Bihar Chief Secretary makes geo-spatial approval mandatory for DPRs of infra projects above ₹50 crore

Bihar Chief Secretary Pratyaya Amrit on Wednesday held a review meeting of the Bihar Remote Sensing Application Center (BIRSAC) and announced that technical approval of projects exceeding ₹ 50 crore will now be mandatory before financial sanction is given to their DPR.

He said that all departments have been instructed to strictly comply with this provision.

Directing all departments to ensure systematic and comprehensive use of BIRSAC’s geospatial services, Mr. Amrit argued that integration of BIRSAC’s geospatial capabilities into infrastructure planning is essential to make development projects scientific, data-driven and future-ready.

Departments have been instructed to incorporate geospatial inputs at the planning stage to avoid technical, administrative and terrain-related hurdles at later stages.

As per the state’s BIRSAC Geospatial Services Usage Policy, geospatial analysis will now be a mandatory component in DPRs of infrastructure projects costing ₹50 crore or more.

Departments benefiting from these services will pay only 0.25% of the total project cost, ensuring institutional sustainability without imposing an additional financial burden on the state.

The meeting was attended by Development Commissioner Mihir Kumar Singh, Secretary of the Department of Science, Technology and Technical Education Dr. Senior officials, including Additional Chief Secretaries, Principal Secretaries and Secretaries of various departments in Pratima and Patna attended.

During the meeting, Ministry Secretary Dr. Pratima presented the ongoing activities of BIRSAC, highlighting its role in creating geospatial inventories of natural resources and departmental assets, providing spatial data for planning and development at the state level, supporting disaster monitoring and management, and creating geospatial databases at the village level.

Ms. Pratima informed that in collaboration with Bhaskaracharya Institute for Space Applications and Geo-Informatics (BISAG-N), a digital tool has been developed to support DPR preparation.

The tool will use departmental data available on the PM Gati Shakti Portal to assist in project planning, alignment and evaluation and provide more accurate DPRs.

Officials agreed that this system would prevent duplication of work, reduce costs and allow early detection of potential obstacles such as land, forest and cross-drainage issues. The system will also support disaster management and monitoring of activities such as stubble burning. Departments can benefit from these services whenever they need.

Mr. Amrit directed the departments to provide regular updates on project progress through the portal and strengthen inter-departmental coordination. He also appreciated BIRSAC’s work and called for further development of the Centre’s technical and human resource capacities.