Remote sensing systems from their vantage position have unambiguously demonstrated their capability in providing vital information and services for disaster management. They provide comprehensive and multi temporal coverage of large areas in real time and at frequent intervals. For operationally integrating space inputs and services, on a timely basis and for strengthening country’s resolve towards disaster management
Some of the key areas where this technology is used:
- Flood inundation mapping and monitoring
- Rapid and scientific based damage assessment
- Flood control works and river course mapping & monitoring
- River bank erosion
- Flood risk zone mapping
- Inputs for flood forecasting & warning models
- Cyclone & Tsunami damage assessment
- Landslide hazard zone mapping
- Damage assessment mapping & monitoring
- Drought monitoring
- Active Forest fire locations mapping
- Burnt area assessment
- Fire vulnerability analysis
Land is the most important natural resource on which the country’s developmental activities are based. The dependence of community/individuals on land for food, energy, shelter and many other needs for their sustenance depends on the conservation and improvement of the utility of land.
Remote Sensing and GIS technology helps us to create Land use and land cover maps of desired areas. Using Land use information, many critical developmental activities can be planned and implemented. Few of them are :
- Watershed development
- Wasteland development
- Urban planning
- Highway routing
- Village transportation network planning
- Tourism planning and management
- Facility planning and other developmental activities.
Water resource management is a common challenge worldwide. It is an important part of urban development, environmental protection, agricultural development and planning processes. Water resources are monitored in a variety of ways, particularly space-base remote sensing and in situ sensors. And these observations are key inputs into a variety of mapping, analysis, and simulation activities that help planners, private developers, public decision makers, and citizens make responsible decisions. As the world faces increased population growth and development, the effective management of water resources will be increasingly import ant for everyone around the globe. This will necessitate powerful analytical capabilities, access to historic and real-time water resource data, the collaboration between different water resource stakeholders, and delivery of (and access to) geospatially-enabled water resource management data. Only in managing the complete lifecycle of water resource data will it be possible to responsibly, profitably, and equitably address the growing water resource management challenges around the world. The new ERDAS architecture provides comprehensive tools to author, manage, connect and deliver spatially enabled water resource management data.
Remote sensing inputs have been significantly contributing in water management in India, both in its conservation and control aspects. This technology can be used to more complex management in the field of water resources planning and management. The major applications of remote sensing and GIS in the field of water resource are:
- Flood inundation mapping & monitoring
- Irrigation water management
- Flood damage assessment
- Flood risk zone mapping
- Surface water mapping
- Watershed studies
- Snowmelt runoff forecasting
- Reservoir sedimentation survey
The increase in population and fast dwindling land resources lead to tapping and exploitation of ocean resources. Unjudicious exploitation of ocean resources may imbalance the ecology. In addition oceans play an important role in climatic changes influencing monsoon that decides the economic development. Remote Sensing technology is extremely useful to study and manage the natural ocean resources.
RS&GIS technology has extensively used this technology for the following purposes:
- Potential fishing zone mapping
- Monitoring of navigation channels
- Ship tracking
- Coral reef mapping
- Coastal zone mapping
- Physical & biological processes studies
Agriculture is the backbone of Indian economy, providing livelihood and employment to about fifty seven percent of the population and contributing approximately twenty five percent to the GDP. Increasing population calls for efficient agricultural management for better utilization of land and water resources on a sustainable basis. In this context reliable and timely information of agricultural resources and their monitoring is very essential. Satellite remote sensing has the requisite potential to provide this information on a regular, synoptic, temporal, timely and in a more objective manner.
RS&GIS technology has extensively used this technology in the following areas:
- Inventory of major crops
- Crop production estimation
- Horticultural crop inventory
- Agricultural drought assessment
- Precision farming
Remote sensing and GIS technology plays a major role in forest resources management and monitoring. While addressing the needs of the forest resource planners and the protected area managers, this technology provides key inputs from satellite data for forest working plans preparation, protected area management plans, preparation of micro plans, catchments area treatment plans, inventory of grazing resources, plantation monitoring, forest type mapping, biodiversity characterization, forest fragmentation. Following are the major areas where remote sensing technology has been extensively used to address issues related to forest resources.
RS&GIS technology has extensively used this technology in the following areas:
- Forest type mapping & monitoring
- Forest management plans
- Forest fragmentation
- Inventory of grazing resources
- Biodiversity characterization
- Protected area management plans
The major advantage of Remote sensing data is the synoptic view it offers. This regional perspective is very useful for demarcation of geological structures like folds, faults etc. Hyperspectral data has been used to identify favorable mineralized areas. Temporal coverage of the satellite data provides an opportunity for assessment of disasters like earthquakes, landslides. Following are the major areas where remote sensing technology has been extensively used to address issues related to geosciences.
RS&GIS technology has extensively used this technology in the following areas:
- Geomorphologic mapping
- Geological mapping
- Mineral exploration
- Aeromagnetic survey
- Monitoring of volcanic eruption
- Monitoring & mapping of coal fire
- Groundwater potential zone mapping
ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING
India’s ongoing population explosion has placed great strain on the country’s environment. This along with a move toward urbanization and industrialization has placed significant pressure on India’s infrastructure and its natural resources. Deforestation, soil erosion, water pollution and land degradation continue to worsen and are hindering economic development in rural India. Remote sensing and GIS technologies have been extensively used in addressing these issues.
Some of the applications in this segment are:
- Environmental Impact Assessment
- Ecological monitoring of thermal power plants
- Environmental management plans
- Urban & rural environment
- Route/pipeline alignment
- Oil slick studies
- Shifting cultivation mapping
- Atmospheric studies
- Climate change studies
- Land use cover change studies
INFRASTRUCTURE
One of the most important key inputs in resource planning is the human dimension and the pattern of growth in the rural and urban centres. Creation of additional infrastructure in tune with the increasing population is essential for improved resources management and better living condition. Spatial decision support system with inputs from remote sensing is being widely used for planning infrastructure development and management.
Some of the key areas where RS & GIS technology can be used:
- Rural/Urban road planning
- Growth center analysis
- Monitoring of developmental plans
- Inputs for master plan development
Remote Sensing is a rapidly growing technology an is one of the important spin offs in the space research. Remote Sensing is always viewed as a discipline that is integrated with other disciplines such as photogrammetry, GIS and computer science. As with the introduction of remote sensing and related technologies, education plays a pivotal role in its widespread adoption. This is because education is a medium that channels knowledge and understating of concepts and applications of the technology using the formal system of school, college or university.
Some of the key areas where RS & GIS technology can be used:
- Core Remote Sensing
- Surveying & Mapping
- Growth center analysis
- Mathematics, Physics and Statistics
- Field training
- Basics of GIS and its applications in the real world