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Space-Based Information Support for Decentralized Planning (SISDP
Overview
The Government of India has prioritised planned spatial development in rural India to enable inclusiveness and comprehensive development in line with the SDGs. The Eleventh Schedule of the Indian Constitution, enacted by the 73rd Amendment, gives rural local-self-governments administrative responsibility over a variety of issues. The Panchayati Raj system was established on these lines to provide fundamental services to rural citizens for achieving economic development and social justice across sectors.
The idea of a Space-based Information Support for Decentralized Planning (SISDP) was conceived and implemented by ISRO with the support of Partner institutions on these lines, to assist spatial development planning processes at the grassroots level. The SISDP is being carried out under the aegis of the National Natural Resources Management System (NNRMS) programme of ISRO for enabling Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) and all stakeholders from central ministries to state government ministries/ line departments and NGOs, involved in local governance.
Vision: To empower Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) for decentralized planning at the Gram Panchayat level by generating, collating, disseminating, and innovating upon Geospatial information.
Objectives
Phase 1
y To generate 2.5m true colour, high-resolution ortho-rectified satellite imagery for the entire country as base data. y To prepare thematic databases of Land Use Land Cover (LULC), Drainage, Settlement, Infrastructure, and Slope on a 1:10,000 scale using satellite imagery for the entire country. y To create a databank comprising satellite imagery, thematic and base maps; and organize census data, climate data, cadastral maps, and stakeholder’s data on a GIS platform. y To develop a comprehensive web portal as per the need of PRIs and other stakeholders toward the objectives of decentralized planning and governance. y Capacity building & training of PRIs and other stakeholders in the use of the SISDP database in decentralized planning and governance.
After the successful completion of Phase I, a follow-up on updating the existing thematic data and services is currently ongoing with the following refined objectives:
y Updation of Geospatial data, including high-resolution satellite data image base, a thematic database for the entire country at 1:10,000 scale, and integration of community assets from multiple sources. y Generation of Geospatial products and services for spatial development planning at the grassroots level y Development of Bhuvan Panchayat Portal 3.0 facilitated by easy-to-use Graphical User Interface (GUI) and advanced spatial analytics.
Stakeholders Involved
ISRO, Central and State Governments, their Ministries and Line Departments, PRIs, State Remote Sensing Centres, NGOs, and Academic Institutions involved in local governance or partnerships.
Solution and Implementation Plan
The SISDP database is a comprehensive and updated database on basic natural resources and other collateral data primarily derived from high-resolution satellite imagery with a simple and easy-to-understand index. In addition, geotagged community assets and cadastral information are also available for selected areas in the database.
Such comprehensive data provides abundant opportunity to generate innovative geospatial products and services for the formulation of Rural Development Plans at the GP level, particularly towards preparing land and water resources developmental plans, watershed management, planning social infrastructure, etc.
A web portal, Bhuvan Panchayat (https://Bhuvan-panchayat3.nrsc.gov.in) was developed to provide the facility to search, access, extract, compute and integrate the essential spatial datasets of the selected area for developmental planning at the GP level.
A spinoff project, Empowering Panchayati Raj Institutions Spatially (EPRIS) was also undertaken between 2016–2018, wherein several assets were mapped spanning around 10 Gram Panchayats across the country. Targeted capacity-building programmes were conducted for the elected panchayat representatives to help them utilize the database for local outcomes.
Use of Geospatial Technologies
The entire SISDP database for responsible planning at the grassroots level, able governance, and accountability rest on the availability of high-resolution and high-quality satellite data. This data is being leveraged to build innovative Geospatial systems and products that facilitate rural spatial development planning. The
