Poor Centre, Rajasthan govt’s coordination hits village mapping via drones | Jaipur News

The survey will help to track land records, green cover and NREGA work

JAIPUR: The Central government’s ambitious Svamitva Yojana of mapping villages through Geographic Information System (GIS) using drones is suffering due to poor coordination between the Centre and the state.
The scheme, launched in April 2020, has surveyed over 50,000 villages across the country but just 136 in the state. The scheme is applicable in nine states in the first phase.
Uttar Pradesh is leading with 25,725 villages surveyed till date. The scheme aims to create an accurate land record in digital form aiming to empower villagers with a land record, eventually making them beneficiary of financial schemes — loans, compensation etc.
Interestingly, all136 villages are from one tehsil — Fatehpur in Jaisalmer, while no other village from other districts has the survey done. Explaining the relevance of the aerial survey, Ashish Modi, district magistrate, Jaisalmer told TOI, “The survey will help us in giving the real land-use data and the extent to which land has been used under different categories. The data available is very old and not accurate. It will help us in making digital maps of high value and framing right policies utilising the resources judiciously,” said Modi.
The process says that drones will be flown in a particular area after seeking valid permission from the competent authorities. The drone will collect the pictures from different angles along with coordinates or geolocation. The accuracy of drone mapping is far better than the satellite images. Experts say that other than land records, it can help in tracking the green cover, MGNREGA work and other schemes related to the rural areas.
Despite being the bordering district, the ministry of home affairs has given permission for drone flying for the completion of the survey. Modi said that soon, the survey will begin in other areas. The data available on the website says that landowners in 38 villages have been prepared property cards.
Sources further said that the Centre has reminded the state to speed up work to the department of Panchayati Raj but the latter cited logistical problem causing the delay.
TOI called Manju Rajpal, secretary of Panchayati Raj department, for her comments on slow pace of work but she was not available.