Kerala's first Active Web GIS (Geographic Information System) has been developed using Free and Open Source Software; the Indian Institute of Information Technology and Management-Kerala (IIITM-K) has launched the system for use by the public. The idea is to make important geographical information available in a simple Web interface, which responds to user interactions.
In short, a GIS makes it possible to know what's going on where, or what the physical state and other properties of a particular location are at a given point in time.
The Web site gives access to state-wide weather information as well as a one-week forecast that is updated every three hours. One can also avail of thematic maps of Kerala and a fly-through 3D topography. Dynamic database systems reflect real-world changes in geographical objects.
Publication and distribution of spatial data are becoming more and more important for scientific and business organizations to make correct decisions.
IIITM-K is actively developing Active Web GIS applications for e-governance applications. In fact, Web GIS is useful to any organization that needs to deal with geographic information for making decisions, in the context of a distributed environment. Areas where location-specific information can change over time (and where decisions are time-bound) include market prices of commodities, weather information, and asset tracking.
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