The narrative of urban development in India has been one of rapid expansion coupled with sustainability struggles. This complexity demands innovative solutions, and geospatial technology, with its capacity for real-time data monitoring, offers a beacon of hope. The government's recent strides, such as National Geospatial Data Policy of 2021 and the announcement of the National Geospatial Mission (NGM) in the 2025-26 budget, signal a pivotal shift towards data-driven urban planning.

Let's consider the impact. The liberalisation of geospatial data has democratised access to information crucial for urban planning. It has spurred a surge in geospatial startups and fostered public-private partnerships, enhancing the scope of urban innovation. The Indian Space Research Organisation's Bhuvan platform, for example, provides open-access geospatial data, supporting a myriad of urban development projects.

The Geospatial Artha Report from 2022 underscores the burgeoning market, valued at ₹38,972 crore in 2021, with a forecast to reach ₹63,100 crore by 2025. Urban planning alone accounts for 12.93% of this market, highlighting its critical role in our economic calculus. From optimising last-mile logistics through network analysis to enhancing tourism potential by running land suitability analysis, the geospatial technology could diversify urban economies, turning data into a currency that empowers all the sectors of urban governance and economic development. Such economic growth is likely to be accompanied by potential employment generation as well. The sector is projected to create over 10 lakh jobs while driving India towards a model of urban governance that is data-driven, realistic and responsive.

As the NGM gains momentum, it is set to transcend urban governance into a new era of data availability which is promising for reshaping the trajectory of urban development in India. High-resolution, real-time geospatial insights—once a distant dream due to restrictive policies—now map urban sprawl and infrastructure gaps with unprecedented precision, empowering planners to anticipate growth rather than merely react to it. Integrated databases are likely to weave together housing, transport, and utility data, dismantling the pre-NGM silos that long hindered cohesive development. The democratisation of geospatial data brought by the National Geospatial Data Policy through open-access platforms like Bhuvan further fuels innovation, inviting budding startups to craft solutions for burning issues such as traffic congestion and remediation of dumpsites.

The NGM is not merely a policy; it's a vision for modernising land records, integrating geospatial data into urban planning, and resolving age-old issues like land disputes. Research from the Centre for Policy Research suggests that such modernisation could significantly reduce land litigation. This potential reduction in the volume of land litigation is due to the ability of faceless geospatial applications to bypass the bureaucratic and documentational loopholes involved in maintaining land records related to ownership, boundaries and inheritance. Additionally, this mission dovetails with initiatives such as PM Gati Shakti which are aiming for infrastructure projects that are not only efficient but also equitable.

Real-world applications are already proving the worth of this approach. Under schemes like the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, geospatial data has been pivotal in identifying appropriate land for housing, aligning development with community needs and urban growth patterns. Cities like Indore have transformed waste management by leveraging geospatial technologies, directly enhancing public health and living conditions. Similarly, the strategic expansion of the Delhi Metro has been optimised using geospatial analytics, reducing both congestion and environmental impact.

In the context of the climate crisis, geospatial data plays a critical role in identifying risk zones, as seen in Chennai, helping in resilience planning that protects lives and assets. Research from IIT Delhi indicates that cities employing geospatial data can decrease project delays by 20%, a significant leap towards better urban living conditions. Geospatial technology also strengthens the backbone of urban governance by equipping municipal corporations with the skills to harness data effectively. Through targeted training programmes under the NGM, officials can perform real-time mapping and analytics, enabling city governments to transform raw data into actionable insights for smarter, more responsive urban management.

However, this technological leap forward is not without its caveats.

Challenges include safeguarding data privacy and ensuring that the benefits of these technologies reach all segments of society, rather than only the privileged. The digital divide remains a hurdle, potentially excluding marginalised communities from the benefits of this urban transformation.

As urban governance is increasingly becoming data-driven, maintaining data privacy of the citizens while collecting helpful data is an emerging concern. This concern can be resolved by deploying geospatial tools, as they can process location data to remove personal identifiers. This feature would enable performing useful analyses such as traffic patterns or resource distribution, without linking it to individuals.

Looking ahead, the NGM could herald the era of 'digital twins' for cities, where virtual models allow for simulations that refine urban planning. The integration of Artificial Intelligencewith geospatial data could anticipate urban challenges before they manifest, enabling proactive, human-centric urban management.

In essence, the NGM transcends the realm of technological advancement. It represents a commitment to reimagine urban India, where data doesn't just inform decisions but also shapes them to enhance human life. As our cities evolve, the true measure of success for the NGM will lie not only in the bricks and mortar of infrastructure but in how it fosters equitable, sustainable, and resilient urban landscapes that truly serve all citizens.

In this narrative of change, India has the opportunity to lead by example, showing the world how technology can be harnessed for the collective good, making our urban future not just smart but also wise.

This article is authored by Sahil Deo, founder, CPC Analytics and Piyush Girgaonkar, PhD scholar in developement studies, University of Lisbon, Portugal.