As per a news report, the Bombay High Court told civic bodies and Maharashtra Government to apply human intelligence and not artificial intelligence to survey illegal constructions. As per news reports, Maharashtra government has started using satellite images across the state to map illegal construction activity. Reports indicate Government has undertaken Geographic Information System (GIS) mapping across 170 districts or cities in a phased manner.
Anil Sakhare, counsel for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) told a daily that Maharashtra’s civic body piloted GIS project in one ward of the city. The estimated cost is around ₹ 50 lakh for a period of six months. According to the bench, this money could be applied to human intelligence.
“There are so many other ways to gather such information. Electricity bills, census data… or even those persons who go to every house and building to collect clothes for ironing or laundry and so on,” Chief Justice Nandrajog said. The Bombay High Court directed civic authorities to apply human intelligence instead of AI. The matter has been posted the matter for further hearing after two months.
GIS is widely deployed to capture, store, analyse and manage geographical data related to a property. The move was undertaken by the Maharashtra Government to keep a track on property tax defaulters. Through the GIS system, the civic bodies conducted satellite mapping every six months to identify illegal construction or people who were violation of building laws. With this information, civic authorities were able to halt illegal constructions.
