The three prime entities that are involved in the maintenance of Land information system (LIS) are the Department of Revenue, Department of Survey, Settlement and Land Records, and Offi ce of land registration. In addition to this, the appropriate municipal or village administrative unit is also involved. This is the convention in many states in India. The land records in India, do not provide ultimate title to property. In other words we need a system of effi cient maintenance of land records which is essential for protection of land rights of several millions of people in the country. Land has been one of the most sought after possessions in developing countries such as ours, wherein, the land holding has socio economic significance and status. Thus there is a need to develop an integrated LIS. A lot can be said and discussed about various activities and issues that are being dealt to create a LIS in different parts of the country. There are some success stories in Karnataka and some efforts of Governments in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.
Dubai Municipality launches three-dimensional Dubai guide
Dubai Municipality has recently developed an electronic, threedimensional guide for the Emirate of Dubai for the purpose of government departments and private sector establishments. According to Mohammed Al Zaffi ne, Director of the municipality’s GIS Centre which oversaw the guide’s preparation in cooperation with French Concept Digital Solutions, a private firm, the guide would offer 3-D modelling of the whole emirate of Dubai. He added that the guide would offer an interactive 3-dimentional view of the emirate of Dubai and a virtual movement within the emirate is also possible. Visitors can easily fi nd addresses in the emirate and they can spot registered companies and obtain their telephone numbers. Contributing companies can also display their services and products in the guide, in addition to hotels, shopping malls and other tourist landmarks.
www.ameinfo.com
Seven out of ten customers of surveys and mapping who talk to the suppliers (consulting fi rms of surveying agencies) demand their maps to be delivered `yesterday’(!) or indeed as early as possible. These customers are `decision-makers’ who have taken some months (if not years) to come to the demand level! Same is the situation in respect of the tenders in mapping discipline. All the risks and uncertainties are put on the door of the suppliers / contractors. One should realize that although the surveying and mapping process never costs more than 1 or 2 percent of total budget, the same is not true when it comes to the time taken for the mapping project. The fact is that many projects are delayed just because the survey data of right quality and proper map was not made available to the engineer / planner.
The National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA), Hyderabad, India has carried out mapping of entire Maldives at 1:25000 and sixteen selected islands at 1:1000 scale for the fi rst time in the history of Maldives
Leica bags big GPS Surveying Systems order
Leica Geosystems has supplied 84 GX1230 dual-frequency GPS survey receivers for RTK data and GeoOffi ce post-processing software for 11 locations. Technical support and service will be provided under a fi veyear service agreement. The GX1230 receivers are designed with Leica Geosystems’ new SmartTrack GPS measurement engine, and incorporate fast self-checking RTK algorithms and a comprehensive self-explanatory graphical user interface. The rugged GPS instruments, with magnesium alloy construction, are built to the toughest MIL specifi cations to withstand extreme fi eld conditions. The SmartTrack technology ensures reliable centimeteraccuracy solutions at distances of 30 km or more.
www.leica-geosystems.com
The goal of developing any intelligent machine is to mimic human behaviors and achieve certain goals that can not be fulfi lled by adopting conventional methods [Cawsey, 1998].
Forest cover change in Andaman and Nicobar islands
The damage from last December’s tsunami has been counted in the Andaman and Nicobar islands and it is huge. The islands’ forest cover has taken a big hit, marine life has been badly affected and some famous beaches have vanished. India’s Ministry of Environment and Forests report says the tsunami has badly devastated the islands’ ecosystem. Conducted post-tsunami by ISRO through satellite mapping and released recently, the study found forest depletion of up to 27 per cent in islands like Nancowry and Trinkat. In the Nicobar group of islands, 12,224 hectares of forest cover was lost. Comorta, Nancowry and Katchal saw major coral reef erosion. The report says in some places the entire coral reef area suffered. Satellite images showed that the mangrove trees facing the waves were the worst hit. Extensive areas have turned barren or have been totally eroded in the tsunami’s wake. Some major beaches — big tourist attractions — have almost disappeared. The Noncowry and Trinkat beaches in the Nicobar group of islands have vanished. What remains are just barren rocks. Offi cials say it will take years for new beaches to be carved out from the sea. Marine life, too, has been hit hard. The nesting beaches in the Nicobar group of islands have almost vanished as the islands have gone under the sea by one to three metres.
www.hindustantimes.com
Height of Mount Everest MUNEENDRA KUMAR
An alternative low cost MEMS IMU/GPS integration scheme incorporating artificial intelligence KAI-WEI CHIANG AND NASER EL-SHEIMY
Positional accuracy and integration of geographic data CARSTEN RÖNSDORF
The role of cadastral data modelling in e-Land administration KALANTARI M, RAJABIFARD A, WALLACE J AND WILLIAMSON
Malaysia precise geoid (MyGEOID) AHMAD FAUZI NORDIN, SAMAD HJ ABU, CHANG LENG HUA AND SOEB NORDIN
(5.00 out of 5)