The Ministry of Science and Technology issued the National Geospatial Policy 2022 on December 30. This comes after the Ministry of Science and Technology liberalised the use of geospatial data in February of the previous year as part of the draft geospatial data policy. The National Geospatial Policy 2022 was authorised by the Union Cabinet at a meeting on December 16, 2022, and its approval is effective immediately.
Industry stakeholders have seen the strategy as a largely positive attempt by the central government to promote India’s burgeoning commercial geospatial applications and business ecosystem. As per the industry, the government has taken most of its recommendations, and it will help them to develop better Geographic Information System (GIS) business applications for their clients and also expand the market offering.
What National Geospatial Policy 2022 brings to the table?
In addition to accomplishing several other goals, the directive will be put into effect over thirteen years to build a national framework for making better use of geospatial data to enhance the level of service offered to citizens.
Along with the development of geospatial infrastructures, skills and knowledge, standards, and enterprises, the policy hopes to complete a topographical survey and mapping with a high resolution by the year 2030 across the entirety of the country, as well as create a digital elevation model with a high level of accuracy.
This initiative would result in the construction of a national geospatial data architecture and the “affordable availability” of data to both enterprises and the general public. The government will build a legal framework that “supports geospatial sector deregulation and data democratisation for enhanced commercialisation with value-added services” by the year 2025, according to the established goals.
By 2025, the government will also have as one of its goals to expand the availability of and access to what it calls “enhanced location data” for enterprises and other organisations, including private organisations.
By 2030, the government plans to have established an Integrated Data and Information Framework (IDIF), which will serve as the basis for constructing a Geospatial Knowledge Infrastructure (GKI).
By 2035, one of the goals of using geospatial data will be to map the underground infrastructure of India’s most important cities and towns. Another objective will be to generate high-resolution, accurate geospatial data for bathymetry to assist India’s “Blue Economy.” This data will focus on the resources and economy of interior waters as well as the sea surface terrain of shallow and deep seas.
To accomplish these objectives, the National Geospatial Policy lays out the steps that need to be taken to build and promote a “geospatial data infrastructure” using a “well-defined custodianship model and data supply chain.”
In addition, the policy provides guidelines for establishing a national apex body called the Geospatial Data Promotion and Development Committee (GDPDC). The Geospatial Data and Governance Development Center (GDDC) will be responsible for facilitating the development of private startups and organisations to work on specific projects, as well as giving specifics on the use of geospatial data in governance across certain ministries.
Additionally, it would support the utilisation of National Digital Twin, an ecosystem of high-resolution data used to encourage connected digital twins among private businesses “with safe and interoperable data exchange.”
The strategy outlines the creation of 14 National Fundamental Sectoral Geospatial Data Themes, which will be used to address various sectors that promote the development of commercial geospatial applications in disaster management, mining, forestry, and other areas. These applications can be used in various industries, including mining, forestry, and others.
In October, the Union Minister of State for Science and Technology, Jitendra Singh, stated that India’s geospatial economy is likely to surpass 63,000 crores by the year 2025, growing at a rate of 12.8%, and employing more than 10 lakh people, the majority of whom are employed through geospatial startups. This prediction was made in light of the fact that India’s geospatial economy is expected to surpass 63,000 crores by 2025. During the current boom of technology-driven businesses, the minister indicated in his address to the second United Nations World Geospatial Information Congress (UN-WGIC) that there were roughly 250 geospatial startups in India. The Indian government has developed a Geospatial Incubator to serve as a catalyst. The National Geospatial Policy, 2022 can assist in expanding India’s commercial sector, according to Prakash, who mentioned that the policy needs to be amended to seize a significant portion of this business.
On a global scale, it is anticipated that the geospatial industry will be worth approximately $17 billion, while the space economy will be worth $55 billion.