India Data Atlas¶
The Ultimate Guide to Open-Source Indian Geospatial, Socio-Economic & Political Datasets
From National Level to Village Level — All in One Place
Why This Book?
India is rich with data — Census records, satellite imagery, road networks, health surveys, weather data, and much more. But this data is scattered across dozens of government portals, each with its own format, access method, and quirks. Finding the right dataset can take hours.
This book solves that problem. In one place, you will find every major open-source Indian dataset — what it contains, where to get it, and exactly how to access it. Whether you are a student, researcher, policy maker, journalist, or developer, this guide is written for you.
🗺️ What You Will Find Here¶
Getting Started¶
Learn how to use this book, understand data formats (CSV, Shapefile, Raster), and decode access difficulty levels.
Boundaries & Maps¶
Administrative boundaries, village polygons, electoral maps — the foundation of any spatial analysis.
Socio-Economic Data¶
Census of India, health surveys, poverty data, education statistics — understand India's people.
Environment & Agriculture¶
Rainfall, land use, forest cover, crop data, water resources — India's natural landscape in data.
Infrastructure & Governance¶
Roads, schools, health centres, MGNREGA works, government schemes — data on how India runs.
Remote Sensing & Imagery¶
Satellite images from ISRO, NASA, and ESA — see India from space, track change over time.
APIs & Web Services¶
Access data programmatically using OGC services, GEE API, and government data APIs.
🎯 Who Is This Book For?¶
| Reader | What You Will Gain |
|---|---|
| 🎓 Students & Researchers | Find datasets for thesis, projects, and publications |
| 🏛️ Policy Makers & Officers | Access government data in one place for evidence-based decisions |
| 💻 Developers & Data Scientists | API endpoints, formats, and code snippets ready to use |
| 📰 Journalists & Fact-Checkers | Verify claims with primary data sources |
| 🏢 Companies & Consultants | Find spatial data for projects, surveys, and reports |
| 🌱 NGOs & Civil Society | Locate grassroots-level data for community work |
🔓 Access Level Guide¶
All datasets in this book are tagged with an access level so you can immediately know how easy it is to get the data:
| Badge | Level | What It Means |
|---|---|---|
| 🟢 Level 1 — No Login | Easiest | Direct download from website. No account needed. |
| 🟡 Level 2 — Login Required | Easy | Register on the portal to download data. |
| 🔵 Level 3 — GIS/Coding Basics | Moderate | Need basic GIS software (QGIS) or Python skills. |
| 🔴 Level 4 — Advanced | Advanced | API keys, cloud platforms, or programming required. |
Start Simple
If you are new to working with data, start with Chapter 1 and Chapter 2. Most datasets there are Level 1 or Level 2 — just click and download!
📦 Dataset Coverage at a Glance¶
| Format | Examples | Chapters |
|---|---|---|
| CSV / Excel | Census, MGNREGA, HMIS | 2, 3, 4 |
| Shapefile / GeoJSON | Boundaries, roads, LULC | 1, 3, 4 |
| GeoTIFF / Raster | Satellite images, DEM | 5, 6 |
| WMS / WFS / API | Bhuvan, GEE, WRIS | 5, 6 |
| PDF / Reports | Census bulletins, FSI, ASER | 2, 3 |
| Dashboard | NDAP, DISHA, DBT | 4 |
| Scale | Examples |
|---|---|
| National | Census summaries, FSI reports |
| State | NFHS, LULC, rainfall data |
| District | SECC, HMIS, MGNREGA |
| Block / Taluka | UDISE+, PMGSY roads |
| Village / Gram Panchayat | Primary Census Abstracts, SECC household data |
| Provider | Datasets |
|---|---|
| Census / RGI | Population, housing, PCA |
| ISRO / NRSC | Bhuvan, LULC, satellite imagery |
| MoRD | MGNREGA, PMGSY, SECC |
| MoHFW | HMIS, NFHS |
| IMD | Weather, rainfall, climate |
| MoE | UDISE+, ASER |
| Earth Engine (Landsat, Sentinel, MODIS) | |
| ESA | Copernicus (Sentinel-1, Sentinel-2) |
| MeitY | data.gov.in, AI Kosh |
🔗 Quick Links to Popular Datasets¶
| Dataset | Provider | Format | Access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Census of India 2011 | Census India | CSV | 🟡 Login |
| data.gov.in Portal | MeitY | CSV/API | 🟢 No Login |
| OpenStreetMap India | OSM | Shapefile/GeoJSON | 🟢 No Login |
| Bhuvan Geoportal | ISRO/NRSC | WMS/Raster | 🟡 Login |
| PMGSY Roads | MoRD | CSV/Shapefile | 🟢 No Login |
| NFHS Health Data | IIPS | CSV | 🟢 No Login |
| Google Earth Engine | Raster/API | 🟡 Login | |
| WRIS Water Resources | CWC/NHP | WMS/Portal | 🟢 No Login |
| IMD Rainfall Data | IMD | NetCDF/CSV | 🟡 Login |
| AI Kosh Datasets | CDAC | CSV/API | 🟡 Login |
📚 How to Use This Book¶
- Not sure where to start? → Go to Chapter 0: Getting Started
- Need a specific dataset? → Use the 🔍 Search bar at the top
- Want maps and boundaries? → Chapter 1
- Working on a research paper? → Chapter 2 + Chapter 3
- Building a web app? → Chapter 6 + Chapter 7
- New to GIS? → Chapter 7: Visualizing Data first!
This is a Living Book
India's data landscape changes constantly — portals get updated, new datasets are released, URLs change. This book is maintained on GitHub and updated regularly. Found a broken link or a new dataset? Contribute on GitHub.
Published by Sudarshan Bhoyar