The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) provided 33 flood inundation maps and value-added products to the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) during the ongoing monsoon season to support flood monitoring, rescue and relief operations, the Centre informed Parliament.
In a written reply in the Lok Sabha, Union Minister Jitendra Singh said the maps and related products were supplied up to July 28 through the National Database for Emergency Management (NDEM) using Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and optical satellite data.
The minister said flood inundation maps provide both near real-time and historical information on flood-affected areas, enabling authorities to plan rescue and relief operations, regulate developmental activities in floodplains and assess the impact of flooding more effectively.
Singh explained that SAR technology allows all-weather, day-and-night imaging, making it particularly useful during the monsoon season, while optical satellite data provides high-resolution imagery when weather conditions are clear.
He said the flood inundation maps form part of a series of initiatives undertaken by ISRO to strengthen district-level flood monitoring and improve the speed and effectiveness of disaster response in Assam.
According to the minister, these initiatives include the use of globally available satellite data, the development of semi-automated sensor-specific data processing algorithms, flood-mapping workflows and the preparation of district-level flood reports.
Singh further stated that spatial flood inundation data is published on the National Database for Emergency Management (NDEM) portal, allowing authorities to visualise flood situations at the district and sub-district levels. He added that high-resolution satellite imagery is also used to assess flood damage at the district level, subject to the availability of cloud-free satellite images.
