The second panel of the AGI GeoResilience Symposium, held today, brought together experts to discuss the role of geospatial technologies in advancing disaster response and recovery. Effective disaster management strategies have become increasingly crucial in the face of intensifying natural disasters and climate change.
Data Democratization
Ashish Kumar Jena, Joint Special Relief Commissioner, Govt of Odisha, emphasized the importance of data democratization in disaster management. Many agencies are creating their own data like land records department, forest management and disaster management departments. These data are possessively held within their own departments. There is a need for accessibility of these data by every department as well as the public domain that can seamlessly operate without any setbacks.
He highlighted the issue of duplication of efforts that results in a loss of efficiency within departments, stating, and “One of the major causes of concern that is duplication of efforts. There is a lot of data available but due to each department being very protective of their data and wanting to create their own niche, there is a lot of data being created without any integration.”
To address this challenge, Mr. Jena advocated for “oneness of technology,” citing the success of Kerala’s Disaster Tracking tool as an example of effective data integration. He also stressed the need for capacity building among stakeholders to ensure the effective utilization of geospatial technologies.
Dr. Milap Punia, Centre for the Study of Regional Development, School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, discussed the Sendai Framework, a global framework for disaster risk reduction. He said, “The Sendai Framework focuses on the adoption of measures which address the three dimensions of disaster risk (exposure to hazards, vulnerability and capacity, and hazard’s characteristics) in order to prevent the creation of new risk, reduce existing risk and increase resilience.”
He emphasized the importance of the NGP (14 fundamental layers) in providing a standardized framework for geospatial data.
Dr. Punia also highlighted the role of UNGGIM in providing disaster services and a need to focus on loss and damage, recognizing the importance of recovery in disaster management. He also called for increased government funding and foresight into technological advancements.
New Data, Geospatial Readiness, and Data Transferability
Sreeramam GV, CEO, NeoGeoInfo Technologies, emphasized the need for new data, stating, “The world is changing very fast. We need new data, data on demand.” He also stressed the importance of geospatial readiness and the need for accurate, localized data that can be easily transferred between platforms.
Mitika Garg, Senior Solutions Architect, Oracle, advocated for a single enterprise system that integrates different datasets, enabling seamless data sharing and utilization. She said, “There is a need for scalability in applications using ML and IoT for effective disaster management.”
Data democratization, eliminating duplication, embracing the Sendai Framework and NGP, and incorporating UNGGIM’s services are essential steps forward critical role of geospatial technologies in enhancing disaster response and recovery. Moreover, the need for new data, geospatial readiness, accurate localized data, data transferability, a single enterprise system, and scalable ML/IoT applications must be addressed to optimize disaster management strategies.
