Map India 2003 will attempt to measure and understand the degree of readiness of the country in terms of:

1. Geographic Data
   Geographic Data forms is the fundamental requirement, which influence and facilitate the decision making and planning at every level in day to day life. It is important to understand and analyse various aspects, for instance scale, accuracy, projection, content, standards, formats, digital and analogue etc., of geographic data being produced.
   
   
2. Geographic Technology
   Geographic Information production, distribution, analysis and applications development requires state of the art technology to harness the geographic information for maximum benefit of the society at large. With the advancement in surveying and mapping field, technologies like GIS, GPS, Digital photogrammetry, ALTM, and Remote Sensing have proven very effective. Measurement of a nation’s ability to absorb and adapt to these modern technology and integration for effective end usage is very important.
   
   
3. Application Development
   Application Development for various industry segments will initiate a Vertical Segment Development Process. This Process will not only present a segment specific approach but will also help in better analysis of the subject by the users. The result will be that even the non-Geomatics or non-GIS engineers will be able to use GIS in their day-to-day operations, as the knowledge of the Technology will no longer be necessary. GIS is an extension of one’s own analytical thinking, and Map India 2003 will endeavour to assess the maturity of “Application development” in various Industry Segments.
   
   
4. Geographic Education Infrastructure
   Trained manpower is prerequisite for development of geographic data and usage. It’s important to assess the demand and supply gaps to produce required level of educated professionals both in terms of quality and quantity. Education infrastructure must be capable to impart quality education to meet the present day requirements of government, industry and academics.
   
   
5. Policy Framework
   Policies if not properly formulated become stumbling block for the growth of any sector. Particularly Geographic Information had been treated as highly sensitive from security perspective, which may discourage potential users and solutions providers to use the data in free manner. In recent past various national governments have began to address user concerns and positive steps have been taken to encourage the users to use the geographic information in multiple ways. Hence it is of high importance to assess various aspects Policy framework of country influences the development of geographic sector.