With the advent of computers, the scope of information processing has become unlimited. Computers are now able to process maps - both individually and along with tabular data. This has provided a new dimension to information processing - specifically related to the processing of information of the earth and its natural resources, automated mapping, facilities mapping, marketing and retailing and so on. This has opened new vistas in the domain of Informatics.

New technologies have emerged because of this capability - specifically the Geographical Information System (GIS) which is a tool which allows synergism of map data and tabular data in the most efficient manner. Further, GIS also allows the integration of these data sets for deriving meaningful information and outputting these information derivatives in map format or tabular format. GIS allows the organisation of databases which have both the map - spatial data, and the tabular-non-spatial data, in an integrated manner. The database is best utilised for the planning and decision making at different levels.

Another area of development is database technology that has now encompassed both spatial and non-spatial data. Efficient methods to store and organise data have been the thrust of many research activities. Commercial availability of databases has also provided a new dimension in organisation of information system.

The advent of efficient computing based on the advances in hardware technology - ranging from the PC platforms to the work-stations has provided a boost to the desk-top planning process and has helped in removing the aura of big computers. The developments in graphics hardware have provided unlimited scope for the visualisation and presentation of events, situations and scenarios.

Easy availability of data in the temporal domain, mainly from remote sensing techniques, provides a new dimension and generates a large volume of information - both as data products and as analysed information.

GEOMATICS - TECHNOLOGY AND APPLICATIONS

Geomatics pertains to the technology dealing with the character and structure of spatial and non-spatial information. Methods of data acquisition, analogue and digital data capture, organisation, classification and qualification, analysis, management, display and dissemination, as well as the infrastructure necessary for the optimal use of the information, are various elements of Geomatics. Applications of Geomatics are mainly oriented to the real-world problems of management of natural and man-made environment and of the objects related to it.

Geomatics is a synergism of various disciplines. It includes spatial information systems, computerised databases, computer graphics, cartography, statistics, remote sensing etc. Its applications would encompass the fields of natural resources management, resources planning and decision making, facilities management, automated mapping, marketing and retailing etc. 

GEOMATICS - INDIAN CONTEXT 

In India, the overall context of Geomatics is still in its infancy but is fast becoming a major element of the resources management and decision making sector. Much of the efforts in Geomatics and its allied fields is concentrated amongst a limited number of government agencies and a smaller number of the private sector agencies.

 Some of the agencies that are involved in the field of Geomatics are as follows: 

• Survey of India (SOI), who have the mandate to establish the digital cartographic database for the country.

• National Informatics Centre (NIC), who has the largest computer network in the country and has tabular databases, organised for a major part of the country. NIC also promotes the Informatics culture amongst the different government agencies.

• Department of Science & Technology (DST), who provide a thrust to different technologies - database organisation, information processing etc.,

• Census department of the centre and the states who have computerised the total census operations of 1991 and have provided the census data in digital mode.

• Department of Space (DOS), which through its constellation of Indian Remote Sensing satellites, IRS and communications satellites, INSAT, provide the necessary infrastructure for data acquisition and dissemination. It also has the major role in the establishment of the National Natural Resources Management System, NNRMS.

• Industries who are involved in the development of different computing systems and in providing information technology to meet Indian needs and applications.

• Educational institutions, universities and IIT’s etc., who provides the research inputs to many of the problems associated with Geomatics.

• A host of user agencies who address applications in various disciplines. Many of these agencies have initiated projects to organise operational information systems in various fields. To list a few:

• Geological Survey of India (GSI)

• National Atlas and Thematic Mapping Organisation (NATMO)

• Town and Country Planning Organisation (TCPO)

• National Capital Regional Planning Board (NCRPB)

• Bombay Metropolitan Region Development Authority (BMRDA)

• All India Soils and Land Use Survey (AISLUS)

• Defence Terrain Research Laboratory (DTRL)

• Defence Electronics Applications Laboratory (DEAL)

• National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning (NBSSLUP)

• Various state departments and organisations, private sector agencies etc.

• Many Private entrepreneurs - Architects, Civil Engineers, Surveyors, Service agencies etc., who have adopted informatics based tools for their profession. 

There is a large body of professionals working in these organisations. There is a need to promote interaction between these professionals and also promote the advancement of the technology and applications of Geomatics so that it becomes a part of the information management and decision making process. It is to serve to this end that the Indian Society of Geomatics has been formed.

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