The Indian Express            11.02.2014

Armed with hi-tech gadgets, BMC begins tree count

Two minutes to record the GPS location of the tree, another two to measure the girth using a measuring tape, another 5-7 minutes to identify it and note its characterisitcs and that’s one tree down. For an entire year, 30 people, including surveyors and botanists, will record information of trees as part of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC’s) tree census, which began Monday at Oval Maidan in Churchgate.

For the first time, the surveyors will use Trimble GPS units to note the location of a tree. This information along with a unique ID for each tree with its characteristics will be superimposed on the civic body’s geographic information system (GIS) map. While citizens can zoom in on the map to get the basic details, junior tree officers in each ward can access the entire data on the tree using a code, according to the gardens department.

“BMC will for the first time have data about the geographical distribution of a particular species in the city. We will now be able to store data of the city’s tree cover on a live platform and the trees will have unique IDs, making it easier to track them,” said SVR Srinivas, Additional Municipal Commissioner. “We urge citizens to cooperate and allow access to the surveyors to record trees inside their property,” he added.

Besides the location and girth, information such as the tree’s canopy diameter and type, the tree’s condition as well as the carbon sequestration potential (potential to trap atmospheric carbon dioxide) will be available. Special remarks indicating whether the tree is diseased, was mechanically cut or had been uprooted or whether it has a cement collar around it, will also be included in the report. Photos of rare species, trees of “heritage and cultural value” as well as endangered species will be available after the census is done.

Monday’s counting was part of the pilot survey, which will have information of 1,000 trees and will be ready in three-four days. “The target is to record information of at least two-three lakh trees in a month,” said Dhanya Nambiar, chief taxonomist in charge of the census.

The census will cost the civic body Rs 2.7 crores and is being conducted jointly by Mumbai-based SAAR IT Resources and Nagpur-based Apex Spatial Tech Solutions. The tree census includes survey of all existing trees within municipal limits irrespective of ownership, excluding trees in Aarey Colony, BARC, Navy Nagar, and forests area like Sanjay Gandhi National Park and mangrove areas.

The Times of India            11.02.2014

Birth, death certificates available online

BANGALORE: You can now go online to get birth and death certificates from the BBMP. On Monday, the Palike said it would enable procurement of birth certificates signed digitally from hospitals registered with it on the same day a child is born.

"In case of death certificates, the person's relatives can collect it three days after he passes away," Shankarappa, joint director for statistics, BBMP, told reporters here.

Each certificate is pre-printed with a serial number, state and central government emblems, a 24-digit security code and BBMP emblem watermark to prevent misuse.

Stating that online registration available on the BBMP website () was earlier limited to the civic agency, he said it has now been extended to hospitals.

"The hospitals can now access the site and enter the details through the unique password given to them. The details entered are verified and the event is registered immediately at BBMP registration centres," he said, adding that these centres will send the certificates to the hospitals so they can issue it to the family before they leave the hospital.

The BBMP has provided 1,480 private hospitals with the unique password and also trained its staff.

The online registration system was launched on January 1, 2010 using software developed by the National Informatics Centre. Registration of births and deaths done within 21 days of the event is free of cost. From 21 to 30 days after the event, the Medical Officer Health, BBMP will certify it for a fine of Rs 50.

The Palike's announcement comes after some private hospitals like Manipal Hospital, MS Ramaiah Hospital, Sagar used it on a pilot basis.

Palike commissioner M Lakhsminarayana said that from February 1, all hospitals coming under Palike limits will provide certificates using the new facility. "BBMP is the first to introduce birth and death certificates with digital signature. There is a registration centre in each assembly constituency. Five major hospitals --Vanivilas Women and Children Hospital , Victoria hospital, Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital, Ghousia Hospital and KC General Hospital -- have also been declared as registration centres," he said, adding that about 1.6 lakh births and 50,000 lakh deaths are registered every year.