United Nations World Geospatial Information Congress

United Nations World Geospatial Information Congress

Subject : Science and Technology

Context: The second United Nations World Geospatial Information Congress was inaugurated in Hyderabad today

Details:

United Nations World Geospatial Information Congress (UNWGIC)-

• The first United Nations World Geospatial Information Congress was held in Deqing, Zhejiang Province, China in 2018.
• The United Nations Committee of Experts on Global Geospatial Information Management (UN-GGIM) organizes the United Nations World Geospatial Information Congress (UNWGIC) every four years.
• The objectives are enhancing international collaboration among the Member States and relevant stakeholders in Geospatial information management and capacities.
• The Second United Nations World Geospatial Information Congress (UNWGIC 2022) began in Hyderabad today.
• The five-day conference is being hosted by the Department of Science & Technology, Ministry of Science and Technology and convened by the United Nations Committee of Experts on Global Geospatial Information Management.

The theme of 2022 event–

• With the theme of ‘Geo-Enabling the Global Village: No one should be left behind,’ the Second UNWGIC 2022 will reflect on the importance of integrated geospatial information infrastructure and knowledge services to support the implementation and monitoring of sustainable development goals.

Importance of Geospatial technology–

• The Prime Minister cited that the geospatial technology has been driving inclusion and progress in national development projects like SVAMITVA, PM Gati Shakti master plan, JAM Trinity, etc.
  • Technology and talent are the two pillars that are key to India’s development journey and technology is not an agent of exclusion but an agent of inclusion.
  • India is one of the top startup hubs in the world, with the number of unicorn startups having almost doubled since 2021– a testimony to India’s young talent.
  • The Prime Minister underscored the endless possibilities that geospatial technology These include sustainable urban development, managing, and mitigating disasters, tracking the impact of climate change, forest management, water management, stopping desertification, and food security.

Inclusion through Geospatial technology–

•  450 million unbanked people, a population greater than that of the USA, were brought under the banking net and 135 million people, about twice the population of France, were given insurance.
• Sanitation facilities were taken to 110 million families and tap water connections to over 60 million families, India is ensuring no one is left behind.

Prospect of the Geospatial sector–

• The dignitaries also released a report on the ‘The India experience in aligning with the IGIF’
• A Solar Calculator,Geospatial incubator, the Bhunidhi portal and the National Toponymy database were unveiled by the Minister.
• In his keynote address, the Union Minister for Science and Technology and Ministry of Earth Sciences, Dr Jitendra Singh said that the geospatial economy is expected to cross Rs 63,000 crore by 2025 at a growth rate of 12.8% and to provide employment to more than 10 lakh people mainly through Geospatial start-ups.
• This would boost the current boom of technology-led start-ups.
• He said the democratization of the Indian geospatial ecosystem will spur domestic innovation and enable Indian companies to compete in the global mapping ecosystem by leveraging modern geospatial technologies and realising the dream of “Atmanirbhar Bharat” or “Self-sufficient India” fully.
• Various national organizations like the Survey of India, Geological Survey of India, National Atlas and Thematic Mapping Organization (NATMO), Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and National Informatics Centre have implemented several GIS-based pilot projects across a range of domains like waste resource management, forestry, urban planning, etc. to demonstrate the applications of Geospatial Technology.
• The Rural Development Ministry has mapped over 45 lakh km of rural roads by using 21 data layers of the map, which has digitized information regarding water bodies, green areas, plots, and other structures essential for administrative purposes.

Nearly 2.6 lakh gram panchayat had been covered by the ministry under the scheme of mapping and digitization.