The study said the digital topography maps can be used in field of communication, agriculture, infrastructure development, enforcement of law and order, disaster warning, defence, engineering and establishing e-governance for expediting work as well as reducing activation cost in a large scale.
Of Tk 3.74 billion, the SoB study estimated that transportation sector can save highest amount Tk 980 million (98 crore) in a year followed by electricity Tk 550 million, health and population Tk 410 million, rural development Tk 390 million, physical planning, water distribution and housing Tk 365 million and agriculture Tk 301.60 million.
The study also estimated that the total economic benefit would be Tk 18.90 billion in a year, if indirect economic affects were accumulated with the direct benefit of the upcoming new digital map.
Considering the increase of demands of new maps, the SoB has decided to take a project under 'Improvement of Digital Mapping System (IDMS)' programme to prepare a new 1:25,000 scale digital topographic maps covering whole territory and 1:5,000 scale digital topographic maps covering five major cities.
Japan government has decided to support this project under its technical cooperation programme named 'Bangladesh Digital Mapp-ing Assistance Programme (BDMAP) to be ended in March 2012, Chief Representative of Japan International Coope-ration Agency (JICA) Bangladesh Dr Takao Toda told the news agency Friday.
For both public and private sectors, statistic data especially geographic information like topographic maps is the fundamental need for planning and implementation of various types of development projects, he said.
Official source of SOB said the existing 1:50,000 scale national base maps covering whole territory of Bangladesh, have been prepared at approximately 50 to 60 years ago.
In this backdrop, the SOB had decided to take the initiative to set up six permanent Global Positioning System (GPS) stations in six districts by next year which will help to cover all maps in the country into digital format with creation of a geo-database, it said.
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Quelle/Source: The Financial Express Bangladesh, 13.11.2010