Mapping India since 1767: transformation from colonial to postcolonial image

Abstract

Abstract Indian civilization has over 2500 years of mapping tradition. With the establishment of the Survey of India in 1767, British rulers initiated the mapping of colonial India with high precision and accuracy. They started mapping to establish British power and supremacy in the Indian subcontinent that portrayed a British image of India. Following independence in 1947, the Survey of India and other national agencies started mapping India for planning and development. Hence, questions have been raised that, how far British image of India have been transformed into an Indian image. In this context, in this paper an attempt has been made to analyse the mapping of India from the perspectives of transforming a colonial into a postcolonial image. The transformation occurred mainly in terms of purpose i.e. maps as a tool for the expansion of territory to planning, development and governance, from analogue to digital in method and in strategy from restricted to liberal access.