GIS for E-Planning in India

Abstract

With increasing globalization and the integration of various economies, public finance and fiscal policy have acquired a new dimension in countries around the world, including India. This new era has witnessed a massive proliferation of various information and communication technologies (ICTs) the world over opening novel prospects for information storage, retrieval and analysis. Such novel prospects are not only being used for decision making by private sector industries but also more interest has been demonstrated in investing in technologies for public administration purposes. In the Indian context, the driving force behind an increasing use of ICTs for public administration include such objectives as improving and simplifying governance, instilling transparency and eliminating corruption and bureaucracy. The massive proliferation of ICTs in India has led to a transformation from traditional governance to e-governance. Several planning projects have been launched under the rubric of e-governance and have witnessed novel use of various information technologies, GIS being one of them. This study focuses on the Nirmala Nagara project (NNP), a programme launched by the Government of Karnataka to address issues of urban development using GIS with municipal e-governance being one of its key agendas. This is one of the most ambitious Municipal e-Governance projects in the country encompassing 213 urban local bodies. This article is an initial effort towards a larger project that will focus on the process of GIS spatial knowledge production situated in contemporary India.

Use of Qualitative Methods to Examine GIS Planning and Management in the Context of E-Governance

“…There is also the issue of what contributes proof in a particular environment and in doing so, how to establish the contribution to be made by GIS products. For instance, India has witnessed an extensive effort being channeled by government agencies toward implementing a variety of e-governance tools and, in particular, setting up GIS systems for administrative interaction with citizens (Mukherjee & Ghose, 2013). Inspired by this perspective, certain scholars have explored the social construction of GIS (Harvey & Tulloch, 2006;Martin, 2000;Roche & Humeau, 1999;Tulloch & Harvey, 2007).…”

“…Such projects have resulted in the novel use of various information technologies for public administration purposes. Local urban agencies in the south Indian state of Karnataka, Delhi Municipal Corporation, Mumbai, Kalyan-Dombivili have adopted various e-based strategies to empower citizens (Mukherjee & Ghose, 2013). As part of their e-governance, the municipal corporation of Delhi has taken several initiatives such as launching a dynamic website to set up citizen service bureaus that provide variety of services to citizens: Register birth and death certificates; issue, renewal and amendment a variety of licenses; collect property taxes; and collect payments online for government services through internet payment gateways.…”

“…These three institutions were the key actors who built partnership networks shown in Figure 1 to facilitate GIS usage for local governance and planning. Thus, the project included state as well as non-state actors with each making significant contributions toward the endeavor (Mukherjee & Ghose, 2013). For instance, software development and application support was provided by eGovernments Foundation; surveying and geospatial data preparation was provided by Survey of India.…”

“…Officials can generate property tax notices and other details related to property tax and share this information with the property owners. Municipal Commissioners can monitor the property tax collection system without depending on information provided by other staff members using a manual form (Dhar, Sur, Singh, & Senan, 2011;Mukherjee & Ghose, 2013).…”

Introduction to the special section: Smart citizens creating smart cities: Locating citizen participation in the smart city

“…While many definitions exist, early examples, such as Dirks and Keeling (2009) and Kanter and Litow (2009), defined a “smart city” as a linked and networked system that combines digital telecommunication networks, sensors, and software to create an intelligent city. Recent studies set in the global south (Brooker 2012; Mukherjee and Ghose 2013; Datta 2015; Hoelscher 2016; Mukherjee 2018) show smart cities as primarily state‐led initiatives, with public‐private partnerships. For example, in Rwanda, Nigeria, Ghana, and Ethiopia smart city initiatives emphasize the role of the private sector, especially western‐based technology companies.…”