Chennai, India: The Tamil Nadu Geographic Information System (TNGIS) project will start with the digitisation of Chennai. Soon, all spatial and non-spatial data sets available with the Tamil Nadu State government will soon be digitally mapped and geo-referenced to form an information system, said a senior official of the State Planning Commission, according to The Hindu.
The project is the part of the National Spatial Data Initiative (NSDI). Following pilot implementations in a couple of districts, including Nagapattinam and Cuddalore, a decision has been made to extend it to the whole State and a task force has been constituted.
The official said that once the spatial data infrastructure is created it will be used as a policy making tool. Santhosh Babu, Managing Director, Electronics Corporation of Tamil Nadu Limited (ELCOT), said, “There will be more than 80 layers with each layer containing information relating to a particular department. Earlier, a school came up in a locality based on the recommendation of an MLA or a public representative. With access to an online map containing data such as the distance from the nearest existing school and the population density, an informed decision can be made.”
All individual departments will be able to periodically update the data and a State Data Repository (SDR) will maintain a log for accessing back information.
Source: The Hindu
