From the desk of Surveyor General of India

Survey of India, The National Mapping Agency of the country under the Department of Science & Technology, is the OLDEST SCIENTIFIC DEPARTMENT OF THE GOVT. OF INDIA.

Survey of India as the National Mapping Agency of India is into survey and map preparation for more than two and the half centuries and has gone through various phases from paper maps to digital maps and now advancing to enterprise GIS systems.

National Map Policy – 2005 has given Survey of India a revised mandate of producing, maintaining and disseminating the National Topographic Data Base (NTDB) of the whole country, which is the foundation of all spatial data consisting of National Spatial Reference Frame, National Digital Elevation Model, National Topographic Template, Administrative Boundaries and Toponomy (place names).

National Spatial Reference Frame includes the framework of precise coordinates and heights, tidal observations and prediction of tides, gravity surveys and geo-magnetic observations. National Topographic Template includes topographic maps on all scales, aeronautical charts, special purpose maps for Airports/Airfields and other maps for special purposes. Administrative Boundaries include International and Inter-State boundaries. Besides mapping, the mandate also includes capacity building within and outside the Department.

At present SoI is undergoing a transformation phase for providing products and services in tune with the advancements in technology, mapping techniques and Standards according to user requirements.

As part of the modernization effort the National Spatial Reference Frame (NSRF) is being modernised by establishing Continuously Operating Reference Stations (CORS) Network across the country and by developing the Geoid Model for the entire country to enable accurate and speedy positioning services.

With the idea of providing digital data as per user requirement, SOI is using the latest technology for generation of high resolution National Topographic Data Base (HR-NTDB). Currently the source data for generation of HR-NTDB is being acquired through High Resolution Satellite Imagery (HRSI), UAV/Drones, LiDAR etc. Apart from mapping on standard scales i.e. 1:50,000, 1:250.000 etc., SoI is also generating geo-spatial data on scales varying from 1:500 to 1:10000 based on the user requirements.

SoI is also implementing various National and State Level Projects to meet the requirements of various Central and State Govt agencies – SVAMITVA Scheme for MoPR, National Hydrology Project and National Mission for Clean Ganga for MoJS, Drone based large scale mapping for various States.

With the mammoth Surveying and mapping task with latest technology in hand, SoI is geared up for fulfilling the mandate and requirements of projects to meet the objectives of National development with best of the efforts.