Kollam municipal corporation restarts GIS mapping and Intelligent Property Management Systems

To facilitate technology-based planning Kollam municipal corporation has again started GIS mapping and Intelligent Property Management Systems. The mapping was started in November 2020 and was stopped after residents complained about data leak. The work has been resumed after an assessment by technical committee that included experts and department heads.

“Kollam is the first Corporation that has implemented such project and it is expected to significant changes in project formulation and implementation, town planning, disaster management, and waste treatment. The mapping has been formulated in such a way that will help accelerate overall development of Kollam and ensure that various development projects and welfare schemes reach the right beneficiaries.

In the survey, all infrastructures including all residential and commercial buildings along with landmarks, water bodies, bridges, wetlands, fallow lands, traffic junctions, and parking areas in the city will be mapped using drones and Differential Global Positioning Systems.

The mapping work is being carried by ULTS a subsidiary of the Uralungal Labour Contract Cooperative Society (ULCCS). Residents alleged that ULTS has been conducting unauthorized surveys and uploading the data to their private server. They had claimed that the questionnaire included around 200 questions and most of them were health-related following which the Corporation had stopped the survey and ordered a probe.

Currently, the civic body has sought the cooperation of residents in completing the survey. While talking to The Hindu an official said that “The residents will not be asked to share any personal information, but building number and other details required for different social welfare projects should be provided.”