![[picture of Rayapettai village map]](Pettai.jpg)
Village Mapping for Cultural Revitalisation
Data collection for GIS mapping of rural villages is important as a baseline for Regional Planning as well as getting local information
and the involvement of the rural people in the process. In this vision, groups such as the youth and women can learn how to collect data
and enter it into a GIS programme. More importantly, these groups will be able to discover and record much more than places, they will
be able to find the stories, songs and legends of their villages, the sacred and special places, the particular crafts and arts. They
will also be able to present and record all this information via dramas, poems and pageants. Subsequently information can be presented
not only via a GIS map by projecting it on the temple wall or a massive poster for everyone to see but also amidst a gala gathering with
performances and pujas or whatever they think would be enjoyable for their fellow villagers. Hopefully some of the villagers will find
they were good at this and carry on to help neighbouring villages in a similar process. As it moves from village to village, gradually
more local people will become involved who can motivate others for the collection of data and entering it into a GIS as well as stimulating the re-telling
of village stories and recoding them using modern media, stage plays and functions to bring village people together around their own heritage.