Why can't Indians access maps for 43 per cent of their country?

Why can't Indians access maps for 43 per cent of their country?

Hilltop to desktop

Technology advances have transformed the way maps are made

When the Survey of India (SoI) was set up 237 years ago, in Dehradun, map making was akin to pure art. It required steady hands and a keen eye, and demanded months, at times years, of painstaking labour. The first maps were made on parchment using brushes.

The actual mapping of the land was an arduous process -- it involved iron chains (as a standardised unit of measure), and large theodolites (survey instruments which measure vertical and horizontal angles) weighing as much as 500 kilogrammes. The theodolite needed 12 people to haul it to vantage positions on hilltops, for map makers to accurately create a grid of landmarks.The mapping of India began in 1800 and it took more than 50 years to cover 2,575 kilometres with inch-perfect accuracy. Thus was created the Great Indian Arc of the Meridian -- a grid of reference points useful for all maps.

But that was 'back then'
Today, high-end computer processing and off-the-shelf satellite imagery (of course, at a price) make it possible to process maps, quite literally, from desktops. Also, high resolution satellite imagery obviates the need for extensive physical labour and surveys. One can now access finely resolved maps of any part of the world; one can single out a mango tree in a field or a car in a porch. These satellite images are available in the public domain. Spy satellites with far higher resolution capabilities, elusive for commoners, outdo even such super close-ups. A highly powerful tool for map making now is the Geographic Information Systems (GIS) which literally brings maps to life (see box: Layers of an onion).

Modern maps are also far more accurate than hand-drawn ones. For instance, for a cartographer tracing a line a millimetre thick on a map made to the scale of 1:1,50,000 (so a millimetre on the map would be 15 metres on the ground), a minor deviation of a centrimetre on the state boundary means as much as 1.5 kilometres on the ground. Digital map making reduces this error to a few millimetres. Advances in printing technology ensure high quality maps are easily available.

The digital revolution has democratised the making of maps. Unfortunately, it has not democratised the use of maps. Not in India. Not till date.
 

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Map monopoly

A map of a village in the restricted category, for instance, requires the attestation of an officer of the rank of a joint secretary in the Union government, or a secretary to a state government. A form -- number O.57 (a) -- must first be filled up. Then begins the wait for the ministry to respond.

On top of the form is inscribed a fait accompli: "Maps will, normally, be issued only to the government officials and those of local administrative bodies when required by them for official work." Simply, those not part of the system can almost never access maps.

State secret
The restriction comes from the archaic Official Secrets Act, 1923. SoI chief P Nag says distribution of toposheets was brought under the act by the Union ministry of defence (MoD) in 1967. The act bans anyone possessing a map " likely to assist, directly or indirectly, an enemy or which relates to a matter the disclosure of which is likely to affect the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the State or friendly relations with foreign States". Similarly for maps other than toposheets. Senior journalist R Ramachandran, who regularly writes on mapping, quotes reputed goelogist S V Srikantia as saying: "Though the country has been geologically surveyed on a 1:50,000 scale, only 72 geological maps have been produced and 23 of these are restricted." (see table: Arbitrary)

Obsolete practice
In India today, toposheets printed on paper are obsolete, as are the rules governing access to them. Worldover, people now have digital versions of their nations' toposheets. But in India, a toposheet even of the unrestricted area (which you can buy from SOI counters) cannot be digitised without MoD's clearance. In a letter to the government, S Rajgopalan, managing director of Spatial Data Private Limited, Bangalore, noted: "Digital maps of towns, cities, villages at scales of 1: 20,000 or better need clearance from MoD. Since there are no guidelines on what could be mapped, this process is on a case-to-case basis. MoD takes over 18 months to clear a digital map, by which time the city has grown and the map becomes less useful." Further: "Any change in the map has to be cleared by MoD again. For example, a bank might open a new branch. Marking this point on the map, so that it is useful to the end user, is considered an update requiring the clearance process to be gone through once again."

Red tape apart, there also exist confusing stipulations. Rajgopalan says that while one of MoD's letters to his company allows the use of guide maps for tourists on the Internet, another letter says no geo-spatial data (maps) can be hosted on any network including the Internet.

Only nine central government agencies are allowed to digitise SOI maps, including the Geological Survey of India and the National Information Centre. But even these cannot be published without MoD's clearance. And the latter shows no signs of relenting on this coercive monopoly.

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Restrictions are redundant

MoD, however, persists in deleting coordinates from maps, believing this would prevent access to such information. But its officials themselves use the satellite-based Global Positioning System (GPS), which through a device similar to a tiny calculator can accurately provide coordinates anywhere in the world. In fact, India is negotiating a deal with the European Union and some other countries to set up such a system of its own and create an alternative to the only GPS satellite system in existence today -- owned by the US. The hand-held GPS device is available for as little as Rs 10,000 and gives the exact latitude and longitude (and at times the height from sea level) of any place at the mere click of a few buttons.

Besides, many of the restricted maps are available abroad. Ramachandran notes in his article on mapping policy in Current Science, "The toposheets that are restricted by SoI on security grounds are available for sale from foreign agencies like the Stanford International Map Centre, London. Satellite imageries of even larger scale, which provide all the geographic and topographic information, are easily available abroad."

Against a plethora of sources available abroad, what the obsolete regulations do is simply create a divide -- those who can pay can get the map from abroad; those who cannot, fill the requisite form and wait endlessly. (see table: Turning a blind eye)

Later editions
Moreover, maps of India available abroad are usually updated more regularly than government can manage. Says Hrishikesh Samant, department of geology, St Xavier's College, Mumbai, "Russian-made topographical maps of strategic cities like Mumbai are later editions than the presently available SoI toposheets. The same is the case with very high-resolution remotely sensed satellite data as well as topographic elevation data from sources like the SRTM (Shuttle Radar Telemetry Mission of the US government)."

Samant narrates a classic example: a high-resolution image of part of Mumbai city acquired by the Russian satellite KVR 3000 is available as a free sample on the web. This image shows the entire Western Naval Command Headquarters, the aircraft carriers that can be distinctly identified and of course, every destroyer and submarine. "When this was brought to the notice of some naval officers, they were overjoyed to have copies of the satellite imagery depicting the Naval Dockyard where they could proudly pinpoint their ships. Yet, any aerial photograph covering this area is, and will be, a highly classified 'TOP SECRET' document."

For those in the mapping business in India, such anecdotes are commonplace. An ecologist based in southern India recollects how researchers working in the Northeast (another restricted area) acquired old maps of the area from Russian sources for ground surveys. On one such survey, they came upon an army camp. In that sparsely populated area, interaction with civilians was rare and so the army treated them like royalty and got friendly. So friendly that the officers admitted they were finding it difficult to navigate their way around; so, could they trace the maps the researchers had? The latter readily obliged!

But sometimes, possessing a map of a restricted area can become a nightmare. Delhi-based GIS experts cite the example of a state chief secretary against whom an enquiry was ordered for possessing maps of a border area, only to find he had got them for development work in the region.

Scientists and researchers often complain of the lack of geographical information to carry out studies. Seismologists working in the Himalayan regions say permission to work close to the border is next to impossible unless strings are pulled. And it is rather pointless to mention the plight of an individual who may, due to curiosity or otherwise, wish to see a toposheet or want to "play" with the plan of his locality on a digital map.

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Disoriented

Behind the mass of confusion over maps lies a basic problem: India has no mapping policy. To fill this vacuum, various authorities have arrogated to themselves regulations of using, printing, publishing and developing maps. Geographical information is also not part of the more fundamental right to information. While the state regulations on right to information (wherever enacted) remain silent on it, there has been no clarification on this count either by the courts or the government.

Perhaps India should look at Japan's mapping policy. Says Prof Shunji, general secretary of the Asian Association on Remote Sensing, Japan, "Any type of (geographical) information, including large-scale maps and aerial photographs are available. Any foreigner can purchase any map and aerial photograph of Japan without any restriction. The Japanese are guaranteed the right to know about the area they live in. It is the duty of local governments to inform people about risks, so helping them in natural disasters. The nation who knows best about the country can defend best." The US and the EU also have progressive norms for sharing of geo-spatial data.

Draft policy
India's mapping policy is on the anvil. Various ministries are discussing a draft. But indications are the policy is going to be as antiquated as current regulations. Union minister for science and technology, Kapil Sibal, recently told journalists the policy might opt for two sets of basic maps, one for civilian use and the other for defence forces. The restricted area is not to be reduced; it will remain at 43 per cent. Also, these maps will omit heights, contours or latitude and longitude. This means the maps will be redundant for anyone who wants to add (or layer) information on them. They will merely be high-resolution pictures one can see but not improve or manipulate to needs.

Worse, the maps will be available only to a a select group of agencies: primarily government bodies connected via a web-based network. No open access. Tiringly, maps will not be available to individuals or non-government bodies directly but will have to be procured by them through these designated agencies.

Now for the nadir. The draft policy suggests all institutions wanting to use these maps must first inform or 'take permission' from SOI under a new National Map Transaction Registry. Critics say this is preposterous. Even bureaucrats agree. As the surveyor-general of India, P Nag, admits, "A lot of bureaucracy will be introduced." SOI will become the 'big daddy' instead of the ministry of defence.

National database
Problems do not end there. While topographic maps are generated by SOI, several agencies develop and publish hundreds of other maps. How does one access them? The answer lies in creating a spatial database infrastructure -- a centralised database of maps and geographical information accessible over the Internet, or otherwise. Several countries have already done this. India, too, has been planning such a database, called the National Spatial Database Infrastructure (NSDI). But the NSDI proposal has been in limbo for more than two years now.

Why? Simply because if there is a good NSDI, every department and government body that generates a map becomes obliged to share it with the public. The bureaucracy likes to think it has the onus on what people need to know. Imagine a situation where the local municipal body is forced to share information on where it has allowed development as compared to what was originally planned (in master plan maps). Where a road or a water pipeline was envisaged and was never built. Imagine a situation where the government is made to reveal it is planning to shift tribals from forests because it plans to prospect for minerals.

Besides the potential to create an unsavoury situation for the bureaucracy, NSDI is also an expensive proposition. Gopal N Sarma, of Feedback Strategic Consultancy Services (P) Ltd, informs in a report that the US has invested about US $15 billion for such a database system whereas the UK has spent about US $3.3 billion. He says India would need to invest Rs 25,000-30,000 crore to set up a robust database. He estimates government and private interests are spending about Rs 2,500 crore annually to maintain alternative systems of sharing this information -- a mere 10 per cent of what is required. An annual outlay of Rs 7,500 crore is proposed for setting up nsdi through combined funding.