Open Source Geospatial Day Celebrations &
National Geospatial Awards 2025 (Edition 03)
A joint initiative of the Geospatial FOSSEE project, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, under the aegis of the National Mission on Education through ICT (NMEICT), Ministry of Education, Government of India, the Rural Data Research and Analysis (RuDRA) Lab, and the Open Source Geospatial Moment and partner institutions.
Celebrating India's Contribution in the domain of Geospatial Sciences and Technology!
The key objectives of the 'National Geospatial Awards 2026' are to honor the enablers of Geospatial Technology in India, cutting across professions (Institutions, Faculty, Industry professionals, Individuals, etc), along with celebrating the spirit of Open Source Geospatial/ GIS tools which has empowered stakeholders and policymakers to adopt the latest technologies that align with the 'National Geospatial Policy 2022', and the 'Indian Space Policy 2023'. Institutions (UG/AICTE/Union/State Government recognized) that have adopted the National Education Policy 2020 and are using Open Source Geospatial/GIS tools in their teaching-learning and research initiatives are strongly encouraged to apply. The National Geospatial Awards 2026 (Edition 03) joint initiative of the Geospatial FOSSEE project, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, under the aegis of the National Mission on Education through ICT (NMEICT), Ministry of Education, Government of India, the Rural Data Research and Analysis (RuDRA) Lab, and the Open Source Geospatial Moment and partner institutions.
National Geospatial Awards 2026 (Edition 03) Nomination URL: https://forms.gle/XeTPMFLTs44dobsv5
Important dates:
- The nomination window opens on 11 August, 2026, @09:00 HRS IST
- Last date for submitting nominations: 30 August 2026, @23:59 HRS IST
- The awarding ceremony is being tentatively planned for the last week of September* 2026 or the first week of October 2026 at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay in hybrid mode* [alongside the Open Source Geospatial/GIS Day celebrations, Industry-Academia Connect, and Panel Discussion].
Nominations are open for the following categories:
- Best Geospatial Enabler (National) Award [Jury Award] (Open only to Central or State Government Institutions/ Organizations)
- Best Geospatial Practitioner (National) Award [Jury Award](Open only for Centrally funded Research Organizations)
- Best Geospatial Platform (National) Award)
- National Geospatial Leadership Award
- National Award for Women of Excellence in Geospatial Sciences and Technology
- National Geospatial Faculty Fellow (Open for Faculty members currently working in Universities and Colleges across India)
- National Geospatial Emerging Faculty Fellow (Open for Associate/Assistant Professors currently working in Universities and Colleges in India)
- National Geospatial Professional Fellow (Open for Industry Professionals working in Industries and MNCs in the Geospatial domain)
- Early Career Geospatial Researcher (National) Award (Open for eligible Post-Docs, PhD holders, Scientists from distinguished organizations who have contributed majorly to the domain of Geospatial Sciences and Technology with special contribution to Open Source Geospatial/GIS ecosystem)
- The National Geospatial Skill Development Award (Open for skill development bodies)
- Best University Award/Best Emerging University Award (State-Wise) (Open to all UGC-recognized Universities (Central/ State/Universities) in India and their campuses abroad)
- Best College Award/Best Emerging College Award (State-Wise) (Open for all Colleges in India)
- Best Geospatial Outreach (National) Award
- Best Geospatial Startup Award [Jury Award] (National) (Open to all registered start-ups in India working in the Geospatial domain).
- Best Open Source-Based Geospatial Lab/ Campus Award(National) (Open to all Institutions and Research Labs in India).
Best Geospatial/GIS Curriculum Award[Jury Award](Open to all Universities and Autonomous Colleges in India.(Alignment with the (Indian) National Geospatial Policy 2022 is recommended)
NOTE:
- The National Geospatial Awards 2026 is "OPEN TO ALL ELIGIBLE INDIAN CITIZENS".
- Please choose your nomination category correctly.
- The organizing team shall not be responsible for typographical errors made by the applicant. Factual errors, if found during verification/ scrutiny, shall lead to the disqualification of the application or even at a later stage.
- The application window for the 'National Geospatial Awards 2026' opens on 20 July 2026, and closes on 30 August 2026 (there won't be a change in the deadline).
- The selected awardees will be informed in advance through the proper channel.
- The main awarding ceremony is tentatively planned to happen at IIT Bombay tentatively in the last week of September 2026, as a part of the 'Open Source Geospatial/GIS Industry-Academia Connect' and panel discussion.
- The Open Source Geospatial/GIS Day celebration is observed on the 15th of September every year, commemorating the Birth Anniversary of Sir. M. Visvesvaraya, which is also observed as India's National Engineers' Day.
- Nominations must be submitted only through the official medium; any other mode of submission of nominations might not be accepted.
- The organizing team reserves the right to add/ modify/ remove any award category.
- The decision of the organizing committee shall be final and non-appealable.
For any queries related to the 'National Geospatial Awards 2025' and 'Open Source GIS Industry-Academia Connect' at IIT Bombay, please write to mohamedkasim@iitb.ac.in
The awardees will get...
- The category-specific award.
- Category-specific 'National GIS Award' Certificate (E-Certificate*)
- Digital citation - The details of awardees will be listed on the FOSSEE project, IIT Bombay's website.
About the main organizer of the National Geospatial Awards 2026 (Edition 03):
The second edition of the National Geospatial Awards 2025 is organized by the GIS vertical of the FOSSEE project, IIT Bombay, which promotes the usage of Free/ Libre Open Source Software in academia and industry across India. The main objective of IIT Bombay FOSSEE GIS is to spread awareness of Open Source-based Geospatial Software, promote Indian satellite data (ISRO - NRSC’s Bhuvan, Vedas, MOSDAC, Bhoonidhi Portals), and indigenous Indian technologies like NavIC (ISRO-SATNAV), etc. The FOSSEE GIS project, IIT Bombay (since 2020) has conceptualized and initiated dozens of nationally coveted, flagship activities which include but are not limited to, the IIT Bombay FOSSEE Geospatial Mapathon (the world’s biggest geospatial mapping challenge), National Geospatial Internship, National Geospatial Research Fellowship, National Geospatial Awards, domain-specific (medicine, agriculture, maritime) GIS Hackathons, National GIS Case Studies, etc, all of which aligns with the National Education Policy 2020 (NEP2020), the National Geospatial Policy 2022 (NGP2022), the Indian Space Policy 2023 (ISP2023). The niche open-source geospatial offerings by FOSSEE GIS, in Medical GIS (One Health), Artificial Intelligence, Green Energy and Sustainability (Electric Vehicle), Under Ocean Exploration, Waste to Wealth, and Rural Development, are inspired by various interdisciplinary national missions and programs.
FOSSEE GIS (NMEICT) provides unrestricted access to institutions that have implemented NEP2020, with a plethora of opportunities with multiple entry/ exit options in the internship (for eligible candidates), open source geospatial curriculum design, faculty development, technical support in setting up an Open Source GIS lab, etc. All that the institution has to do is to subscribe and become FOSSEE’s Open Source Geospatial Knowledge Centre (OSGKC), More details are given below. The FOSSEE GIS project, IIT Bombay, aims to create better opportunities for everyone (students, faculty, administrators, policymakers, etc) from diverse educational backgrounds interested in the field of geospatial science and technology. To know more about IIT Bombay FOSSEE GIS activities for the calendar year 2025, please visit https://www.iitb.ac.in/iit-bombay-fossee-gis-activities-calendar-year-2…
NGA2026 Website: https://fossee.in/gis/awards
Email: mohamedkasim@iitb.ac.in