INTRODUCTION
With the constitution of Indian Planning Commission in March, 1950,
planning experiment in India started in 1951 with the objectives of
1) Removal of poverty, 2) Building of a modern society making
maximum possible use of Science and Technology and 3) Attainment of
self-reliance (Planning Commission,). Key to national prosperity was
identified in effective combination of three factors, technology,
raw materials and capital (
Scientific Policy Resolution, 1958). The
initial approach of planning based on macro level assessment of
resources did not yield the desired results. The inequities amongst
people and disparities between regions persisted. Also, there was
evidence of general environmental degradation and mounting stress on
land and water resources. In order to overcome the situation,
conceptual changes in the practice of planning was brought in,
around late 70s, by adopting the decentralized or local level
planning to ensure that the development is sustainable,
area-specific and take into account the felt needs of the local
people. The objectives of decentralized planning are ;1) Increase in
Productivity of land, 2) Employment generation. Keeping in mind
assets development, 3) Poverty alleviation and 4) Provisions of
minimum amenities and infrastructure facilities. Towards this end,
the Constitution (
73rd and
74th Amendments, 1992 & 1993) was amended
to empower the State Governments to form the institutions of local
self - governance i.e. rural local bodies (
panchayats) and
municipalities in rural and urban areas respectively.
At the core of this concept lies an integrated approach to planning
in contrast to the sectoral method. This requires a detailed
knowledge of the interrelations and interdependencies between
various sectors to resolve often-conflicting demands. This leads to
a requirement for appropriate data management and analyzing tools
and techniques and a large matrix of sectoral data, in digital
format, on natural resources, demography, socio-economy etc. and
integrating them to generate appropriate information/applications
required for plan preparation.
India has a long tradition of systematic collection of spatial and
non-spatial data at National level. Some of the national
organizations involved data collection in difference sectors is
given in the table-1.
Table-1 Some old national organizations for spatial and non-spatial
data generation
| Organizations |
Years of Operation |
| Survey of India |
235 years |
| Geological survey of India |
151 years |
| Marine survey of India |
138 years |
| Census of India |
130 years |
| India meteorological Department |
126 years |
At the district level, history of non-spatial data collection date
backs to the eighteenth century, when a District Gazetteer used
to be there for each district. There is a strong tradition of
non-spatial data collection at the local level (district) by different
departments. The development of database technologies, entry of
computers in India in the late 70’s and first Indian Remote sensing
Experiment in 1977, triggered the possibility of introduction
and integration of geo spatial information in the planning.
Considering the emphasis on technological self-reliance and development
and adaptation of suitable technologies for local needs to make
an impact on the lives of ordinary citizens
(Technology Policy statement, 1983),
the Government of India initiated a number of technology-based
programmes to support the Local level planning in1980s viz. Natural
Resources Data Management System (NRDMS) of the Department of
Science & Technology, National Natural Resources Management
System (NNRMS) of the Department of Space and Geographical Information
System (GISNIC) and District Information System (DISNIC) of the
National Informatics Center (Ministry of Communication and Information
Technology).
