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BDA dear, where is all the GIS/map data on Bangalore?

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Urban DevelopmentGovernance

It is frustrating, as well as shameful. For any thinking, planning, discussions, whether for us citizens, or the government, one basic thing needed in public domain is a map. Not talking a simple map, but something that shows boundaries and jurisdictions of local govenrments, and also its assets (fire stations, water pumping stations, police stations, roads, rails, parks, lakes etc etc). Third parties provide 80% of what you need for free (google, yahoo maps etc), but why is it that in public domain, there are very few maps of Bengaluru carrying official GIS data that we citizens often need for meaningful engagements, complaints etc?

SCE, the company that did the Masterplan-2015 for BDA, mentions the work it did for BDA back in 2005 in this summary document (careful, 2.3 MB pdf). We have all seen the masterplan document (CDP 2015), but where exactly are the other things mentioned there:

  • A Digital Urban Spatial Repository (DUSR): ... The DUSR provides the main public stakeholders, up-to-date urban large scale digital map (1: 2000) that is fully GIS enabled.

A full digital geo-referenced large scale map covering 1500 km², 700 tiles, 553 villages, 55,000 parcels, 6.5 lakh buildings, 15,500km of roads, 230 km of railway, 2546 places of worship, 100,691 manholes, 330,903 consumer connections, 4,008 km of water pipelines, 3,245 km of sewage lines, 815 km of drains, 450 km of HT, 90000 parcels of existing land use, 15,000 various landmarks, 400 layouts, totalling over 2 GB of records in 12 geo-databases.

As part of the DUSR, there is supposed to be:

  • 10 information kiosks delivering spatial information to the public (routing calculation, localisation of civic amenities but also consultation of the new Digital CDP, along with applicable land regulations). The underlying aim is to keep this kiosk as user-friendly as possible, so that a maximum number of users may benefit from the tool.
  • A spatially-enabled web site dedicated to the CDP, allowing the general public to make queries about the new land use and related urban regulations, to browse the various documents and scales (Master Plan, Metropolitan Land Pattern Map) and to process and map basic statistical data (land use cover, population density…).
  • A Territorial Data Server allowing BDA and land developers, town planners and investors to access key data concerning the metropolitan region of Bangalore through simple commands.

As a regular citizen who wants to know and "participate", simple questions for BDA:

  1. Where are the kiosks?
  2. Where is the website to access this GIS data?
  3. Where is the data server for us to access all the spatial data?

Comments

silkboard's picture

on the same lines ...

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We have heard from BMTC that the routemap showing all bus stands and routes is actually a property of a company that built it. We see a version of this route map on some BMTC bus stands.

SEC has either built, or is building a GIS database for BWSSB.

We have heard that BBMP has en elaborate map showing all wards and boundaries. I have personally not seen this map if it exists.

Good quality official maps of the city, showing all the public amenities and public assets is a basic tool all well meaning active citizens need to think of things / discuss / participate.

Security may be a concern, for example, BWSSB may not want to make a map showing all its pipelines in the city public. But even then, public versions of all GIS databases should be made public after removing sensitive and personal data (all names and addresses for example, if BBMP has a database of all properties).

vinay_sreenivasa's picture

completely agree. we need a

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completely agree. we need a geo-spatial data policy asap where publicly funded gis is made available publicly. Bangalore DC's office paid tonnes to get gis ward maps, but they just refused to share it with me! they didnt even share it with bbmp till much later.


silkboard's picture

Yes Vinay, we need it

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I can imagine how often you would be requiring such data for your work.  Even for half serious joes like me, can't do any serious thinking and suggesting without the DUSR. BDA must put this data in public domain if it wants meaningful dialougues to take place in public spaces.

Do you know which deptt in BDA is holding this data? If you haven't already, let me write them an RTI application to get access to soft copy of this data. Help me form the questions, I will post it.

I know the 2 possible excuses BDA may have:

  1. Masterplan is in the courts (2-3 PILs), so can't share data behind it right now
  2. Security concerns, can't put such data in open

#1 is not valid, public money was spent, public data was produced, putting it out in public  doesn't impact legal proceedings.

For #2, create a sensitive "layer" of data, and release DUSR without this sensitive layer.

When the scope of the project itself stated kiosks, GIS website/server as objectives, there is no reason for hiding all data in BDA offices.

vinay_sreenivasa's picture

rti toda

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I ahve filed once and no luck :-). they said , they dont have it. and i didnt follow up. i wanted to drag them to KIC but did not.

lets both file seperately now. you can address it to -

S.S.Topagi,

Town Planning Member, BDA

I think you should ask -

Provide the GIS maps (shape files) for the proposed land use plans which are present in the revised master plan 2015, 2007 (volume 2).

 

 

 


Rithesh's picture

Will do this RTI

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I will file this RTI over the weekend.
AbyssalPlain's picture

Enterprise GIS for Bangalore and outsider's Perspective

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Hello,

I'm a GIS consultant from the UK and was coincidentally thinking that given the growth rates in Bangalore that it would be worthwhile to utilise GIS to undertake some basic spatial analysis of real estate in respect of planned and existing developments and then relate these to existing and planned infrastructure.  

I was hoping to obtain some basic boundary and infrastructure data to kick it off with using Manifold GIS with Oracle Spatial.  I then searched for 'Geocode' and 'Bangalore' on Google and not a lot came up but this thread did.

Having read it I'm pretty shocked to think that a high tech city such as Bangalore is not underpinning its development on a spatial dataset.

Maybe I should come over and set one up?

It seems as though there is a paucity of base data and that a fair bit of base map data capture may need to be done via aerial photography, RTK GPS and LIDAR.

For drainage and surface water planning one would need a basic Digital Terrain Model at 5 metre spacing (hence LIDAR).

Anyone know any local GIS companies (other than Infotech?) that might be involved in this?

Is any civil authority boundary data available?

Well done for pushing for it - its an absolute MUST.

Keep me posted please!

James Laver MSc, Swindon, UK

Oracle Spatial Certified, 1Spatial Topology Certified, Autodesk EMEA GIS Trainer

 

 

 

 

James, GIS Consultant, UK

idontspam's picture

Spatial Data

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Having read it I'm pretty shocked to think that a high tech city such as Bangalore is not underpinning its development on a spatial dataset.

Oh we have spatial data... BDA put them all in a document & called it the comprhensive development plan (CDP) for Bangalore

AbyssalPlain's picture

My Post marked as SPAM

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Interesting - I did 8 hrs of research on this yesterday, tried to post it to this site and it was blocked as being SPAM?  How come?

So instead I've published onto my Wordpress Blog. With my questions/concerns

Well done to all those actively lobbying BDA - where indeed is the DUSR/Public Spatial Internet Portal?

 

James, GIS Consultant, UK

idontspam's picture

tried to post it to this site

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tried to post it to this site and it was blocked as being SPAM?  How come?

It must have been a technical filter because of all the links you had & not a subjective moderation. In fact you have raised valid questions. From what little I have heard, EU, world bank, IMF etc are entities where the funds come with riders on who the contract must be awarded to. In fact there are exposes on the internet (one of the most recent by Arvind Kejriwal on the water contracts of Delhi) which explains how even if there was a tendering process it will be rigged to kick out all the valid bids by engineering the specs. 

Here in lies the story behind all the Lokpal, Lokayukta, Anna hazare and other movements in the recent past.

Regarding Bangalore being rich, its anything but true. Infosys being rich doesnt mean BBMP has money. Most of the funds that Bangalore administrators manage to raise are mismanaged & squandered by themselves. Priority is based on who is able to push which "lucrative" project. It has nothing to do with outcomes leading to public good.

Personally speaking when a WB, IMF, JBIC or EU comes with a money purse & makes these maps with its favourite agency what has the administration go to loose in getting it done? I am more interested in ensuring public money doesnt go into personal coffers, that is the only form of corruption which disrespects & insults the citizens in my opinion. I will not be surprised if there was gimbla/undertable dealings in a non transparent process like this map making effort. We will never find out unless we raised an RTI on this.

Secondly the CDP just being a collection of maps makes no sense unless there is a vision & character for the city that comes out of these maps. I was personally dissapointed there isnt even a modal share target for transportation defined in this CDP, instead the ball was passed to the CTTP which conviniently has still not been finalised.

Girish Kamath's picture

Check out BDA dhrushti

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Hello all,

I am not sure if this thread is already closed. Please checkout BDA Dhrushti.

Apparently simple baby steps are being taken .

Thanks

girish

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