
the Himalayan region. Innovation lies
in finding a suitable place in finding a
solution even though the Indian side
entry point contours are very steep.
Hence, there is a big challenge to
cartographers to provide location of
multi-layered wells, taking into account
the path of the flood water movement.
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