Calcutta is set to get a new official map after more than 90 years in 2010. The map will be the outcome of a Rs 4-crore geographic information system (GIS) project undertaken by the civic authorities.

An aerial survey will be followed by door-to-door visits to draw up the map. It is expected to help the authorities plan and execute projects better, including those for disaster management and traffic planning.

The current official map, often referred to as Smart’s Map, is 89 years old. It covers only 80 wards (1 to 80) of old Calcutta, from south Sinthee to Ballygunge and Kidderpore.

The Calcutta Municipal Corporation is using an aerial map provided by the National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA) that identifies objects on the ground 200mm or more in length, said Anindya Karforma, the director general of the project management unit of the civic body.

The civic authorities have appointed two agencies, Infotech Enterprise and Specks System, to do “ground truthing” with the help of Tata Consultancy Services based on the NRSA’s aerial map. Joint municipal commissioner Sahidul Islam, described the process as a door-to-door survey “to reconcile aerial imagery with ground reality”.

The surveyors, carrying photo identity cards, will collect particulars of each premise shown on the aerial map.

In the first phase, ground truthing will be carried out in Shyambazar, Sealdah-Surya Sen Street, Lansdowne-Ballygunge Circular Road, Dhakuria-Jodhpur Park and Sarsuna in September.

“A map covering all 141 wards in the city will be a great help in disaster management, traffic planning and distribution of utility services,” said municipal commissioner Alapan Bandyopadhyay.

The census authorities requested the civic body to share the survey data, which will be useful for conducting the next census in 2011.