Open workflow for digitizing notified maps from the Gazette

[Arun Ganesh]

Some of you may be aware that the Gazettes are an authoritative source of open data and maps published by the Government, but they are not usable when published in the original PDF format.

Example of some of the maps available in the gazettes:

- Notifications of protected area boundaries and eco sensitive zones by MoEFCC: Link

- Changes to irrigation command areas (Goa): Link

The wildlife protected area and ESZ boundaries are especially valuable since they restrict various commercial and industrial activity in the vicinity of ecologically sensitive areas. The notified maps however are usually in low resolution without georeferencing making it close to impossible to use it to investigate if a map location falls in a protected area.

Georeferencing workflow

To overcome this, have been trying out seamless a workflow to georeference and digitize the maps on OpenStreetMap that will open up the data for wider uses. The workflow is described here: https://github.com/publicmap/amche-atlas/issues/230#issuecomment-4866156628

It makes use of the IIIF manifest.json available on any document on internet archive to seamlessly load a Gazette map in the AllMaps.org georeferencer using a SOI toposheet as a basemap. The georeferenced image can then be loaded as a TMS layer in OSM or QGIS for digitizing. The process involves no download/image processing/upload steps at all and is completely on the cloud with free tools.

Following this method, was able to digitize the core and eco sensitive zone boundaries of Tansa and Tungareshwar Wildlife sanctuaries in significant detail in under an hour. Hope it is useful for those working on environmental/legal matters.

[Manoj Diwakar]

circulates among scholar
https://forms.gle/goqFHYagfJjxRFUF9   & https://jnu.ac.in/node/159898279

Dear Scholars,
You are cordially invited to participate in the Workshop on Cost-Effectiveness and Decision Modelling using R: A Health economics Workshop, to be held from 06–09 August 2026 at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi.
Inauguration: 06 August 2026 at 2:30PM (IST)
Sponsored By: ICSSR Northern Regional Centre, New Delhi

Organized by:
Dr. Rakesh Kumar Saroj, School of Computational and Integrative Sciences (SCIS), JNU
Dr. Manoj Kumar, Centre for Economic Studies and Planning (CESP), JNU, Postdoc (Biostatistics & Health Economics), University of Pittsburgh.

Venue:
Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU)
Munirka, New Delhi – 110067

The workshop will provide hands-on training in Health Economics, Cost-Effectiveness Analysis, Decision Trees, Markov Models, Microsimulation, and Decision Modelling using R. The program is designed for research scholars, faculty members, healthcare professionals, and researchers interested in health technology assessment and economic evaluation.
We look forward to your active participation.

Note: Selected participants will receive a confirmation email. Upon receiving the confirmation, they will be required to pay the registration fee to secure their participation in the programme.
The registration fee is as follows: · Faculty Members: ₹2,000/- and PhD Scholars: ₹1,000/-
Please note that the organising institution will not provide accommodation, travel allowance (TA), daily allowance (DA), or any other financial support to the selected participants. " https://forms.gle/goqFHYagfJjxRFUF9 "
Thanks,

https://forms.gle/X2TqU1drKyEUSmH19

Best Regards,

Dr. Manoj Kumar Diwakar, M.Sc., M.Phil.,Ph.D. (Statistics)
Assistant Professor
Centre for Economic Studies & Planning (CESP), School of Social Sciences (SSS-II),
Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi-110067, India. 

Email id: Manojdiw...@gmail.com  & mobile-09990346151

Area of Specialisation: Statistics, Econometric and Applied Mathematics 

Research Methodology -Quantitative Methods, Health Economics, Clinical Trial-Biostatistics

Data analysis and Software: SAS, SPSS, R, STATA, SPSS AMOS