Geosciences and Remote Sensing

Area developmental planning with integrated approach has been accepted world over for optimal management and better utilization of natural resources towards improving living conditions of the people and to meet the growing demands of an increasing population. There are 46 recognized scheduled tribes in Madhya Pradesh, India, three of which have been identified as 'Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups' (PTGs) (formerly known as 'Special Primitive Tribal Groups'). The population of Scheduled Tribes (ST) is 21.1% of the state population (15.31 million out of 72.62 million), according to the 2011 census. Bounded by the Narmada River to the north and the Godavari River to the southeast, tribal peoples occupy the slopes of the region's mountains. The diversity in the tribes across the state comes from differences in heredity, lifestyle, cultural traditions, social structure, economic structure, religious beliefs and language and speech. Due to the different linguistic, cultural and geographical environments, the diverse tribal world of Madhya Pradesh has been largely cut off from the mainstream of development. Since the Mandla district is densely forest area with Naxalite activities around the district, the remote sensing technology will be very useful in making thematic maps of the area which can be used to prepare guidelines for the tribal people development. While Geographical Information System (GIS) will be useful for integration of different thematic maps with the association of spatial database and attribute information. In the proposed research plan, the latest geospatial technologies  employed for change identification in ecosystem for sustainable development in tribal and backwards area of Mandla district of Madhya Pradesh.