“You see,” Gandhi began, “the centre of power now is in New Delhi, or in Calcutta and Bombay, in the big cities. I would have it distributed among the seven hundred thousand villages of India. That will mean that there is no power… nobody could deprive them of their assets. There will then be voluntary cooperation between these seven hundred thousand…,” These words of Mahatma Gandhi were noted by American journalist Louis Fischer in his book “A week with Gandhi” (4 to 10 June 1942).
We are told to be living in a global village and this terminology has come into existence because of the exponential rise in connectivity across the globe but how connected are villages of India? Not only this question is being answered but available modern technology is being utilized to connect and compound the growth of the Indian villages through a multi prong approach.
The Rural Connectivity GIS Data that has been made public by the Ministry for Rural Development today, is a classic example of this. Data for over 8 lakh rural facilities, 1 million+ habitations & 25 lakh kilometers of rural roads was collected & digitized using the GIS platform developed for the ambitious Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY). This information will now act as building blocks to further the planning and implementation of developmental projects in India’s rural areas. The initiative is being governed by PMGSY’s nodal agency NRIDA, which, apart from signing MoUs with three GIS firms, has collaborated with Gati Shakti with an objective to exchange the data for the better planning and implementation of both the schemes.
As all this government exclusive data so far gets released in public domain, it not only sets a momentum to take connectivity to an all new high but also presents scores of drive thru opportunities for startups, academia, governments, and civil societies to have a share and build on the data access. The data as big and nuanced as this is bound to bring a multi-sectoral spin in India’s technological rise, by acting as a catalyst for facilitating quick convergence of rural and urban Indian systems in terms of opening markets, augmenting startup ecosystem, pave way for more infrastructural projects, digital buying and delivery, e-commerce, targeted pickups, transportation, strengthening supply chains etc. The Rural Connectivity GIS data access will widen the spectrum of growth and expansion for seekers, entrepreneurs, administrative and governing bodies, at the same time contributing to the Self-reliant India campaign. Access to correct and comprehensive DATA is going to play a pivotal role in building systems, of the people, for the people, by the people of India.
SHARE
