December 6, 2023: To encourage spatial planning by gram panchayat in the country, the ministry of panchayati raj had launched the Geographic Information System (GIS) application Gram Manchitra.
This application facilitates and supports gram panchayats to perform planning at the gram panchayat level, using geo-spatial technology, Union minister of state for Panchayati Raj Kapil Moreshwar Patil informed the Lok Sabha in a written reply on December 5.
The app provides a unified geo-spatial platform to visualise various developmental works to be taken up across different sectors and provide a decision-support system for the Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP), the minister said.
Further, the ministry has launched mActionSoft, a mobile based solution to help in capturing photos with geo tags for the works which have asset as an output.
Geo-tagging of the assets is done in all three stages viz:
- Before start of the work
- During the work
- On completion of work
“This would provide a repository of information on all works and assets related to natural resource management, water harvesting, drought proofing, sanitation, agriculture, check dams and irrigation channels, etc.,” the statement added.
Assets geo-tagged using the m-ActionSoft application are available on the Gram Manchitra, enhancing the visualisation of various developmental works in gram panchayats.
Assets created under the finance commission funds are geotagged with photographs of assets by the panchayats. The GIS data of assets geotagged on the map of the panchayat can be visualised on the Gram Manchitra application.
“The Gram Manchitra app provides several planning tools that use GIS technology to help gram panchayat officials develop realistic and achievable development plans. These tools provide a decision support system in the preparation of development plans viz. tools for identifying potential sites for development projects, asset tracking, estimating the costs of projects and assessing the impact of projects,” the minister said.
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