Mapping New Horizons.

The Survey of India (SOI) celebrates 200 years of the Great Trigonometric
Survey (GTS) this year. Considered to be the foundation of topographical surveys
in the country, GTS was one of the most ambitious endeavors accredited for
mapping the entire Indian subcontinent in an accurate manner. To commemorate the
occasion, SOI has also announced the first major initiative for its much-needed
restructuring. Elaborating on the comprehensive program to modernize and
re-engineer the institution, Dr P Nag, Surveyor General of India, says,
"The objective is to leverage the enormous wealth of data assets held by
the Survey of India to meet the needs of a knowledge-dominated society."

Geographic data has always been a crucial element of development planning of
any nation. The use of reliable and quality geo-spatial information is critical
to virtually every sphere of socio-economic activity, be it disaster management,
business geographics, planning, infrastructure development, defense,
agriculture, environment or spatial research. GIS (Geographic Information
Systems) tools further enhance the ability of the decision-maker by making
optimum use of this available information. The nature and scope of GIS is
increasing and so is the market potential.

According to Nasscom, the Indian GIS industry has been growing steadily at a
rate of 35-40% and this growth is expected to continue during the next few
years. The estimated market size (including software, hardware and services)
which was at $6 million in 1996, grew to $20 million in 2000. A recent report by
US-based Stevens International Consulting on export of ITES (IT-enabled
services) from India to North America, says that GIS exports from India are
expected to reach $150 million in the year 2005 (exports in the year 2000
amounted to $60 million). Industrial GIS services are expanding at 10-15% per
annum in India.

SOI wakes up

The Survey of India has been fulfilling the needs of geo-spatial information
conventionally in the form of maps. But the restrictions imposed on this data
have been a major hindrance for the growth of the GIS industry in the country.
"The lack of availability of authentic geographic data has been an obstacle
for us. If the government attitude becomes more positive and these norms are
relaxed, it will create a more conducive environment for growth of the GIS
industry," says David Taylor, ice-President (Apac), MapInfo.

Not withstanding the security restrictions imposed by the Defense, the data
itself has not been made available nor generated for the whole country except a
small resolution data derived from 1:250,000 scale topographical maps. It is sad
that on one hand, the Indian corporate is doing business to enhance and serve
the global community but within the country, he is not able to access the data
of his own locality. Decisions based on incorrect data can at times be
disastrous.

The GIS industry as well as the user community has been aggressively pushing
for reforms in the functioning of national mapping agencies. Much of geo-spatial
information is available with various organizations in different formats. There
is an urgent need to streamline this data into a standardized digital format and
make it available to the users.

Under constant pressure from these organizations, the Survey of India along
with Department of Science and Technology, set up a National Geospatial Data
Infrastructure (NGDI). The forum brings together data producers, data users,
software vendors, central/state government departments and NGOs.

The idea is provide a base or structure of relationships among the data
producers and users that will facilitate data sharing. The increased ability to
share data through common standards and networks will, in turn, serve as a
stimulus for growth. "By making its existing data assets readily and easily
available at an affordable cost, massive cost savings can be achieved by
organizations who presently have to invest substantial resources in acquiring
and generating data which already exists," says P Nag. The restructuring of
SOI announced this year is a part of this initiative kicked off in the year 2001
with a program called "NGDI - Towards Road Map for India."

Rising geo-potential

With changing market conditions and increasing need for geographic data in
all kind of services, the GIS industry today has many new growth options.
E-governance, fiber networking, wireless services, or the growing telecom
segment… there are plenty of options to explore. "India is a very
important market for us. There is so much to build and repair on the
infrastructure front, the conditions are quite right for the GIS industry to
grow," says Andre Pravaz, Regional Director, Autodesk, South Asia-Pacific.

Among the key GIS vendors, ESRI, with its stronghold on the government
sector, is another key player that has played an active role in driving the
market. "Although we will continue to get a major part of our revenues from
our traditional business, it was important for us to explore new areas for
growth in the changing economic environment," says David Taylor,
Vice-President (Apac), MapInfo.

The company, which was hit hard by the slowdown, experienced only 2% growth
in the previous year. In order to tackle the situation, MapInfo recently
identified two new areas–Analytical CRM (Customer Relationship Management) and
location-based services. "At present, these new business areas contribute
only 10% to our overall global revenues at present. But we expect the situation
to change soon and by 2005, their share should rise to at least 40%," he
says.

"The wireless and Internet have created many new options for GIS.
Although these services have just begun to take shape, future belongs to
Web-enabled software," says Pravaz of Autodesk.

GIS-based customer relationship management packages can help organizations
understand and cater to their customer better by identifying their geographic
location. A whole range of location-based services could also be provided for a
traveler’s convenience. For instance, by using a mobile phone that provides
such services, you could easily locate the nearest theater if you wish to see a
movie, a restaurant that provides the food of your choice or even a hospital in
case there’s a medical emergency.

The mapping agencies have realized the need to make data available to users
and there is huge amount of geographic data that can be tapped. The GIS vendors
need to make use of this opportunity by driving the market with a wider
portfolio of services and solutions and exploring new growth options.

SHWETA VERMA In New Delhi