The IIT Bombay FOSSEE Geospatial Mapathon is a map-making competition for creating thematic maps, using open source data and mapping software. It is a collaborative event where participants come together to develop new tools/methods that improve the accuracy and usefulness of maps for a community. The FOSSEE GIS team, the Rural Data Research and Analysis (RuDRA) Lab, IIT Bombay, along with its partner institutions, invite all Indians - to produce maps using various data (e.g., observation data, remote sensing data, crowdsourced data, etc.). This concept was evolved by Prof. Pennan Chinnasamy, Co.P.I. and lead GIS vertical of the FOSSEE project and Mohamed Kasim Khan, National Coordinator - FOSSEE GIS (NMEICT) has coordinated the (i) IIT Bombay-ISRO-AICTE Mapathon 2020 (Edition 01); (ii) IIT Bombay-AICTE Mapathon 2022 (Edition 02); (iii) IIT Bombay FOSSEE-IITTNiF Geospatial Mapathon 2023 (Edition 03); (iv) IIT Bombay FOSSEE-TNSDC-ICFOSS-IITTNiF Geospatial Mapathon 2024 (Edition 04); (v) IIT Bombay FOSSEE-AAI Geospatial Mapathon 2025 (Edition 05). The primary objective is to understand the potential of remote sensing data and make maps for Indian regions using free open source mapping software (e.g., QGIS). The participants will collectively work in a crowdsourcing method for jointly producing thematic maps of India.
The data collected from various platforms has tremendous potential in mapping India’s resources, agriculture, climate, and disaster management, rural and urban planning, and in identifying pathways for future development. Such maps can be created using free open-source platforms (such as QGIS). Let us join together to create such maps through the Mapathon.
Mapathon also aims to develop indigenous capacity to customize and employ mapping to resolve societal challenges and create new opportunities for young India.-. The primary objective is to understand the potential of open source mapping and maps for Indian regions and to build capacity for the same.