Andhra Pradesh Space Applications Centre (APSAC) organised a seminar on “Building new India by leveraging geospatial technologies” – in association with Survey of India, Government of India and Geospatial Media and Communications, New Delhi on 06th September, 2019 at the Taj Gateway Hotel, Vijayawada. It was inaugurated by Sri. P. Subhash Chandra Bose, Hon’ble Dy. CM and Minister for Revenue, Registration & Stamps, Sri. M. Goutham Reddy, Hon’ble Minister for Industries, Commerce and Information Technology, Govt. of Andhra Pradesh, Lt General Girish Kumar, VSM, Surveyor General of India, Sri. Anoop Singh, IFS, Principal Secy. ITE & C, GoAP, Sri. Prashant Joshi, Vice President, Geospatial Media and Communication, Sri. Sanjeev Trehan, Director, Government & Business, Trimble India and Sri. A. Nageswara Rao, Vice Chairman, APSAC. The aim of Geospatial Caravan is to encourage collaboration between policy makers, Industry, academia and civil society on:
- Whole of Government approach to build and maintain Geospatial Data Infrastructure, while leveraging capabilities of the private sector
- Road map to creating an integrated geospatial infrastructure in the context of Andhra Pradesh
- Understanding multi-sectoral needs and requirements
In the inaugural address, the Hon’ble Dy. CM and Minister for Revenue & Stamps, Sri. P Subash Chandra Bose cited on the initiatives taken by Government of Andhra Pradesh lead by Hon’ble Chief Minister, Sri. Y.S.Jagan Mohan Reddy in mapping / updation of the land records of the state of Andhra Pradesh using advance survey techniques.
Sri. M. Gautham Reddy, Hon’ble Minister for Industries, Commerce and Information Technology, Govt. of Andhra Pradesh, in his address to the gathering as Guest of Honour, appreciated the achievements of APSAC in generation of state-wide geospatial database and in catering the needs of the line departments of the Govt. of Andhra Pradesh. He stressed upon the use of advanced survey and mapping technologies over the rudimentary means and focused on the use of Geospatial Technology, which is termed as the cutting edge technology for better planning and implementation of all the NAVARATNALU Programs of the present Government by adhering to better governance practices. He also agreed for establishment of a Centre for Excellence on Geospatial Technology in the state of Andhra Pradesh.
Lt General Girish Kumar, VSM, Surveyor General of India, in his keynote address enlightened the Survey of India (SoI) mandate which focuses on shifting paradigm of survey and mapping from traditional survey technologies to ultra-modern technologies like UAV and Drone based mapping coupled with LiDAR sensor for precise mapping. Surveyor General of India requested the Hon’ble Ministers of Govt. of Andhra Pradesh to help SoI in establishing its campus in Andhra Pradesh. He also expressed his willingness to run a free-of-cost pilot project of Drone survey for a village in the state to demonstrate the benefits of the upcoming technology.
Sri. Anoop Singh, IFS, Principal Secy. ITE & C, GoAP, in his key note address, focused on the use of technology for improved & accountable governance in the state of Andhra Pradesh. He requested the august gathering and the Heads of the departments of Govt. of Andhra Pradesh present in the workshop to use the available Geospatial Technology and the rich GIS Database available with APSAC to address the issues of the target groups.
The programme is conducted to build bridges across departments to develop new capabilities and models to decision makers for forming strategies, better planning and decision making using advanced geospatial techniques. It also includes Geospatial data infrastructure, linking / mapping of departmental core data which provides the critical ‘where’ or location component to any data or system.
Officials from various departments of GoAP such as Town & Country Planning, RD & PR, SS & LR along with, SoI, Airport Authority of India, NIC from Govt. of India and representatives from Geospatial Industry presented case studies in the relevant domain areas of applications of Geospatial Technology.
About 160 officials from Revenue, WRD, Agriculture, Disaster management, Municipal Administration & Urban development, CRDA, Panchayatraj & Rural Development, IT & Industries, Planning, Roads & Building department participated in the Seminar. Multiple policies and strategies to be adopted in various sectors to address multi-sectoral needs and requirement were discussed in detail with policy makers, industry and academia.
Sri. A. Nageswar Rao, Scientist-SF & Vice-Chairman, APSAC explained various Geospatial based applications such as Agriculture, Surface Water, Natural Resources, Soil and Water conservation measures, Urban & Rural studies, DRONE Mapping, Pilot study on Land Record Survey using High Resolution Images, etc carried out by APSAC.
The one day seminar on “Building new India by leveraging geospatial technologies” – Geospatial CARAVAN was closed with a vote of thanks by Sri. D.V. Ramana Murthy, Director Administration, APSAC.
