Patna: Bihar Chief Secretary Pratyaya Amrit on Wednesday held a review meeting of the Bihar Remote Sensing Application Centre (BIRSAC) and announced that technical approval from the Centre will now be mandatory before granting financial sanctions for Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) of infrastructure projects costing over Rs 50 crore. All state departments have been directed to strictly comply with this provision.
Geo-Spatial Integration for Scientific Planning
The Chief Secretary emphasized that integrating BIRSAC’s geo-spatial capabilities into infrastructure planning is crucial to make development projects scientific, data-driven, and future-ready. Departments have been instructed to incorporate geo-spatial inputs at the planning stage itself to prevent technical, administrative, or land-related hurdles during project execution.
Under the BIRSAC Geo-Spatial Service Usage Policy, geo-spatial analytics will now be a mandatory component in all DPRs for projects exceeding ₹50 crore. Departments availing these services will be charged only 0.25% of the total project cost, ensuring institutional sustainability without additional financial burden on the state.
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BIRSAC’s Role and Capabilities
During the meeting, Secretary Dr. Pratima highlighted BIRSAC’s ongoing activities, including:
- Creating geo-spatial inventories of natural resources and departmental assets
- Providing spatial data for state-level planning and development
- Supporting disaster monitoring and management
- Building village-level geo-spatial databases
In collaboration with Bhaskaracharya Institute of Space Applications and Geo-Informatics (BISAG-N), BIRSAC is developing a digital tool for DPR preparation, leveraging departmental data available on the PM Gati Shakti Portal. The tool will assist in project planning, alignment, and assessment, enabling more accurate DPRs.
Officials noted that the system will prevent duplication of work, reduce costs, and enable early identification of obstacles, such as land, forest, and cross-drainage issues. It will also support disaster management and monitoring of activities like stubble burning. Departments can utilize these services as needed.
Enhanced Coordination and Monitoring
Chief Secretary Pratyaya Amrit directed departments to provide regular updates on project progress through the portal and strengthen inter-departmental coordination. He appreciated BIRSAC’s contributions and urged further enhancement of its technical and human resource capacities to support Bihar’s infrastructure development goals.
The meeting was attended by Development Commissioner Mihir Kumar Singh, senior officials including Additional Chief Secretaries, Principal Secretaries, and Secretaries of various departments.
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