Issuu

Publication: 10 of every month I Posting: 15 / 20 of every month

R.N.I No - UPENG/2010/34153 Registration no: UP/GBD-136/2011-13 YOUR GEOSPATIAL INDUSTRY MAGAZINE

www.geospatialworld.net FEBRUARY 2012 VOL 02 ISSUE 07

ISSN 2277 - 3134

Price: INR 150 / US$ 15 Subscriber’s copy. Not for Sale

Leica RCD30 Series Because good things come in small packages

A lot can be said about the new Leica RCD30 medium format camera:

Multispectral, co-registered RGBN imagery from a single camera head Forward and lateral mechanical motion compensation Ruggedized and thermal stabilized lens system Modular concept for standalone, multi-head and LiDAR conﬁguration Lightweight and compact design

And there are many more. But why not keep it simple? The new Leica RCD30 is truly setting new standards in what you and your customers can expect from medium format airborne imaging.

For more information visit http://di.leica-geosystems.com www.leica-geosystems.com

100941_Leica_RCD_Ad_7_75x10_25inch.indd 1

20.4.2011 12:04:09 Uhr

TOGETHER AT LAST Remote Sensing and GIS

ALL IN ONE PACKAGE TO RULE YOUR GEOSPATIAL WORKFLOW Finally, you can have truly connected image processing and GIS products. Intergraph® provides a stronger, more streamlined geospatial workflow with simplified purchasing and maintenance. Intergraph® GeoMedia® delivers powerful GIS analysis and management, enabling you to realize the maximum value of your geospatial resources by integrating them to present clear, actionable information. ERDAS IMAGINE® incorporates industry-leading geospatial image processing and analysis and remote sensing capabilities. Brought to you by a SINGLE organization, you can easily leverage these two products in unison to construct a larger, clearer geospatial picture. Spend less time trying to connect your data and focus on what you want to achieve with it.

www.intergraph.com/geospatial

Vision to Viability The Trimble® Quantm™ advantage Take advantage of the most comprehensive Alignment Planning system in the business. Visit www.trimble.com/quantmadvantage for more information on Trimble Alignment Planning Solutions

Abbas Rajabifard President, GSDI Association

Inside...

Advisory Board

In retrospect and prospect

The Indian geospatial trajectory Prof Arup Dasgupta

Aida Opoku Mensah Director - ICT Division UN Economic Commission for Africa Bryn Fosburgh Vice President Trimble Derek Clarke Chief Director-Survey and Mapping & National Geospatial Information Department of Rural Development & Land Reform, South Africa

Jack Dangermond President, Esri

Josef Strobl Director, Centre for Geoinformatics, University of Salzburg, Austria

INTERVIEWS 38

Juergen Dold President, Hexagon Geosystems

Kamal K Singh Chairman and CEO Rolta Group

Mark Reichardt President and CEO Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc.

Matthew M O'Connell President and CEO GeoEye

Preetha Pulusani Chairman and CEO DeepTarget Inc. Shailesh Nayak Secretary Ministry of Earth Sciences Government of India

Steven W. Berglund

K.K. Singh

President & Chief Executive Officer Trimble Navigation Limited ‘We wish to create unique solutions for India’'

Chairman & Managing Director Rolta India Limited ‘An open policy will grow the geospatial market exponentially’

ARTICLE 42

Mobile Resource Management Transforming India’s transport sector Vaibhav Arora

CONFERENCE REPORT

DGI 2012

Defining the future of geoint Vanessa Lawrence CB Director General and CEO, Ordnance Survey, UK

CHAIRMAN M P Narayanan PUBLISHER Sanjay Kumar PUBLICATIONS TEAM Managing Editor Prof. Arup Dasgupta Editor - Europe Prof. Ian Dowman Editor - Latin America (Honorary) Tania Maria Sausen Sr. Associate Editor (Honorary) Dr. Hrishikesh Samant Executive Editor Bhanu Rekha Product Manager Shivani Lal Assistant Editors Deepali Roy, Aditi Bhan, Vaibhav Arora Sub-Editor Anand Kashyap DESIGN TEAM Sr. Creative Designer Deepak Kumar Graphic Designer Manoj Kumar Singh CIRCULATION TEAM Circulation Manager Vijay Kumar Singh

Geospatial World I February 2012

07 Editorial

12 News

50 Events

D ISCLAIMER Geospatial World does not necessarily subscribe to the views expressed in the publication. All views expressed in this issue are those of the contributors. Geospatial World is not responsible for any loss to anyone due to the information provided.

O WNER , P UBLISHER & P RINTER Sanjay Kumar P RINTED

M. P. Printers B - 220, Phase-II, Noida - 201 301, Gautam Budh Nagar (UP) INDIA P UBLICATION A DDRESS A - 92, Sector - 52, Gautam Budh Nagar, Noida, India Geospatial World Geospatial Media and Communications Pvt. Ltd. (formerly GIS Development Pvt. Ltd.) A - 145, Sector - 63, Noida, India Tel + 91-120-4612500 Fax +91-120-4612555 / 666

PRICE: INR 150/US$ 15

Xiang Yu, Peace Map Co., Ltd.

Visit iFlyUltraCam.com to see the PMC video. Or scan tag and watch on your mobile phone. Download the free tag reader app at http://gettag.mobi.

:LWK SODQV WR HVWDEOLVK D KLJK UHVROXWLRQ DHULDO LPDJH OLEUDU\ RI &KLQD DQG FXVWRPHUV DFURVV GLIIHUHQW JRYHUQPHQW GHSDUWPHQWV 3HDFH 0DS &R /WG 30& QHHGV D TXDOLW\ GLJLWDO SKRWRJUDPPHWULF V\VWHP WR HIIHFWLYHO\ VHUYH WKHLU ODUJH PDUNHW 7KDW·V ZK\ 30& FKRRVHV 0LFURVRIW 8OWUD&DP IRU WKHLU GLJLWDO LPDJH DFTXLVLWLRQ 0U ;LDQJ NQRZV WKDW WKH FRVW WR Á \ PLVVLRQV LV KLV JUHDWHVW RSHUDWLRQDO H[SHQVH 7KDQNV WR WKH ODUJH LPDJH IRRWSULQW DQG VWDEOH SHUIRUPDQFH RI WKH 8OWUD&DP KH KDV VHHQ D VLJQLÀ FDQW LQFUHDVH LQ HIÀ FLHQF\ FRPSDUHG WR RWKHU GLJLWDO DHULDO FDPHUDV 7KH FRQWLQXDO LQQRYDWLRQ RI WKH 8OWUD&DP KHOSV 30& GHOLYHU EUHDWKWDNLQJ LPDJHV WR FXVWRPHUV UHGXFH FRVWV DQG SODQ IRU VWHDG\ JURZWK LQWR WKH IXWXUH 7KH 8OWUD&DP (DJOH LV WKH ODWHVW WHFKQRORJLFDO DGYDQFH IHDWXULQJ DQ XOWUD ODUJH LPDJH IRRWSULQW DQG UHYROXWLRQDU\ HQKDQFHPHQWV IRU KLJK TXDOLW\ LPDJHU\ DW XQSUHFHGHQWHG HIÀ FLHQFLHV )RU GHWDLOV YLVLW www.UltraCamEagle.com APAC Sales:

Singapore: Beijing: LQIR#LPDJHPDSV FRP ZZZ LPDJHPDSV FRP

0LFURVRIW &RUSRUDWLRQ $OO ULJKWV UHVHUYHG 0LFURVRIW 8OWUD&DP 8OWUD&DP;S 8OWUD0DS DQG 9H[FHO ,PDJLQJ *PE+ DUH HLWKHU UHJLVWHUHG WUDGHPDUNV RU WUDGHPDUNV RI 0LFURVRIW &RUSRUDWLRQ LQ WKH 8QLWHG 6WDWHV DQG RU RWKHU FRXQWULHV

GIS ´, Á \ 8OWUD&DPµ FDPSDLJQ ;LDQJ <X SDJH & EOHHG $3$& DG 7ULP 6L]H µ [ µ %OHHG 6L]H µ [ µ U UHYLVHG 6HSW

EditorSpeak

Geospatial management for growth uring the Davos Conclave a Panel on India concluded that India is on the growth path. The percentage of growth varied from a pessimistic 7.5 to an optimistic 10 percent. No one on the panel doubted India's growth story but there were certain ifs. These mainly related to India's infrastructure, power and bureaucracy. What lessons do we get from these conclusions for the geospatial arena?

I believe that India's growth story needs, nay, demands geospatial solutions. Take infrastructure; a report by McKinsey on India's urban growth postulates that by 2030 urban India will need an investment of Rs 60 trillion to provide 700 to 900 million sq m of commercial and residential space, 2.5 billion sq m of paved roads and 7400 million km of metro rail and subways. These are mind boggling numbers and no country in the world will face such challenges because India has one of the highest population density in the world and land is the most valuable, coveted and indemand asset; an asset that has multiple claimants. To address this issue there is no alternative to geospatial management. I use the term geospatial management to indicate that all planning, implementation, monitoring and operations will have to be based on geospatial technology. The JNNRUM has come not a minute too soon and its efficient implementation is a dire necessity. Similarly the other two big projects, R-APDRP and NLRMP also have included a very strong core of geospatial technologies tightly integrated with IT, ERP and CRM. These projects are harbingers of the opportunities that are latent in India. India is fortunate that the government and the political class are committed to modern science and technology. India's remote sensing programme is one of the most comprehensive in the world and Indian users will never be left without an Indian 'eye in the sky'. Similarly, India's communications infrastructure is well Prof. Arup Dasgupta Managing Editor supported by satellite communications and a huge fibre optic netarup@geospatialmedia.net work which is being expanded to every panchayat (large village or conglomeration of villages). The way geospatial technology has been adopted for the projects mentioned above is also very encouraging. One wishes things could have moved faster but then in India things move at their own pace! A reason for this is the baggage of legacy. Relatively new organisations tend to adopt to new technologies faster than those which have been around longer. The cause for concern is the lack of trained professionals and industry's over dependence on offshore work. The education system, right from school, needs to introduce geospatial technology subjects including physical geography. Industry needs to look at opportunities in India not just in data conversion but in advanced areas like modelling. At Davos one of the points that went against India was its over dependence on services. Indian manufacturing needs to pick up. To draw a lesson from this observation applicable to the geospatial world, India must concentrate on innovating not just applications but in the core technologies itself.

Geospatial World I February 2012

NEWS N IG E R IA

G-power to make tax system effective SOUTH AFR ICA

Wind atlas promotes renewable energy Dipuo Peters, Energy Minister; along with Danish Minister for Climate, Energy and Building, Martin Lidegaard, launched the wind energy awareness campaign, 'Powered by Wind'. The first of its kind campaign in the country will be rolled out in phases and will focus on targeted groups comprising various segments of South African society including civil servants, business, local communities in the Western, Northern and Eastern Cape, primary school children (grades 4 to 6) in the three provinces and non-governmental organisations.

The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) of Nigeria collaborated with the Abuja Geographic Information System (AGIS) to establish a new mechanism to track taxable properties. Alhaji Attah Abdullahi, Director of FIRS, informed that the country is now set to evolve a new tax system, which will compel every citizen in the working group to pay tax, even as the system has been designed to expose public officers who steal public funds. He disclosed that the FIRS would be at liberty to implement the system, having achieved financial autonomy, adding that the tax agency in Nigeria would be going into partnership with the EFCC, the ICPC and other anti-corruption agencies.

GIS tool to help public health leaders in the region decide where new medical devices can be placed to have the deepest impact.

UGAN DA

SI E R RA LEON E

GIS for improved health services

T-SL portal to trace govt projects

Makerere University College of Health Sciences, on behalf of the East African Community, received a grant of USD 500,000 for three years from Grand Challenges Canada and Melinda Gates Foundation. The grant aims to provide information for the development of diagnostic devices and a GIS tool. Dr Achilles Katamba, the project lead researcher, said that the project aims at ensuring that scientists and engineers develop medical devices according to the needs of East Africa. They will also create a

President Ernest Koroma launched the Transparency-International (T-SL) portal. It is designed to capture all government projects (tagged using GPS) in prose and still/video photographs including an interactive internet forum through which the citizenry can put up questions for the President and his cabinet, who can then respond through a blog. In addition, the country will become the first in West Africa to use Google Earth and let its citizens know the exact progress of various government projects.

KE NYA

New system for wildlife monitoring The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) launched ranger-based management information system programme for routine collection of wildlife conservation status data. As part of the programme, rangers will be required to use GPS and standardised field data during regular patrols. They will also be required to mark positions using GPS and record their observations on data sheets which will later be downloaded into the system. KWS assistant director in charge of ecological monitoring Samuel Andanje said, "The system is embedded in the GIS software which makes it quick and easy to see the distribution and trends of the subjects that are being monitored".

Geospatial World I February 2012

I N DIA

Govt approves three NLR centres The Government of India approved creation of three National Land Records Modernisation Programme (NLRMP) centres at Salboni (West Bengal), Puducherry and Berhampur (Orissa ). The government also sanc-

tioned INR 196 lakh for each of the centres during financial year 201112. The NLRMP centres shall be

made operational within one year from the date of sanction. The activities to be supported under the programme include survey/resurvey using modern technology such as aerial photogrammetry, updating of land records, completion of computerisation of the records of rights, computerisation of registration, automatic generation of mutation notices, digitisation of maps and training and capacity building of the concerned officials and functionaries.

NIC wants revised map policy The National Informatics Centre (NIC) is planning to suggest measures for suitable modifications to the Ministry of Defence guidelines on digital map data handling. The move follows an appeal to the NIC from officials of the civic bodies of Chennai, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad, at a meeting in New Delhi. The officials pointed to the existing restrictions pertaining to various aspects of geo-reference maps,

starting with collecting and disseminating information about certain areas and facilities. The existing National Map Policy 2005 prohibits the export of all maps/digital data in 1: 250K and larger scales through any means.

GIS aiding marketing strategies Vodafone India is considering using GIS maps under 'Project Pappu', which aims to strengthen the company's presence in rural India. The company decided to go off the beaten track by tweaking its network coverage and choosing not to follow the conventional route of expansion along the highways and instead covered a villager's community of interests. "Vodafone decided to cover location after location by first identifying different communities of interest. Using GIS mapping, the planning became easier. A village in East UP may have 1250 people but there's an 800,000 population within 22 kms. That could be 1,500 villages. And that's a real community of interest," said Sunil Sood from Vodafone India.

Top scientists barred from govt positions Four of the biggest names in the space community have been barred from occupying any government position for their role in the controversial AntrixDevas deal. In the said deal, Devas was accused to have been wrongfully allotted S-band frequencies for radio waves. The names include former chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) G Madhavan Nair; A Bhaskarnarayana, former scientific secretary in ISRO; K R Sridharmurthi, former managing director of Antrix which is the marketing arm of ISRO; and K N Shankara, former director in ISRO's satellite centre, according to an order issued by the Department of Space.

Geospatial World I February 2012

PH I LI PPI N ES

Geo-hazard maps available online Environmental Science for Social Change announced availability of the government's geo-hazard maps on its website, www.essc.org.ph. These maps have been prepared by the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB). Leo Jasareno, Director of MGB, said, "Through these maps, we just want to raise the awareness on

disasters such as floods and landslides. We want to reach out to the local government units and the people.'' The geo-hazard maps, which take up 60 gigabytes and cover 700 sheets, have a "high resolution'' unlike the maps currently posted on MGB's website. The maps are on a scale of 1:50,000.

land contracts, land use and collective income distribution as basic protections." According to him, the key to reforms in expropriating collectively-owned land lies in safeguarding farmers' gains from land value increment revenue and China can no longer sacrifice its farmers' rights to reduce the costs of industrialisation.

CH I NA

Indigenous system to count carbon emissions

Farmer friendly land law on the anvil With an aim to protect farmers' interests in land expropriations, the country recently amended its land management law. A new report by the Environmental Protection and Resources Conservation Committee notified that it is urgent to reform and standardise land expropriation practices as the current version of the law has been proven outdated. Earlier, Premier Wen Jiabao had stated, "Farmers enjoy the legal rights of

The country will develop its own system for monitoring and accurately calculating greenhouse gas emissions, according to Ding Zhongli, Vice President of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. In addition, the country also plans to set up a system to monitor atmospheric CO2 concentration through remote sensing, aerial and ground monitoring, and atmospheric modelling. It is pertinent to mention here that the country's manmade forest reserve has reached 62 million hectares, accounting for one third of the national forest coverage. The for-

RS satellite for civilian use China launched Ziyuan III, the first high-resolution remote-sensing satellite for civilian use. The satellite aims to aid the country's landresources surveys, natural-disaster prevention, agriculture development, waterresources management and urban planning. The satellite, weighing 2650 kg and having a designed life expectancy of five years, was developed and produced by the China Academy of Space Technology, a subsidiary of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation. The first set of imagery from the satellite is available at tianditu.cn.

est coverage rate rose from 18.21 percent in 2005 to 20.36 percent in 2010, and is expected to reach 21.66 percent by 2015.

UAE

HAAD embraces 'syndromic surveillance' Doctors may soon be able to better predict the outbreak of infectious diseases using Google and Twitterpowered surveillance system. The Ministry of Health and the Health Authority Abu Dhabi (HAAD) are considering introducing 'syndromic surveillance' to foretell the outbreak of infectious diseases. Dr Farida Al

Hosani, manager of communicable diseases department at HAAD explained, "People search for fevers. Google maps it and they see how many people in the UAE searched for this term. Another type of syndromic surveillance is looking into Twitter

Geospatial World I February 2012

trending. When people have some kind of symptom, they might mention this on Twitter." In 2008, Google's tracker was used to track the spread of swine flu.

(SoP) into a national mapping agency, a draft land surveying and mapping bill has been prepared by the SoP. The MoD clarified that in the absence of any law, it would be difficult to keep a check on the unlawful activities of unauthorised mapping firms.

FORMOSAT-7 programme, a joint venture between Taiwan and the US, will be launched in two separate

PAKISTAN

Mapping measures to be tightened The Ministry of Defence (MoD) suggested the government to frame a law that could stop unlawful activities of mapping firms, given that several other countries have enacted supportive laws. Hence, with the objective of regulating mapping standards in the country, to obviate potential security risk to sensitive information and to transform Survey of Pakistan

TAIWAN

Series of RS satellites to be launched The country plans to launch a series of remote sensing satellites including FORMOSAT-5 in 2014 and 12 other meteorological satellites under the FORMOSAT-7 programme in 2015 and 2017, according to Taiwan's National Space Organization (NSPO). The 12 satellites under the

groups due to limited staff and testing facilities. NSPO Deputy Director-General Yu Hsien-cheng informed that six of the satellites under the FORMOSAT-7 programme, designed for gathering weather information in low-latitude regions, will be launched in 2015, while six other satellites will be launched in 2017.

G E R MANY

3D model of earth underway After a year in service, the German earth observation radar satellites TanDEM-X and TerraSAR-X mapped the entire land surface of earth for the first time. The data is being used to create the world's first singlesource, high-precision, 3D digital elevation model of earth. The German Aerospace Center (DLR) controls both satellites and generates the elevation model. DLR claimed that by mid-2013, TanDEM-X and TerraSAR-X will have imaged the complete land surface area of earth several times. The satellites imaged earth from different angles and transmitted highresolution radar data down to the three ground stations - Kiruna (Swe-

First-TanDEM-X-mosaic-of-Iceland

den), Inuvik (Canada) and O'Higgins (Antarctica).

FRANCE

Ice data at fingertips ESA released CryoSat application for iPhone and iPad. It enables users to discover ESA's ice mission, track it in real time and obtain the latest measurements. The app's main menu provides access to four sections: mission description, a 3D model of the satellite, position tracking and data visual-

isation. It not only gives access to all of CryoSat's measurements, but can also help you visualise the ice sheets by providing a vertical profile over the area. Information on CryoSat's current position is automatically updated, including its visibility over selected ground stations. The CryoSat measures the thickness of polar sea ice and also monitors changes in the ice sheets that blanket Greenland and Antarctica.

EGNOS extends its reach Air traffic control guidance of the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS) safety-oflife signal for aviation is set to extend from France and Switzerland to the

Lasers measure earth's wobble The earth spins around once every 24 hours on its axis, but this rotation isn't as straightforward as it sounds. Forces large and small cause the planet to wobble as it spins. Known as the Chandler Wobble, the effect can pose a problem for navigation systems like GPS. Hence, scientists are working with lasers and mirrors to device a system to track the kinks. The idea is to build a ring laser similar to ones used in aircraft guidance systems. The installation includes two counter-rotating laser beams that travel around a square path with mirrors in the corners, which form a closed beam path. The scientists plan to make the ring laser capable of running continuously for a period of years.

EGNOS-ground-network

UK and Germany. It provides horizontal and vertical guidance information for aircrafts performing safety-critical landing approaches to airports in a similar way to existing Instrument Landing System (ILS) devices - but with no ground-based navigation infrastructure needed at the airports, representing a cost-effective alternative for smaller airports. Designed by European Space Agency (ESA), in cooperation with the European Commission and Eurocontrol, it is the European equivalent of the 'Wide

Geospatial World I February 2012

ESA to cancel Sentinel launch Jean-Jacques Dordain, Director-General of ESA, threatened to cancel the planned 2013 launching of a series of earth observation satellites (Sentinel satellites) co-financed with the European Commission (EC) unless the commission commits to financing their operation beyond 2014. Given that the EC's preparations for its 2014 to 2020 budget are likely to stretch into 2013, the commission is unlikely to commit to GMES financing in 2012. The Sentinel satellites are part of Europe's Global Monitoring for Environment and Security programme, on which ESA and the EC have together spent approximately EUR 2.3 billion (USD 3 billion).

Area Augmentation System' (WAAS) service in North America.

R USSIA

ESA outlines space plans for 2012

Vladislav Surkov to lead GLONASS

The ESA recently revealed its plans for 2012. It includes the launch of Galileo satellite navigation system's in-orbit validation satellites in August/September. On July 16, the agency scheduled the launch of multi-satellite Swarm mission, which will provide the best survey of earth's magnetic field and its temporal evolution. During June 15 - July 15, a joint ESA-Eumetsat launch event will be held at Eumetsat's premises in Germany. In addition, in May, the agency scheduled the launch of MetOp-B meteorology mission. The MetOp satellites are a series of polar-orbiting meteorological satellites operated by Eumetsat. They complement the US polar-orbiting weather satellite network operated by NOAA.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin announced that Deputy Prime Minister Vladislav Surkov will be responsible for the modernisation of education, science and healthcare, as

abasement for the "chief Kremlin ideologist". Others said that this is a promotion for Surkov, who will now have to tackle some more "down-toearth" spheres.

GLONASS seeks private investment Russian government refused to fund GLONASS programme because the GLONASS team failed to submit a detailed report of the expenses they were planning. The funding programme was to be implemented by December 31, 2011, with the government approving a USD 10 billion draft back in autumn. Now they will have to seek private sources to fund the project. Currently, the GLONASS system has 31 satellites in orbit (24 of them are in use) and three on reserve, with another two being tested. In addition, Russia has been investing in its SDCM Glonass-augmentation capability, whose design is similar to the WAAS, EGNOS and Japan's Multifunctional Satellite Augmentation System (MSAS).

'Catapult' centre to boost space activities

well as for the development of the GLONASS. Recently, Surkov made headlines, after President Dmitry Medvedev appointed him Deputy Prime Minister. The reshuffle had left political analysts puzzled with some believing that the new position is

In a bid to promote space activities amongst "UK plc", UK Science Minister David Willetts announced that the next 'Catapult' technology and innovation centre will be dedicated to developing new space applications. He added that the centre is intended to provide businesses with "access to orbit test facilities, to develop and demonstrate new technologies". The

Geospatial World I February 2012

UK government's Technology Strategy Board (TSB) is driving the 'Catapult' concept, which is a network of world-leading technology and innovation centres. It aims to create a critical mass for business and research innovation by focusing on a specific technology where there is a potentially large global market.

B E LG I U M

Call for common border surveillance system The European Commission (EC) proposed European Border Surveillance (EUROSUR) to enhance internal coordination between member states in the fight against illegal immigration

SPAI N

Institute for better hazard management Association of Geologists (ICOG), Spain, proposed to integrate National Geographic Institute (IGN) with the Geological Survey (IGME) and form the Spanish Institute of Geography and Geology (IGGE). The ICOG claimed that it would improve the hazard management situations such as Lorca earthquake or volcanic eruption on the island of El Hierro. According to the proposal, the IGGE will be the only entity for seismic risk management, volcanic and other natural hazards management. It will also be responsible for thematic cartography in line with the United States Geological Survey (USGS).

Natural disasters cost EUR 95000 mn

and also to combat other serious crimes such as drugs and human trafficking. Under the proposed surveillance system, exchange of operational data and the use of modern surveillance technology, which facilitates real time satellite imagery between national border surveillance authorities, is compulsory. The system will cost approximately EUR 338 million between 2011 and 2020. The system is expected to begin operations from October 2013.

Geospatial World I February 2012

In a medium risk scenario, during the period of 1986-2016, natural disaster will cost Spain approximately EUR 95,000 million, according to a report by the Geological Survey of Spain. During a conference, organised by the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces (FEMP), it was proposed that there is an urgent requirement of state land act for natural hazard mapping in the new urban plan. Experts stressed that citizens are at risk if natural disasters are not assessed seriously. Thus, there is a need of natural hazard maps for the entire territory. The maps will help determine the level of risk and help take preventive measures.

Portal to connect LiDAR experts DIELMO (Digital Elevation Models) 3D, a Spanish company, launched the LiDAR-Online network (www.Lidar-Online.com). This cloud-based network allows users to view LiDAR point clouds in 3D online with no specialised software or knowledge, create profiles of the data allowing measurement, editing, classification and downloading as LAS, CAD and GIS formats. The website aims to open LiDAR data to new markets, increasing the demand for new projects, acquisitions and solutions related to LiDAR.

Victoria to upgrade alert system Victoria state government signed a deal with Telstra to upgrade the Emergency Alert system to a national location-based phone emergency warning system. Federal emergency management minister, Robert

an official guide for bushfire prevention measures for the area, which was decimated by a series of blazes only four years ago. Cape Gantheaume hosts South Australia's most popular nature-based tourism attraction, Seal Bay, which brings in around 105,000 visitors annually. DENR (Department of Environment and Natural Resources) Spatial Information and Geographic Information System (GIS) advisor Iain Malcolm said, "Previously the public would have had to view our plan physically using paper-based maps; Fire Management Maps moved that process online and added extra functions."

ABC maps coal seam gas wells McClelland said, "This new locationbased solution will send warnings to mobile phones that are physically in an emergency zone when a disaster strikes." In December last year, McClelland had urged Aussies to comment on a proposed emergency messaging system called Common Alerting Protocol. In addition, he had also launched the DisasterWatch app for both iPhone and Android smartphones, which sends users the latest public information about disaster events via direct feeds from official sources.

G-tech to help prevent bushfires Esri Australia developed Fire Management Maps for Cape Gantheaume Park on Kangaroo Island. The maps identify fire danger zones and provide

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) pulled together informa-

tion from dozens of sources to provide an insight into the promise and the dangers inherent in the coal seam gas rush. It produced a webpage which shows Australia's coal seam gas activities in the form of a map and graphs. It claimed that it is the most comprehensive map made so far. But, mining industry group Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association (APPEA) has alleged that the website is riddled with factual errors such as listing of out of production and conventional gas wells as coal seam gas wells."

Fight against space debris The country backed a proposal to minimise 'space debris' circling the earth. The plan was put forth by the EU, which called for an international code of conduct for outer space activities. The code aims to prevent both accidental and deliberate damage to satellites and other space objects, which creates long-lived debris and poses risks for crucial spacebased infrastructure. The government has given the proposal inprinciple support and will actively engage in negotiations to finalise a deal. Current estimates suggest there are around 500,000 pieces of long-lived orbiting space debris large enough to seriously damage or destroy satellites or human space flights.

Geospatial World I February 2012

Autodesk, Pitney Bowes collaborate B USI N ESS

Google, World Bank team up Google announced a partnership with the World Bank to make Google Map Maker data more accessible to government organisations in disaster scenarios. Google Map Maker is the tool for crowd-sourcing, editing and maintening Google's world map. According to media reports, this partnership could improve response time and effectiveness in crises in underserved areas of the world. Moreover, Google aims to compete with Ushahidi and other open-source platforms. The World Bank has supported much-needed online mapping efforts, such as the April 2011 project in South Sudan that enabled Google to put the new country on the map.

Raytheon bags USD 320 mn contract Raytheon Company bagged a USD 320 million contract related to its active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar programmes. According to the company's press statement, AESA radars optimise situational awareness and provide superior airto-air and air-to-surface capability. The agile beam enables the radars to "interleave" in near-real time, so that pilot and crew can use both modes simultaneously. So far, more than 300 AESA radar systems have been delivered by Raytheon to customers for multiple platforms worldwide, and

Geospatial World I February 2012

Autodesk, Inc. entered into a strategic alliance agreement with Pitney Bowes Software, Inc. Under the terms of the agreement, Pitney Bowes Software and Autodesk will join forces to better address the need of a global customer base. In addition, both companies will work together to deliver solutions which address some of the more immediate business issues within a number of identified verticals. Paul McRoberts, Vice President, infrastructure product line group, Autodesk, said, "Users of BIM, including the Autodesk Infrastructure Design Suite, can gain benefits from the deep insights that MapInfo can provide. With our combined deep industry expertise and solutions for GIS, we will be well positioned to offer a more comprehensive solution to the market."

have been in service for more than 250,000 operational flight hours.

OrbView-3 data accessible at no cost OrbView-3 satellite images collected around the world between 2003 and 2007 by Orbital Imaging Corporation (now GeoEye) at up to one-meter resolution can now be downloaded free of cost through USGS EarthExplorer. The dataset includes 180,000 scenes of one meter resolution panchromatic, black and white and four meter resolution multi-spectral data, providing high resolution data useful for a wide range of scientific applications. The initial data format available is GeoEye's Basic Enhanced (L1B) product. However, processing to a systematically terrain corrected (L1Gst) product is also available on demand. Eventually, the entire data set will be processed to the L1Gst level.

P OLICY

Govt trying to lower Landsat costs The US government agencies are working together to look for ways to reduce the cost of future Landsat missions as a result of congressional direction included in the 2012 budget passed in December. With the 2012 budget, the Obama administration sought to consolidate Landsat's management and budgetary authority within USGS by creating the National Land Imaging Program. The administration requested a total of USD 99.8 million for the first year of the programme to establish the organisation, pay for ongoing Landsat operations, prepare ground systems to obtain data from the Landsat Data Continuity Mission scheduled for launch in early 2013 and plan for Landsat 9 and Landsat 10.

APPLICATIONS

Web platform for data sharing Harvard's Center for Geographic Analysis developed WorldMap, a cloud-based open source software platform. It makes easier publishing and sharing maps and other geospatial data. In addition, it aims to fill the growing niche between desktop mapping applications and more lightweight, nimble web solutions. According to Harvard's press statement, beta version of WorldMap already boasts of 1,250 users from more than 100 countries since its launch in July 2011. Users have contributed more than 1,700 mapping layers and created over 500 map collections to support their research.

'GPS app most power consuming' Computer scientists at the University of Texas and the Australian National University conducted the first systematic power profiles of microprocessors. They concluded, "In terms of energy, the GPS is one of the most expensive functions on your phone. A bad algorithm might ping your GPS far more than required. If the application writer could analyse the power profile, they would be motivated to write an algorithm that pings it half as often to save energy." According to the scientists, this study may point the way to how companies like Google, Apple, Intel and Microsoft can make software and hardware that will lower energy costs.

'Warrant compulsory for GPS tracking' The US Supreme Court ruled that police need a search warrant before tracking a suspect with a GPS device. The highest US court ruled 9-0 that police had violated the rights of a suspected drug dealer when they placed a GPS on his vehicle without a warrant. The Fourth Amendment of the US Constitution provides guarantees against unreasonable search and seizure. "We hold that the government's installation of a GPS device on a target's vehicle constitutes a 'search,'" Justice Antonin Scalia wrote. "The government physically occupied private property for the purpose of obtaining information. By attaching the device to the Jeep, officers encroached on a protected area."

I N NOVATION

DARPA to revive 1300 retired satellites Through its Phoenix Programme, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) will award USD 36 million to contractors to revive more than 1,300 retired satellites in geostationary orbit (GEO). The agency aims to create a new communications system for military personnel and also send mini robots into space to recycle and reuse antennas of dormant satellites. The satellites cost around USD 300 billion and their position in the geostationary orbit makes them prime targets for reuse because the satellites have large radio frequency apertures that can cover large areas of the earth's surface.

MPASS to detect smoke from space NASA engineers, working with acad-

emicians, developed the Multi-Parameter Aerosol Scattering Sensor (MPASS), which measures and characterises particulates in real time. To understand how best to detect smoke in space, NASA flew the Smoke Aerosol Measurement Experiment (SAME), aboard the space station. The experiment was originally conducted in 2007 and ran a second time in 2011 along with MPASS. "MPASS device was designed to not only gain some concentration measurements of the particles, but also to get some size measurements. So you could eventually tell the difference between smoke and dust," MPASS developer Paul Greenberg explained. The concept may find uses on earth where knowing about particle size could be critical.

RS tech boosts yield Soil scientists at the College of Agriculture, University of Kentucky, conducted studies on the effectiveness of remote-sensing (RS) nitrogen applicators and developed an algorithm for use in the equipment that has

Geospatial World I February 2012

proven to increase yields in Kentucky. The said applicators used sensors to measure crop canopy conditions and applied the appropriate amount of nitrogen to a particular area. The algorithm increased yields by an average of 3.9 bushels per acre. The total amount of nitrogen used has remained about the same, but now varies over a field with some locations receiving more or less than others. With these averages, producers can expect to get a return of about USD 20 per acre.

J-Track shows realtime path of satellites NASA released J-Track tool. It requires the latest version of Java plug-in integrated with the browser. The tool shows real-time animation

tracker using modern browser-based technology and hope to have this available in 2012."

M ISCE LLAN EOUS

OGC gets new Chairman of paths of 443 satellites in the orbit. Users can select individual satellites either from a drop-down list or by simply clicking on any item onscreen. However, NASA warned, "This application serves as an educational tool and may not be completely accurate due to time discrepancies in the users' browser, updates to satellite orbital data, etc. We are currently developing an improved satellite

Satellites to detect underground nuke tests Analysing interferometric synthetic aperture radar (IfSAR) images, scientists pointed out for the first time the 'uplift' of ground above a site of underground nuclear testing. The study has been published in Geophysical Research Letters. Lead author Paul Vincent, a geophysicist at Oregon State University (OSU), however, cautions that the findings won't lead to a dramatic ability to detect secret nuclear explosions because of the time lag between the test and the uplift signature. However, he said, it does "provide another forensic tool for evaluation, especially for the potential explosive yield estimates."

Geospatial World I February 2012

The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC(R)) Board of Directors unanimously elected Jeffrey K. Harris as Chairman of the Board of OGC. Harris succeeded OGC Founder David Schell, who will continue to serve as Chairman Emeritus. Jeff has been an OGC director since 2003 and a member of the Board's Executive Committee. He has been a key participant in the OGC's strategic and business planning processes and an influential spokesman for OGC and for the benefits of open standards in both the public and private sector enterprise worldwide.

Esri releases worldâ€™s basemap In cooperation with National Geographic, Esri released the National Geographic World Basemap. The basemap reflects National Geographic's cartographic design, typographic style and map policies. Designed to be aesthetically pleasing, the Basemap is for users who want to display minimal data on a vibrant, highly detailed background. The map is currently available at ArcGIS Online in the basemap gallery. It combines a century-old cartographic tradition with the power of GIS technology to produce a distinctive internet-based map service for different users.

INTERVIEW

â€˜We wish to create unique solutions for Indiaâ€™ Five years ago, Trimble had 10 employees in India. Today, it has 400. Bringing state-of-the-art tecchnologies to the Indian shores, Trimble is providing localised solutions to suit the market. Steven n W. Berglund, President and Chief Executive Officer, Trimble, explains why India is important for Trimble and how it is adapting to this evolving market... From being a technology company to being a complete solutions provider - Trimble has undergone a tre emendous transformation in recent times. What has brought about this transformation? There are two elements behind this transformation. One is the pursuit of growth. By exploring solutions, Trimble endeavours to expand its horizons. This approach gives us more intellectual space and therefore leads to growth. The other is the shift in the requirements of the market. We believe that the market wants, and is embracing, our evolution into a solutions company. As technology gets more sophisticated and at the same time also becomes more useful, users expect integrated functionality. So whether it is a government agency or any private client, users want solutions which enhance productivity and efficiency. This has driven Trimble's evolution.

Do you think it is also a representation of the changing face of the industry? I do think this represents the

changes being witnessed in the industry. Hopefully, we are leading the way as opposed to following. Users' requirements are changing as the elements of solutions are becoming more complex. New technologies and more nuances, the integration of wireless and more positioning and software content requires a higher level of standards. So I believe that Trimble reflects the state of the industry.

In just six years, Trimble has witnessed tremendous growth in India. What makes India an exciting market for you? India is becoming a legitimate growth market in its own right, fuelled by overall growth in the country. In the geospatial context, India is definitely an exciting market drawing us in. In turn, we hope to drive some of the developments within India by bringing in new concepts-taking the best of our technology from across the world and localising it for the Indian market. We hope to create a balance

between the two and create unique solutions. The potential solutions that can be derived for the Indian market in the process can be equally relevant for other parts of the world, be it Brazil, South East Asia or Africa. In that sense, India is providing a unique laboratory to try out new things.

What are the verticals you are focussing on in India? In the last few years, Trimble has placed greater emphasis on verticals like electrical utilities, waste management and railways, to name just a few. We have created an organisational structure to focus on these industries with the idea of assembling Trimble's point technology into a suite of capabilities that we can bring to these verticals. In addition, we are focussing on cadastre, mining, energy and power sector. We have categorised the utility space into electric and water management. In energy, we have established an oil and gas vertical. We have recently forayed into this vertical and are exploring the possibilities in oil and gas sector. We are focussing on distinct, well-defined groups and verticals and creating a unique set of capabilities for those verticals. It is part of Trimble's core strategy and it works out particularly well for India.

Geospatial World I February 2012

What kind of challenges do you foresee in India for these verticals? We are approaching the Indian market with an appropriate level of humility. We need to understand the market before we can comment on difficulties or opportunities. Even though we are now close to 400 people in India, it is still a learning process. We also want to ensure that

we organise ourselves appropriately as a company-to be both strategic and opportunistic of the market place. So the challenges really are internal to Trimble, that is, to make sure that we are demonstrating the appropriate flexibility and adaptability to the Indian market. It is an evolving market and we need to learn about it to be relevant.

One of the challenges in developing countries like India is that the adoption of advanced technolo ogies for infrastructure development is low. How do you propose to address this issue? Emerging economies have the opportunity to adopt stateof-the-art technology without the legacy that has to be considered in most of the cases. Therefore there is a potential of being revolutionary and radical in terms of conceptually embracing technology. The opportunity lies in reversing the typical paradigm of being slower to accepting more advanced technology. However, creating this change is not easy. From Trimble's standpoint, the key is to respect local conditions and adapt to

Emerging economies have the opportunity to adopt state-of-the-art technology without the legacies, therefore they can be revolutionary and radical in conceptually embracing technology.

them. At the same time, we need to take on a bit of missionary role and try to evangelise our vision to the local circumstances based on our experiences from around the world. We need to present our views as alternatives to engage in these leapfrog activities. I am relatively optimistic that if we play an active role, we may be able to contribute to creating some leapfrogs in technology.

How do you foresee the positioning market in India, given the development of GAGAN and IRNSS? Trimble has three core technologies: positioning, wireless communication and information technology. Positioning, in general, is core to most of the solutions we offer-either position or location. So we do see ourselves playing a multi-dimensional role in this sector. In the case of India, we also see ourselves-may be more so than other places in the world-as being a fundamental contributor of core technology, whether it is participating in the development of satellite positioning at the national level or creating new standards within the company.

India has a rich pool of qualified human resources. Can you tell us about your R&D activities in Ind dia?

Steven W. Berglund President and Chief Executive Officer Trimble Navigation Limited

We have 400 people in India and a significant portion of those people are engaged in development activi-

ties. We have development centres in Chennai and Pune. We intend to grow that capability. We inherited the Chennai facility in 2007. At that time, it was only focused on mobile resource management applications. Today, most of the Trimble divisions are accessing the Chennai facility for development with 15 divisions present in Chennai for R&D requirements. It is largely a matter of Trimble taking a decision about the relative utility of Indian development and taking advantage of it. We have about 5,500 employees at this point of time around the world out of which 400 in India. Five years ago, we had approximately 10 people in India.

Acquisition has been a key strategy for Trimble. In India also, we witnessed the acquisition of Ta ata Automotive Mobility Technologies. How has the move benefitted the company? Can we anticipate more acquisitions in India? Acquisitions are not necessarily core to our growth strategy. Acquisitions have played a role, principally as mechanisms to establish beachheads in new market spaces, fill in product line gaps or add new technologies to our solutions portfolio. More importantly, continued innovation and industry domain experience are the primary factors which allow Trimble

to focus on organic growth as our principal strategy in our core market segments. For example, it is more prudent to buy a small company which has domain experience and leverage that acquisition to gain a better insight into the market place. That is the strategy for acquisitions that we also follow in India. The other question that we try to answer in terms of pursuing the Indian market is whether the competencies or centres of domain experience that exist in India for an acquisition will allow us to serve the market place in a better fashion or not. In a way, the acquisition of Tata operations was a bit of both. It gave us a better window into the Indian market by bringing in people who understood the market. It also fuelled our ambition, that is, we could use it as a platform for future growth within the country. I think if we find those circumstances elsewhere with other Indian companies, certainly we would engage with the idea of acquisitions. As an alternative, we may look at partnering with companies since acquisitions may not be the best mechanism to leverage a relationship in the Indian market.

You have talked about localisation of your solutions, while internationalisation is the fundamenta al core of

Trimble strategy. How do you maintain a balance between localisation and internationalissation of solutions? It seems like a bit of paradox but in reality it is all about balance. What we need to do as a company is to leverage our best international solutions as much as we can. The reality is that one cannot afford to do everything multiple times in the international market. So on the one hand, it's a matter of scale-being able to scale up on a worldwide basis and apply that scale everywhere in the world; on the other hand, there is a need to recognise the elements which are unique to a particular market and incorporate that uniqueness in market solutions. This way, we will not invent unwanted products or solutions and then look for customers. At the same time, we need to reinvent ourselves to meet the requirements of each national/regional market. The idea is to create a hardware platform worldwide and a base level software platform. Then, depending on the specific local market needs, we can create a localised software layer on both hardware and software. This way, the balance would always be dynamic. It is something that we need to continually deal with. It is not easy but I think it is the appropriate approach to the market place.

Geospatial World I February 2012

IN RETROSPECT AND PROSPECT

PSLV C12 launching RISAT-2. Image Courtesy ISRO

Geospatial World I February 2012

Cover Story

INDIAâ€™S TRAJECTORY IN

n January 19 this year, I was at the annual NSDI meet held in Bangalore. The last NSDI meeting I had attended was the second one in the picturesque hill station of Ooty in 2002. The ten year gap gave me an opportunity to assess how far India has moved on the path of geospatial enablement. Perhaps it was good that I missed the intervening meetings because the contrast between then and now was all the more evident and gave me a good benchmark to measure the progress and try to predict the future trajectory. In 2002 the main players were the big departments like Space, Science and Technology and Forestry, with the Defence Ministry providing an ominous backdrop. A plan to release a trial NSDI portal for metadata was stalled in the last moment due to security concerns. Cut to 2012 and the contrast could not have been more dramatic. State after state spoke of their geospatial prowess. Some had rolled out their own portals. Significantly the theme of the meeting was State SDIs. Department of Space showcased Bhuvan and invited scientists to access the data. A very liberal remote sensing data policy and a burgeoning can-do attitude contributed to downplaying the security concerns. So is India on the verge of a geospatial renaissance?

GEOSPATIAL SPACE HAS

TRYST WITH G-TECH

O The Indian Geospatial Trajectory BEEN AND CONTINUES TO OFFER HUGE OPPORTUNITY. HOWEVER, CONSIDERABLE EFFORTS ARE NEEDED TO REALISE THE PROMISE. PROF ARUP DASGUPTA, MANAGING EDITOR, GIVES A LOWDOWN

Geospatial World I February 2012

The Indian tryst with geospatial technology is not new. India boasts of institutions like the Survey of India, the Geological Survey of India, the Forest Survey of India and the Departments of Land Records which have been around for a century and more. These organisations have been updating their systems with new technologies, perhaps not as fast as one would have liked it because legacy does tend to lock up processes and people. One can trace some of the points of inflection which mark the induction of new and disruptive geospatial technologies. The Pre-investment Survey of Forest Resources conducted with ITC brought in remote sensing from aircraft and resulted in the establishment in 1966 of the Indian Photo-interpretation Institute, IPI, now known as the Indian Institute of Remote Sensing (IIRS). The next inflection point came in 1969 when the first UNISPACE conference was held in Vienna. Dr Vikram Sarabhai noted in his report to the conference the importance of remote sensing for developing countries like India (see box 1).

India realises potential of remote sensing "When we came to Vienna, we thought that the areas of most immediate practical applications would be communications, meteorology and navigation, in that order. But one of the most striking things to emerge has been appreciation of the great potentiality of remote sensing devices, capable of providing large-scale practical benefits. One of the group discussions considered the cost effectiveness of these techniques, and it was pointed out that there is a high cost-benefit ratio, which, for example, in cartography, can be as much as 1:18. The time has come to interest meteorologists, hydrologists, surveyors, agricultural specialists and other groups in such programmes. The Chairman of the thematic session summarised the consensus that aircraft could initially be used because of their comparatively low cost. There is need, to begin with, to understand problems of interpretation. Remote sensing cannot replace man on ground, but can direct man's efforts on ground to be more efficient."

- Dr. Vikram Sarabhai "Summary of the conference and recommendation for initiatives", the First UN Conference on Peaceful Uses of Outer Space at Vienna in 1969

The Indian foray into remote sensing began with participation in the analysis of Landsat data in 1975, the setting up of the National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA) and its Landsat Data Reception Station in 1975 at the launch of INSAT 1A and 1B in 1982-83 with a very high resolution radiometer onboard for meteorological applications and in 1988 India entered the age of operational land remote sensing from space with the launch of IRS1A carrying 70m and 35m resolution CCD cameras. The two departments which have played key roles in the evolution of geospatial technology in India are the Departments of Space and Science and Technology. The two have always worked in sync to introduce and promote new technologies. The IRS programme was conceptualised and launched in

1981. Simultaneously the then Chairman of ISRO, Prof Satish Dhawan coordinated with the then Secretary of Science and Technology, Prof MGK Menon to launch a programme called the National Natural Resources Management System (NNRMS) that would prepare the Indian scientific departments to use the data from IRS. NNRMS was established in 1983 by the Planning Commission and had participation from all the government departments and ministries. One of the activities was the assessment of the forest cover of India in 1984. Using Landsat data, the Department of Space released a figure of 17 percent, a far cry from the 33 percent claimed by the Forest Survey of India (FSI). There was a hue and cry and the number was ultimately revised upward after much discussion but the 33 percent claim was put to rest. The outcome was that FSI began to use remote sensing for periodically assessing the forest cover of India. The NNRMS programme resulted in many new initiatives, mapping of potential groundwater zones, wastelands, grasslands, water bodies and coastal zones to name a few.

ENTRY OF GIS All these efforts were in the nature of inventories and soon the question began to be asked - what next? The question was sought to be answered with a programme called the Integrated Mission for Sustainable Development which sought to use remote sensing to plan for

Major milestones in Indiaâ€™s tryst with g-tech

Geospatial World I February 2012

better management of land and water was started in 1986. This programme and another one on Scientific Source Finding for the Drinking Water Mission in 1985 brought out an important fact that remote sensing by itself was not enough. It needed information from many other sources and the planning activity had to take into account the aspirations and expectations of the people who were the ultimate beneficiaries of the programmes. There was, at this juncture, a standoff between the remote sensing purists who refused to countenance any other data source and data management system and the planners who needed tools for evolving decision support alternatives. This laid the ground for the entry of Geographical Information Systems (GIS). Experimentation with GIS began almost in conjunction with IRS and by 1989 GIS had found its way into DOS, DST, Survey of India, FSI and other major departments. Two major projects under the NNRMS, the Natural Resources Data Management System (NRDMS) of DST and National Resources Information System (NRIS) of DOS spearheaded these efforts. Survey of India set up its Digital Mapping Centre and Modern Mapping Centre to cater to the upcoming requirement of digital base maps for GIS. A major exercise to define a digital vector data standard was undertaken as well as a national spatial data exchange standard for vector and raster data. Meanwhile Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) began to revolutionise position location and the use of Global Positioning Systems (GPS) for precise location, survey and mapping became common. The removal of selective availability gave a great fillip to these activities. The growth of these activities also saw a parallel growth in Indian industry. Many MNCs began to tie up with Indian firms to market their geospatial products in India. The IT industry which expanded in the 1990s also began to address the geospatial market. DOS actively promoted the growth of geospatial entrepreneurs and many professionals took voluntary retirement to open geospatial service companies and even manufacturing units for image analysis systems. Large mapping projects were outsourced by the government which encouraged the growth of the service sector. A large part of this growth was also the result of the defence requirements and many companies had special units which catered exclusively to the needs of the Army, Navy and Air Force. The IRS programme went international in 1994 with the signing of an agreement with EOSAT to market IRS data

Geospatial World I February 2012

The two departments which have played key roles in the evolution of geospatial technology in India arre the Departments of Space and Science and Technology. The two have always worked in sync to intro oduce and promote new technologies

globally. In turn Indian users also got access, albeit limited, to the metre and sub-metre resolution data from private satellite operators.

INDUSTRY INVOLVEMENT DETERRING FACTORS As can be seen from this rather concise history, the geospatial activities in India are almost wholly government driven. Private sector has a role to play in supporting these activities. However, the use of geospatial technology by and for industry is rather limited. There are a few examples like Hindustan Lever who use geospatial technology for supply chain management, Hindustan Construction Company who used GIS for managing their mega urban project Lavasa and the use of GIS by Reliance Power and Reliance Communications. What are the deterring factors? The key feature of geospatial data is geo-referencing and thus it encompasses maps, imagery and point information generated by GPS as well as other means of data acquisition. The right to generate data is wholly with the

Aerial surveying is regulated by the government and subject to stringent control, deterring the role of private sector in supporting geospatial activities in India

government. Space data is generated Antrix, which handles access of foreign and distributed by DOS alone and topoentities to IRS data, can also enter into National graphic data is the responsibility of Suragreement with foreign data suppliers for development vey of India. Aerial surveys are also regumarketing their data in India, in addition to projects like lated by the government and subject to NRSC which continues to be the sole data RAPDRP are making stringent controls. Because of the spadistributor and as such a single point of geospatial systems tially referenced context, such data is choking of data supply. Private users will an integral part of also considered to be strategic and need a government certificate stating that the IT T infrastructure therefore its generation and access is the data is for development purposes in and providing controlled by the State. This control is by India before getting access to sub-metre impetus to geospaway of established policies. The Map Poldata from all satellites. Otherwise the tial activities in icy regulates access to maps created by request will be referred to the High Resothe country Survey of India. The Open Series of lution Data Committee for approval. maps, OSM, available to general users is These policies effectively control and subject to several licences. Maps of regulate the use of Indian data by Indian coastal and international boundaries are secret in the users but are ineffective in controlling the legal or illegal OSM series. No height data is included in the OSM series. use by foreign entities. Indian map data is available off Third party value addition to OSM maps becomes the the shelf and on the Internet. High resolution data over intellectual property of SoI. A new map policy is in the India from foreign remote sensing satellites is also availprocess of being released which will reduce but not able over the Internet on payment and freely on applicaremove these restrictions. tions like Google Maps. Stereo imaging data from foreign Remote sensing is controlled by two policies. Aerial satellites can be used in a standard digital photogramsurveys are controlled by various laws and require clearmetry workstation to obtain accurate height information. ance by the Home and Defence ministries. Department of GPS is now available commercially on mobile phones and Space operates a Space Remote Sensing Policy that regcar navigation systems. ulates access to data having resolution better than 1 IMPETUS FROM metre. Data better than 1 metre (Cartosat 2A and 2B and NATIONAL foreign panchromatic data) is subject to screening. The DEVELOPMENT group of government users who are eligible to use such PROJECTS data without further clearance are spelt out in detail. This However policy was an area of ambiguity in the earlier policy and created restrictions problems for many projects like R-APDRP which were have being executed by public sector units.

Geospatial World I February 2012

not slowed down the geospatial activities of the government. According to a market research by Geospatial World in September 2010, the budgetary allocation in the 11th Five Year Plan (2007-12) for major geospatial national development projects like the Restructured Accelerated Power Development and Reforms Programme (RAPDRP), the National Land Records Modernisation Programme (NLRMP), Forest Information Management and Resource Assessment, and others, together is nearly INR 65624.7 million. These numbers do require a leap of faith because work has been slow but is picking up at a steady pace. The interesting fact about these programmes is the way geospatial technology is being ingested into the systems. If the initial phase consisted of managing geospatial data by way of mapping and inventorying, the current phase is one of managing data geospatially by making geospatial systems an integral part of the IT infrastructure of the programme. Thus the GIS component of RAPDRP is a part of the overall IT strategy for making power distribution efficient and reducing losses. Similarly the geospatial component of the NLRMP seeks ways to use the technology to rapidly map the land holdings and update all the record of rights and make these available through an IT infrastructure. The process of updating land records is well established and the geospatial and IT components have been woven into this process. The JNNURM is however a different story. While it does recognise the importance of geospatial technology for mapping and updating maps at regular intervals, it seems to restrict the usage to taxes and building permissions alone. Little wonder then that of the 63 cities initially picked up for the mission not one has effectively integrated geospatial systems into the IT infrastructure. However, this too will change as geospatial activities are picking up slowly. Other major sectors of significant activity are defence and homeland security. The Directorate General of Information Systems of the Ministry of Defence has a major programme for induction of geospatial systems into C4ISR activities. The National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO) is similarly inducting latest technologies into its activities for homeland security. Both these sectors provide huge opportunities for the Indian geospatial industry. Like everything else in India, geospatial systems and applications is a huge market, a huge promise of business and employment, but there are equally huge

Geospatial World I February 2012

The effort at creating a spatial data infrastructure was originally called National Geospatial Data Infrastructure (NGDI) in 2001 and later renamed as National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI) in 2002

issues and hurdles. The biggest hurdle is that of data sharing followed by data policies and lack of trained human resources.

OF PROMISES AND CHALLENGES Indians tend to be very data secretive. As a result, same data is collected over and over again by different departments and often by different teams from the same department. Spatial data infrastructure Two major projects, NRDMS and NRIS attempted to create structured geodatabases on the basis of the Indian administrative structure. From this it was a short step to creating a spatial data infrastructure which could be shared by different departments and provide data for aca-

GI Science defined "Geographic Information Science (GI Science) is the basic research field that seeks to redefine geographic concepts and their use in the context of geographic information systems. GI Science also examines the impacts of GIS on individuals and society and the influences of society on GIS. GI Science re-examines some of the most fundamental themes in traditional spatially oriented fields such as geography, cartography and geodesy, while incorporating more recent developments in cognitive and information science. It also overlaps with and draws from more specialised research fields such as computer science, statistics, mathematics and psychology, and contributes to progress in those fields. It supports research in political science and anthropology and draws on those fields in studies of geographic information and society."

- University Consortium of GIS, 1999

demia and industry. This effort, originally christened as National Geospatial Data Infrastructure (NGDI) and later renamed as National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI), was launched in 2001 by DOS and DST. After several meetings, the Task Group on NSDI submitted its report in May 2006 and on 02 June 2006, the Cabinet approved creation of NSDI and constituted a National Spatial Data Committee and an Executive Committee with a secretariat to assist the two committees. An NSDI Geoportal was established on 22 December 2008. However, the populating of this geoportal with metadata of the data holdings of different departments is still ongoing. Meanwhile, there are individual portals set up by different departments and States. NSDI is now promoting state portals and linking to central government portals. Other useful efforts of the NSDI are the establishment of the core metadata standards and GML schemas. Thematic standards are also under preparation. Meanwhile, the Planning Commission is proposing to establish a National GIS which will do all that NSDI was supposed to do and in addition provide DSS for all the departments. Something similar was attempted in the 1970s by the National Informatics Centre (NIC) with rather patchy results. Apparently the lessons of this exercise and of the NSDI are not fully comprehended. Instead of rediscovering the wheel, the Planning Commission could accelerate the establishment of the NSDI by removing the obstructions that are hampering the NSDI. The main drawback as has been pointed out is the unwillingness to share data. By making data sharing mandatory, this could be achieved. For example the RAPDRP and JNNURM will require base data which could be supplied by the NSDI through the state portals. This would require standardisation of data at the structural level as well as at the thematic level. NSDI has standardised on GML for the structure and this schema could be adopted. Thematic standards have been prepared from time to time by different projects. These need to be vetted and adopted as national standards to ensure semantic interoperability.

There is a need to ensure that the proposed geospatial data policy is realistic and addresses the needs of bonafide Indian users in the government, industry, education and NGO sectors

Data policy The second problem is that of data policy. There is a need to see that the proposed geospatial data policy is realistic and addresses the needs of bonafide Indian users in the government, industry, education and NGO sectors. It is necessary to revisit the several separate policies and evolve a unified geodata policy which will satisfy development and civilian applications while at the same time address the national security concerns. The following recommendations are made with this in mind: â€˘ Make the Open Series Maps completely unrestricted. They do not have heights or any vital areas and vital bases. Continue to register the map users as is being done now under the Map Policy. OSM maps should not be used for legal purposes like boundary delineation. For this the restricted Survey of India maps are to be used. Make available products like slope maps which are derived from height information but cannot be used to recalculate the height contours. Charge royalty on map reuse through value addition but do not demand IP rights. Create a new series derived from the OSM but which have positional accuracies matched to satellite remotely sensed data. These will be useful for thematic mapping and can be made public and available freely or at nominal cost. All digital data must be supplied in GML 3.0 or higher. â€˘ Deregulate all high resolution satellite imagery older than two years and aerial photographs more than five years old. Such data has no mission critical value. Data from non-photographic imaging sensors like synthetic aperture radar and LiDAR should be completely deregulated for Indian users. Foreign satellite data up to one metre resolution should be directly available from suppliers. For data better than one metre, the requirement of a government certificate should be removed. Instead, such data should be made available through Antrix Corporation who will maintain a database of the supplies and the intended usage.

Geospatial World I February 2012

1/9/201

mittee consisting of representatives from all sectors.

â€˘ All digital data must conform to international standards as specified by ISO or OGC or by independent standards developed in India. Data ordering should be automated and include online browsing, order placement, payment and delivery to reduce turnaround time. All transactions should be recorded and archived. This should include the IP address trace back. The security approach should consider calibrated access. Large volume users should be handled differently from low volume occasional users. Large volume users should only use digital signatures. Users should need to register only once and not for each transaction. â€˘ All data should be unobtrusively watermarked using advanced steganographic techniques to be approved by a government security agency. Legal liabilities associated with each data must be listed out including disclaimers for improper use and penalties for misuse and illegal distribution. The policy should be reviewed every six months by an empowered com36

Trained human resources If and when all these steps are completed, the biggest hurdle remaining will be that of trained human resources. Geospatial data acquisition, processing, management and application require a mix of skills not available from any single stream. There are a number of institutions in the public and private domains which confer degrees and diplomas in geomatics, geoinformatics, remote sensing and GIS. Most of the students passing out with these qualifications do not find suitable employment. One possible reason is that they learn a little bit about everything and become Jacks of all trades but Masters of none. While geospatial systems are computer based, the general idea that a degree in Computer Science or Information Technology is sufficient is fallacious. A strong background in physical geography, engineering or science domain knowledge, mathematical and management skills are equally important. What is needed therefore are not separate courses but electives in existing courses in computer science, statistics, mathematics, geography, physics, life sciences, engineering and management. Administrators in the government and industry need to go through such courses as well during their induction training. State academies for administrative training need to hold refresher courses from time to time to update their staff capacities. A beginning has been made to introduce geospatial subjects in school curricula by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE). This needs to be spread to all Geospatial World I February 2012

Courtesy: Water Security in Peri-Urban South Asia

For a country of Indiaâ€™s size and diversity where the acquisition of data is a major task, volunteered geographic information and public participation can prove to be a cost-effective solution

other Boards so that the importance of geospatial applications and technology is understood and becomes a career option for the students entering college. Cost effective solutions The relaxation of restrictions and the creation of geospatially enabled population will also help to promote volunteered geographic information (VGI). For a country of India's size and diversity, the acquisition of data is a major task. VGI can provide a cost-effective solution. The operationalisation of NSDI should include processes to enable VGI and its vetting and ingest into the relevant databases. The government lays stress on governmentto-citizen interface through IT enabled services. This should include geospatial information to enable citizens to understand and perhaps even participate in the decisions that impact their lives and living spaces. Public private partnerships The government is also keen on public private partnership. However, the scope is rarely defined in concrete terms and usually is reduced to contract services. If geospatial enablement is to take off then the industry involvement has to move beyond supply of hardware and software. For example, in JNNURM the problem is that of an urban planning mindset which is tied to 'building permissions' and 'tax collection'. Very few metropolitan cities

Geospatial World I February 2012

have planning departments and those that have are staffed at best by eight to ten planners under an engineer who are busy with building permissions rather than planning because they are understaffed, under-budgeted and lack modern geospatial tools like GIS. The need is for 80 to 100 planners for a large city and their domains of expertise should cover the various sectors of planning as well as economics and architecture. Needless to say they also need to be able to handle modern geospatial technology in their planning process. This technology goes much beyond a simple GIS and encompasses new data acquisition systems, ERP and modelling.

CONCLUSION Overall, the trajectory of India in geospatial space has been and continues to be very promising. However, considerable efforts are needed to realise these promises. So far India has been very enterprising and has worked around obstacles because the Indian ethos is one of compromise and improvisation. With new projects on the horizon, development of geospatial systems has become an urgent necessity. The government, industry and academia need to pull together to make the next five years exciting. Prof. Arup Dasgupta Managing Editor, arup@geospatialmedia.net

INTERVIEW

'An open p o geospatial m

KK Singh Chairman & Managing Dir ector Rolt a India Limited

Geospatial World I February 2012

p olicy will grow the market exponentially' Rolta is increasingly becoming solution-centric. What are the latest developments in this on? directio In a way, Rolta has always been solutioncentric and has been delivering the ultimate user experience. While this process involved third party products earlier, we have now realised that the priorities for our customers in India are very endemic and different from customers in other parts of the world. In being dependent on global software, we cannot fully address the needs of our customers in India. This realisation was the beginning of the journey that has transformed Rolta. Today, we have intellectual property rights (IPRs) not because we can own an IPR but because we can use it in a more focussed manner to address the needs of the Indian customer. We have expanded horizontally, in terms of creating IPRs, we have expanded vertically in terms of focussing on certain segments of the industry and we have built up the IPRs for those segments.

In the backdrop of slowing economic scenario globally, we see a moderation of growth in India. Infllationary trends and falling rupee are adding fuel to the fire. How, according to you, are these facttors affecting geospatial industry in India? These factors surely affect the geospatial industry, since they impact the budget. Certain parameters of projections for the budget are unlikely to be met this year. This implies pressure on the government and therefore lower spending by the government. This can defer some projects and less number of new projects coming up. The growth projection for the country which was earlier put at an optimistic 8.5 percent for this year has gone down to 7 percent. For the next year (2012-13), it is projected

Geospatial World I February 2012

to be lower than 7 percent. So obviously there are a lot of challenges in the domestic market. These challenges are being faced by all concerned - the geospatial industry faces the same constraints as everyone else.

In such a scenario, what would be the growth prospects for Rolta this year? At Rolta, we are looking at a growth of 12-14 percent for our fiscal year ending June 2012, covering both the domestic and international markets. Homeland security and defence, our key sectors on the domestic front, are less affected by the factors mentioned earlier as they have their own priorities and budgets. We are bullish about this target despite the prevailing conditions.

accelerate geospatial industryy in the country? A simple analogy is that of real estate market where the top three criteria are location, location, location. For geospatial industry, it would be a comprehensive and open geospatial policy. That is the 1,2,3 of it. This will open up the sector like nothing else. We have seen the impact of policies on the telecom sector. The telecom sector opened up due to the government bringing out enabling policies. Conversely, the sector suffered when these policies got paralysed due to various controversies. Coming back to the geospatial industry, there should be an open geospatial policy with minimal restrictions in terms of creating and using maps and related data. Such things are hardly an issue in the geospatial industry globally. This is what will make the difference. We are one of the largest nations in the world. In the geospatial arena, we are much below the developed world, only because we don't have enabling, open policies while all other ingredients are in place including technology, manpower, will and investment. the

A section of the media attributes slowdown to the 'policy paralysis' within the country. Do you The size of hink geospatial secth Indian geospatial tor has been market will change affected with this? exponentially if the

The size of the Indian market will change exponentially if the geospatial policies encourage creI fully agree with that. policies encourage ation of data and use by There are policy paralyses creatio on of data a common person in a on many fronts. Consider and use by a free manner, as is hapthe example of FDI. In pening in the rest of the common person in spite of the good intenworld. Take the example tions of the government, a free manner, as of automobile navigation. where the government is happening in the India has the second or acted proactively and rest of the world third largest number of introduced a comprehencars in the world but sive, forward looking FDI there are no navigation policy in retail, there was systems in cars here. Majority of cars are tremendous opposition. Such things being manufactured here but the navigabecome inevitable in a democratic set up tion case is blank. How is navigation possiwhere there are always opposing views. ble without maps? And how would maps come unless somebody is allowed to create them? This doesn't need investment, it just What according to you are the top needs permission and policy.

three policy initiatives that would

You have recently said that about 68 % of Rolta's focus is on the domestic front. What are the secttors that hold promise for Rolta in the next 2-3 years? Our key sectors are defence and homeland security. In the last 8-10 years, defence has opened up significantly as a sector due to policies. It is undertaking a large strategic programme called Make India Programme. Under the programme, only Indian companies that fulfill certain criteria are allowed to participate in various projects, though they are allowed to have technology partners of their choice. These partners will supply their products and technologies to the local companies who in turn will make value additions. Those value additions - localised, customised, Indianised, will then be with the government. In the process, the dependence of the country on a foreign technology reduces. This arrangement can be beneficial in times of war when a situation can become problematic if the country owning the technology bars us from using it. Doing away with this kind of dependence is therefore of paramount importance. A nation can't afford strategic programmes to be hampered in times of war just because a particular country has the power to do it since they do have the authority to put certain restrictions in certain circumstances in their supply contracts. Strategic programmes are therefore becoming Make India programmes, and

We have made tremendous investments in the last five years to strengthen our capabilities to take part in the strategic defence programmes. We have acquired various technologies and are taking them m to the next level 40

these are very large programmes. The tactical communications system is a USD 4-5 billion (or INR 20-30 thousand crore) programme; battlefield management system is an INR 30-40 thousand crore programme and another programme for soldier systems is an INR 30-40 thousand crore programme. What we have is a market worth USD 20-30 billion over the next ten years. And as I mentioned earlier, only select Indian companies that meet the stringent criteria can be a part of these programmes. So we see this as a sector with tremendous opportunity and growth.

in place programmes for this purpose. Let's take an example from Mumbai, India. Mumbai police uses emergency dispatch solutions. But these have been land-based emergency dispatch solutions which are quite different from that of coastline security. There are different companies developing these solutions. We offer a blended solution. We acquired two different technologies - one for land-based homeland security solutions and one for the coastline. We integrated the technologies so that we now offer an integrated solution where land and coast systems can work in synergy with each other.

How is Rolta planning to capture this opportunity?

In this market, we are at the forefront in providing all kinds of solutions. These solutions are based on technologies developed by us - solutions for police modernisation, maritime security, critical infrastructure and border security. These markets themselves are worth billions of dollars over the next ten years. Even if there are ten players in this market including us, there is still enough business for everybody.

We have made tremendous investments in the last five years. We have acquired technologies and also developed the requisite technologies. Any technology is like raw material. One needs to make additions on top of it based on customer requirements. This is our approach - customising technology based on requirements of customers in India. So whether they are geospatial technologies, homeland security technologies or defence technologies, we have acquired all kinds of technologies and invested in taking them to the next level. Our investments have been towards strengthening our capabilities to take part in the programmes that I earlier mentioned. We have already started participating in these programmes since we are one of the shortlisted companies. We are bullish on being part of more such programmes. Till recently, we were just focussed on the very specific geospatial aspect of the defence market, catering to a market size of INR 200-400 crore. Now with the expansion of our focus and capabilities, we are playing into a field where we are seeing opportunities worth USD 20 billion in the next ten years. In this market, even if we are playing with four other players, everybody stands to gain at least 15-20 percent of the market. Homeland security market is also witnessing similar trend. This market has also opened up significantly. There is a tremendous need to upgrade our homeland security systems which includes modernisation of police force. Government is carefully putting

Rolta has a unique business model in acquiring intellectual property rights of cutting edge technollogies. How has been the experience? How are these being leveraged with the existing capabilities off Rolta? When we started strengthening our solution-centric model four-five years ago, it was very impractical and imprudent to build it from a scratch to meet customer demands quickly. Therefore we identified the software we required and acquired them from the source level to serve us. One of the USPs of Rolta is that we understand the customer needs very well. We have people driving the technology not from a technologist point of view, though of course it would be great to add that feature, but from a very focussed user and workflow point of view. Earlier, our services involved other software where we added value and customised, now we are starting from raw material all the way up. Of course we do use third party software as and when there is a need for it.

Geospatial World I February 2012

Rolta has been quite selective in acquiring companies and intellectual property. What is the guidiing principal for Rolta for these acquisitions? Here, I would like to draw on two aspects. The first is our strong focus on defence and homeland security. We have been offering solutions in this vertical for the last twenty years and are aware of what the gaps are in terms of technology. We strengthened ourselves and filled in these gaps by acquiring those technologies and making the investments that I earlier mentioned. The other aspect is, we as a company are classified into an IT company. But we are not into mainstream IT. We were mainstream geospatial, engineering, etc, using IT as a technology. So we decided that we will venture into mainstream IT as well. This market holds huge potential as about USD 100 billion worth of outsourcing is taking place from India. To venture into this market, we required front-end companies with experience, track record, customers and manpower. Having these companies as front-end would allow us to interface with the customer and get us the market so that we are able to create the back-end which will bring value to the customer. For this purpose, we needed to acquire companies that would give us that kind of track record and that kind of positioning. This has been our philosophy.

So is Rolta also positioning itself as a front-end IT company through acquisitions? We are positioning ourselves as a mainstream IT company through these acquisitions. This is evident from the fact that we have also specialised in business intelligence. We have developed our business

Geospatial World I February 2012

intelligence suite of software for operational excellence in various sectors including chemicals, fertilisers, petrochemicals, oil, gas, refinery and power. Traditionally, these companies have already invested in Oracle or SAP for business processing. But they don't have the intelligence, KPIs or the data models to tell them what they need, quickly, so that they can make informed decisions. So we have built comprehensive data models and KPIs on the same platforms.

Apart from India, what are the countries/regions of interest for Rolta? Our main focus has been US, given our acquisitions there. We also have presence in Europe and the Middle East. In the latter two, we have gone the organic way for growth, while US has been inorganic growth.

Are you also looking at the BRIC countries other than India? BRICS countries do not offer the kind of IT opportunities that are in our domain. For example, there is not much scope for IT outsourcing business in Brazil. BRIC companies also have tremendous labour advantage, so it won't be prudent to establish IT outsourcing business in these countries. Of course where geospatial business is concerned, these countries do offer possibili-

ties. But we want to tap the tremendous opportunities that are around us first. We believe that India is the last frontier for geospatial and will open up tremendously. We are positioning ourselves to take advantage of it. We have made tremendous investments which are, to some extent, very high in respect to the size of our company. We believe that as we move forward, we will

We want to tap the tremendous opportunities that are around us first. We believe that India is the e last frontier for geospatial and will open up tremendously. We are positioning ourselves to take ad dvantage of it get benefits and dividends out of that investment.

India has a vast pool of talent. Is Rolta looking at harnessing this e pool of talent or creating more research facilities in India? In 2008, we started building our product development division and engaged people who had worked on product development - not services, not customisation, not implementation. From 2008 to now, we have witnessed a tremendous maturity in that team. Our product development team in based not only in Mumbai but we also have R&D offices in Gurgaon and Hyderabad. Through these offices, we

endeavour to tap into talent that is present across the country. I feel there is a need for much more innovation in India because of the talent here. India has been a services hub but not really a product hub. This is what makes product development exciting at Rolta.

MOBILE RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Transforming India's transport sector

n most countries around the globe, the use of GPS is synonymous with in-vehicle navigation systems to give driving directions and other related information such as street maps and points of interest.. In India, the most common way to find directions to an unknown destination may be to roll down the car window and ask the guy on the sidewalk. However, as roads become well documented, even this is changing rapidly to mirror the trends in developed countries. Although the use of GPS and personal navigation devices (PNDs) for finding driving directions in India has picked up only during the past 5-6 years, its use as a productivity tool has been in vogue in the enterprise world for nearly a decade. Before technology gave fleet owners

the freedom to track their vehicles in real time, drivers could make unwarranted pit stops, take extra long hours for eating/sleeping and still remain undetected. GPS enabled on-board computers to track field vehicles and wirelessly communicate that information to a software service to deliver a host of business productivity tools emerged as an enterprise software category in the early part of last decade under the broadly accepted name of mobile resource management (MRM). This business value applied equally to everyone from owner operated small businesses to large transportation and logistics companies. According to current estimates, the total MRM revenue worldwide is estimated at a whopping USD 3-4 bn. While MRM has tremendous utility for all organi-

GeospatialWorld I February 2012

sations that have mobile assets, a common view is that it does deliver a clear return on investment (ROI) for the business. A good case in point here is of a recent study by Aberdeen Group, a well known industry analyst firm, which concluded that businesses that implemented the right MRM solution increased work order completion per employee per day by over 25 percent in two years.

MRM in commercial transportation One industry that has made optimum use of MRM solutions in India is the commercial transport industry. Most large auto manufacturers in the country use a network of independently owned transporters to move the vehicles from their factory to dealers across the country. These trips, ranging thousands of miles often take several days and sometimes weeks to reach their destination. The operations manager for the car manufacturer has no visibility of the state of the load once it leaves the factory until it reaches its intended destination and has to rely on the driver's word or estimates based on past experience. This is where the utility of MRM comes in. GPS tracking, coupled with the back office software solution, can provide up-to-the-minute visibility and business intelligence pertaining to the cargo and thus help the manufacturer and transporter to address their business needs. With retail sector in the country witnessing a boom, increased competition and pressure from customers to provide more value, businesses are looking to employ ultramodern tracking mechanisms that can offer in-transit visibility of their cargo. At the same time, customers are looking for a dependable solution that can offer options like tracking of cargo from point of dispatch till point of delivery, expected time of arrival, SMS alerts etc. Despite its proven benefits, the Indian market has been somewhat slow to adopt this trend, primarily because of the road conditions and lack of focus to improve worker productivity. But, as the market goes through the impact of globalisation, Indian companies are increasingly investing in MRM solutions for transportation, logistics and field services to manage costs and increase productivity. Sensing the market opportunity, companies like Trimble, based in Sunnyvale, California, with a global presence and operational footprint have

GeospatialWorld I February 2012

brought their tried and tested hardware platforms and domain expertise to the Indian market and built solutions that are specific to local needs and vehicle/road conditions. However, the process of implementing the technology has been far from a cakewalk and had to face several roadblocks like resistance from drivers, who initially mistook GPS tracking as invasion of their privacy and retorted to measures such as tampering with the device. "We faced a lot of problem of tampering initially. At times, the drivers would disconnect the battery or short-circuit the device. However, we have been able to overcome this issue to a large extent by focusing on motivating and educating the drivers," says Rajinder Singh Bhasin, Managing Director of Chennai-based Janta Roadways, which has been using Trimble solutions for the past few years.

According to a market report, businesses that implemented the right MRM solution increased work orde er completion per employee per day by over 25 percent in two years

MRM in transportation: Benefits While most companies start using GPS to simply track and trace their vehicles and get better visibility of their field teams, MRM solutions can deliver a whole range of other benefits such as increasing fuel efficiency of the fleet, minimising vehicle down time, on-time delivery of goods, monitoring driver behaviour and improving the security of in-flight items. Vehicle tracking technology has proved immensely

A truck fitted with GPS-based tracking device

useful for perishable commodities or goods that require constant monitoring to help ensure optimal safety and protection against theft. Describing how the use of Trimble's tracking solution has proved to be a boon for their

Enterprise MRM

Integrating MRM with ERP

company, M Bhalerao, Sales & Logistics Manager at Nagpur-based Solar says, "Using the technology has served the company's objective of fulfilling its duty towards the nation with regards to secure and on-time delivery of hazardous materials to the right destinations." GPS tracking devices available in the market nowadays are extremely affordable and allow transport and logistics companies to save money in different areas, offering great return on investment (ROI). It can check pilferage, track vehicles in case of theft and, most importantly, earn the trust of the customer, which in turn, translates into future profits. "We have invested in this system to offer better services to our customers. Thus, we do not measure it in terms of return on investment. It helps us create a bond with our customers and that is what matters the most," says Rajinder Bhasin. However, the technology is still in its nascent stage in India and there is a need to create awareness among users. "The focus of many transporters in India is to go with an independent application for every different purpose. So there are a multitude of applications that do not talk to each other. The need is to have tighter integration of these applications with back-end systems to offer greater benefits across the enterprise," says Tayeb Barodawala, Director, Aakit Technologies, Mumbai, which provides ERP integration and IT consulting to enterprises of all sizes. The ability to easily integrate its hosted MRM solution with other enterprise systems is what Trimble's customers also find beneficial beyond the basic track and trace of field assets.

To make optimum utilisation of the system and fulfil the customer's demand of having visibility of his goods at all times, it is important to create an integrated enterprise system that can take data gathered from the GPS system of the vehicles and the consignment data (such as lorry receipt number, invoice number, shipment details, dispatch time etc.) from customer's ERP system to make available real time location data for all stakeholders involved in the transport network. The system thus generated can seamlessly connect the consignor, consignee and the logistics service provider by effective flow of information on a real time basis. Highlighting the benefits of integrating on-field GPS devices with a robust backend ERP system, Tayeb Barodawala says, "When the integration is achieved, it results in a lot of benefits. The analysis of the information received will allow you to take real time decisions. In critical times, especially, this results in improvement of efficiency in the entire chain." Further, the system can be connected to the internet, which allows stakeholders to track their shipment by simply entering any of the parameters associated with that consignment. The interface can be conveniently extended further to include any stakeholder as and when required by making simple, application level integrations. The system should be capable of calculating the expected time of arrival (ETA) on the basis of data available on the current location and the destination to be reached with an intelligent GIS-based routing engine. Describing how vehicle tracking has been integrated with ERP system in his organisation for the overall benefit of those concerned, Rajinder Bhasin says, "All the data from GPS devices mounted in our vehicles is fed into the ERP system and is accessible to our inter-office team at

GPS tracking, coupled with back office software solution, can provide up-to-the-minute visibility and business intelligence pertaining to the cargo & thus help the manufacturer and transporter to add dress their business needs

GeospatialWorld I February 2012

Maruti finds success with MRM Maruti Suzuki India Limited is the country's largest passenger car company, accounting for a majority of the domestic car market. The company manufactures over one million cars per year at its huge manufacturing facilities located at Gurgaon and Manesar and distributes the vehicles to its dealers across the country through a chain of partner transport companies. The transit time can be as long as 10-12 days in case of far flung areas, in which case the challenge is to have constant information about the fleet and knowing the expected time of arrival. "With such long journey

times, we would like to know where the carrier has reached and the expected time of arrival, especially because the dealers have to make commitment to their customers," says Ram Suresh Akella, General Manager, SND & Logistics, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. To streamline the transport network and ensure visibility of its fleet at all times, the company has deployed Trimble's GPS-based tracking solution. The system has resulted in improved efficiency of the network as compared to the previously employed manual tracking systems wherein some-

the click of a button. This offers numerous benefits such as constant monitoring of the fleet, resource and money saving. We are now able to inform our customers about the location of the consignment and the time of arrival." M Bhalerao of Solar says, "The fleet management system is integrated with our own ERP system and makes it easy to view various kinds of information related to a particular consignment. All our customers have been provided with separate login IDs through which they can log into the system and track their consignment."

Conclusion When it comes to the use of GPS in transportation and logistics, Indian market has witnessed a lot of companies emerge with solutions ranging from completely homegrown to the ones adapted from the foreign market. As the market starts realising the benefits of these solutions, both sophistication and complexity are bound to

GeospatialWorld I February 2012

body would call up the driver everyday for his location and then manually update it into the system. "It was a time consuming and unreliable method because there was no way to verify what the driver was saying," informs Ram Suresh Akella. Having started the process of installation of GPS devices on its transport vehicles in January 2011, the company has successfully upgraded close to 70 percent of its vehicles and has been able to do away with a lot of problems that it faced earlier. "Apart from giving us the loca-

tion of the carrier, it also gives us the opportunity to plan the fleet better. Also, the system has features like exception reporting, which gives over speed alerts, stoppage reports etc. A summarised report is generated at the end of each trip which gives a summary of the performance on that particular trip and in turn helps the transporters in giving post-trip counselling to the drivers," explain Ram Suresh Akella. The system is also integrated to the company's ERP system, which allows the dealers to keep a track of the cars invoiced to them and thus make 'informed commitments' to their customers.

increase. It is no more a question of whether businesses can afford to operate efficiently without these technologies but where to start and what type of solutions to deploy. As the focus shifts from visibility to optimising every step of the workflow, it is important that the MRM solution is well designed to scale and delivers more and more value. This ability to grow is what enterprises need to look for when picking the right kind of solution. The transport sector is in urgent need to optimise its operations to meet delivery pressures. An enterprise on road visibility application integrated with the vehicle location will provide a collaborative platform to the industry. This requires existing service providers to move beyond mere providing GPS-based vehicle tracking and develop enterprise applications. Doing this will give the desired boost to the nascent industry and a win-win proposition to everyone in transport and logistics value chain. Vaibhav Arora, Assistant Editor, vaibhav@geospatialmedia.net

CONFERENCE REPORT

Defining the future of geoint WHAT: DGI 2012

WHERE: LONDON, UK

WHEN: JANUARY 23-26, 2012 yottabytes (1024 bytes) of data," he informed. "With a huge volume and the kind of data that is being generated today, the challenge is to move from network centricity to data centricity," he said.

mage exploitation and analysis of huge volume of geospatial data was the focus of DGI 2012 that was attended by more than 700 people. Experts from around the world gathered at the event to discuss the challenges facing the geoint community in today's world. There was also a two-day exhibition in which nearly 30 companies showcased their offerings. The theme of this year's conference was 'Empowering decisions through online on-demand access to multi-int knowledge and analysis.'

Big data and data exploitation

Exploitation of data is a reality now," said Air Chief Marshal Sir Stuart William Peach, Commander Joint Forces Command, UK Ministry of Defence. Maj Gen John M. Custer (retd), Director of Federal Strategic Missions and Programs, EMC, highlighted the gravity of the problem by citing examples of the kind of data that will be available in future. "Do you know that there are nearly 1.85 million closed-circuit cameras in UK today? And by 2015, the world is going to produce

"Intelligence operations have changed in the last decade. We need technology that is going to give us better insight and understanding of a situation and hence enhance our intelligence," said Lt. Gen Michael Maples, US Army (retd), Chairman of the Board, Intergraph Government Solutions (IGS), adding, "Geospatial technology improves our situational awareness by providing us information about a particular area. Fusion of this kind of information is important. We need to exploit the technology further to better our capabilities." His views were echoed by H. John Oechsle, Executive Vice President Strategy, Product, DigitalGlobe, who saw opportunities in this sector. "Right now, we have vast amounts of data from multiple sources. Making sense of this data is a problem. But that's also an opportunity," he said, adding, "Tremendous new opportunities are emerging with integrated visualisation of complex data sets. By studying the past trends, we can anticipate future trends." He, however, said that

The ability to analyse vast amounts of data generated by various sensors was recognised as one of the major challenges for the geoint community in the future. The topic was also the most debated one at the event. "Data overload must be addressed.

Geospatial World I February 2012

It doesn’t matter where you are on the planet,

we’ve got you covered.

You can trust us to deliver what you need,

when and where you need it.

Get the best imagery and information available

from the most advanced constellation.

Full Spectrum Product Offering Your entire geospatial solution when and how you need it—at resolutions ranging from 15 cm to 5 m, across the globe, both online and offline. Sourced from the largest high-resolution commercial

satellite

constellation

and

aerial

network,

DigitalGlobe has been solving your most complex problems for more than a decade. You can trust the global leader in commercial satellite imagery and information.

To learn more, visit: www.digitalglobe.com/fullspectrum

ensure that our soldiers look ahead and are not always glued to phone," said Lt. Gen Maples.

Cloud

there is a need to quicken the process of data analysis.

Predictive analysis "What if you could stop a crime before it happens? In other words, deny a criminal an opportunity to do the crime?" asked Captain Sean Malinowski, Commanding Officer, Foothill Patrol Division, Los Angeles Police Department. Captain Malinowski has begun a 6-month trial programme to determine the effectiveness of predictive analysis in his area of operation in the US. He describes predictive analysis as 'A place-based approach to crime analysis that utilises algorithm-driven crime forecasts to inform decision making to prevent crime'. In simple words, it's crime forecasting.

Anti-piracy operations Piracy is a major problem threatening the maritime community, especially in the Gulf of Aden. Experts discussed how remote sensing and geoint can aid in counter-piracy operations. Some of the challenges encountered in the process are maintaining accurate real-time positions of the vessels, getting geospatial information about small vessels and so on. Colonel Neil Thompson (retd), Managing Partner, WCGroup, highlighted an interesting point when he showed satellite images of how piracy has led to economic development in Somalia.

Standards Concerns were also raised about the need to build common geospatial standards for military forces around the world. "Standards are what will enable us to process and utilise the multi-int capabilities better," said Lt. Gen Michael Maples, US Army (retd), Chairman of the Board, Intergraph Government Solutions (IGS). "We need to bring together all the information in a coherent manner," he added.

Maps - the new apps "Maps are becoming apps. Today, data is a commodity and apps must be readily available to users; for users, nowadays, are tech savvy customers, collaborators, contributors and creators," said Barry Barlow, Head of Acquisitions, NGA. He informed that NGA is working towards building apps which will provide online on-demand information to its soldiers. It also intends to make geoint available in the hands of its users by building geospatial apps for phones. "We are trying to change the face of geoint. It's about putting the power of geoint in your hands," Barry said. While many appeared excited with NGA's vision of enabling geoint in a soldier's hands by way of mobile technology, some expressed apprehensions about so much dependence on technology. "We have to

"Is a cloud implementation right for you? Will a cloud solution improve your operational effectiveness?" asked John Day, Director, Global Defence Business Development, Esri, who spoke about cloud-enabled geoint during his presentation. He advised the audience to ask these kind of questions to themselves; and opt for these services only when they are convinced about its benefits. Talking about advantages of using cloud in today's environment, he said, "GIS capabilities are rapidly evolving in the cloud. GIS is for everyone."

Conclusion The event witnessed a healthy discussion among experts who spoke about a number of issues ranging from the advantages that geoint capabilities have bought in a warzone to some of the challenges that need serious consideration. Some of the advantages and capabilities highlighted were - insight and foresight (the power to predict what might happen next based on facts gathered), threat management, providing decision and operational support, and elements of intelligence (environmental, human analysis and insurgency). The future of geoint was described best by Lt. Gen Maples when he said, "What lies ahead is greater, more complex threats and different budgetary constraints. New challenges will require enhanced multi-int," adding, "We have to exploit technology in such a way that right information is provided to the right person and for right purpose." Geospatial World I February 2012

Empowering the Mobile Workforce With Esri® mobile solutions, you can quickly capture, update, and share geospatial information using custom and ready-to-deploy mobile applications. Mobile GIS saves time, increases data accuracy, and makes your field staff more productive.

Learn more at esri.com/geospwldmob

O " ) "

V \C 25KVA

" )

, & " )

" )

VA"\C 25KV

V \C 25KVA

" )

& O

& ,

" )

" ) " )

, &

" )

V \C 25KVA

& O "

" )

& , O

" ) V \C KVA 25K

& ,

& , O " )

" )

V \C 25KVA

& ,

" )

& , O

" )

& , O " )

& , " )

& , "

, & ! O "

, & O

" )

25KV

" )

& ,

& O

" )

" ) VA\C 50KV

O & ,

, &

& , " )

, & O

V \ VA

G46816_P_MobileGIS_L0311.indd 1

& O

" )

A\C

" )

, &

& O " )

" )

" ) " )

3/9/11 9:42 AM

FEBRUARY 13 - 17 February 2012 Alaska Surveying & Mapping Conference

Anchorage, Alaska, US

Geographic Colloqium "The New Latin American Regional Settings from a Geographic Perspective"

Paraná, Argentina

30 April

Japan

Esri Petroleum GIS Conference

http://www.g-expo.jp/en/ index.html

Houston, Texas, US

http://www.fhaycs-uader.edu.ar

http://www.esri.com/events/petr oleum-energy/index.html

16 March

MAY

GI Zeitgeist 2012

01 - 03 May

http://www.aksmc.org

22 - 24 February Esri Federal GIS Conference

Washington DC, US http://www.esri.com/events/fedcon/index.html

Münster, Germany http://gi-zeitgeist.uni-muenster.de/?p=1

19 - 23 March

24 - 26 February

ASPRS 2012 Annual Conference

SENSORNETS 2012

Sacramento, US

Rome, Italy

http://www.asprs.org

http://www.sensornets.org/

24 - 28 February AAG Annual Meeting

New York, US http://goo.gl/vt2Wo

27 - 29 February Inspire 2012

Denver, US http://goo.gl/FSnbq

Feb 26 - March 1 National States Geographic Information Council Mid-Year Meeting

Annapolis, US

ESRI User Conference

14 - 17 May Global Geospatial Conference 2012 (GSDI 13)

Quebec, Canada http://www.gsdi.org/gsdiconf/gs di13

Sandiego, C.A, USA http://www.esri.com/events/user -conference/index.html

AUGUST 05 - 10 August International Geological Congress

Brisbane, Australia

Philadelphia, USA

02 - 04 April

http://www.bentley.com/enUS/Community/BE+Conference

Latin America Geospatial Forum 2012

22 - 23 May

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

GISWORX 2012

Dubai, UAE http://www.gisworx.ae

http://www.34igc.org

14 - 17 August

http://lagf.org

02 - 04 April

Location Intelligence Conference/Oracle Spatial 2012

25 Aug - 01 Sept.

Where Conference 2012

Washington DC, US

ISPRS 2012

San Francisco, CA

http://goo.gl/tnY9o

Melbourne, Australia http://www.isprs2012.org

http://whereconf.com/where2012

6th International Technology, Education and Development Conference

http://megf.org

Valencia, Spain

European Geosciences Union General Assembly

6th Latin American

23 - 27 July

http://goo.gl/t1B8k

APRIL

Doha, State of Qatar

14 - 17 March

Redlands, US

Be Together: The Bentley User Conference

05 - 07 March

http://www.urisa.org/conferences/2012gis_cama

http://www.gi-forum.org

http://www.geotunis.org

MARCH

San Antonio, US

Salzburg, Austria

15 - 17 May

Middle East Geospatial Forum 2012

GIS/CAMA Technologies Conference

GI_Forum 2012

Tunis, Tunisia

03 - 04 April

12 - 15 March

03 - 06 July

Esri Forestry GIS Conference

Geotunis 2012

http://goo.gl/0ElBq

http://www.iated.org/inted2012

26 - 30 March

JULY

22 - 27 April

Vienna, Austria http://www.egu2012.eu

23 - 27 April Geospatial World Forum 2012

Amsterdam he Netherlands http://www.geospatialworldforum.org/

29 - 31 May MundoGEO Connect 2012

Sao Paulo, Brazil http://goo.gl/pn7li

SEPTEMBER 06 - 08 September State of the Map 2012

JUNE

Tokyo, Japan

04 - 07 June

http://stateofthemap.org

Hexagon 2012

10 - 15 September

Las Vegas, Nevada, USA http://goo.gl/iI6gv

FOSS4G 2012

Beijing, China

June 05 - 06

http://wiki.osgeo.org/wiki/FOSS4 G_2012

South Africa Geospatial Forum

17 - 19 September

Johannesburg, South Africa

Asia Geospatial Forum

http://www.sageospatialforum.org

21 - 23 June

Hanoi, Vietnam http://www.asiageospatialforum.org

Geospatial EXPO 2012

Geospatial World I February 2012

www.bentley.com/GT

Data courtesy City of Quebec

THE 3D GIS FOR INFRASTRUCTURE – EXPERIENCE THE POWER OF BENTLEY MAP GIS is going 3D and the beneﬁts are enormous. With Bentley Map, you’ll gain the additional advantage of a GIS that’s both intrinsically 3D and optimized for the rigorous demands of sustaining infrastructure. Bentley Map supports 3D objects in Oracle Spatial natively, has smart 3D object editing tools, and executes advanced 3D spatial analyses as well as standard 2D routines.

CHECK OUT THE NEW BENTLEY MAP EDITIONS

Bentley Map is the choice of infrastructure professionals around the globe. It has all the power of MicroStation to make workflows efficient, and includes innovative and comprehensive map finishing functions as well as advanced parcel management functionality. Featuring an extended API, the latest version of Bentley Map is optimized for developers and enterprise deployments alike. It comes in three editions to meet a range of user needs – from light editing and review, to 2D and 3D spatial information creation and analysis, to advanced raster image management and long transactions using Oracle Spatial. To find out how Bentley Map is advancing GIS for infrastructure, visit www.bentley.com/GT. For inquiries contact Malaysia: +60 3 2054 7000, Singapore: +65 6225 6158.

ADVANCING GIS FOR INFRASTRUCTURE © 2011 Bentley Systems, Incorporated. Bentley, the “B” Bentley logo, Bentley Map, and MicroStation are either registered or unregistered trademarks or service marks of Bentley Systems, Incorporated or one of its direct or indirect wholly owned subsidiaries. Other brands and product names are trademarks of their respective owners.

8007_