‘Data from GIS can be used to execute developmental projects’

CHENNAI: Launched primarily to identify under-assessed properties in Chennai and improve property tax revenue, the geographic information system (GIS) has now armed the city corporation with a multitude of information, including which areas lack adequate green cover.

The civic body’s base map of the city can also be used by the State government to execute developmental projects, corporation officials said. Through the data, the city corporation has been able to extract 42 types of information, including areas that lack playgrounds, spots with surveillance cameras, and locations of police booths.

“The data will be vetted by Defence officials, and a call will be taken on how much may be shared. The entire project is to be completed in a month,” said a corporation official. At present, about 87% of the 426-sq-km Chennai metropolitan area, except high-security regions, has been mapped through drone surveys.

The city corporation is set to get a separate GIS division with a dedicated team that will take up a range of exercises including one-time GIS surveys of OSR land and GCC buildings, among other things. It will undertake spatial and non-spatial database analysis to aid decision-making and integrate information of newly-added utility features and revenue information into the main database.

Differential Global Positioning System survey of new properties that are added to the corporation area, in coordination with the revenue field team, will be updated in the GIS database.The project employs satellite imaging, and to counter accuracy issues, employs drone survey and a field verification team. The project is expected to be done in a month.

Drone surveys
About 87% of the 426-sq-km Chennai metropolitan area, except high-security regions, has been mapped through drone surveys