Eco activities significantly affected in Goa during pandemic shows study based on nightlights

     Panaji, Feb 16 (PTI) Only one-fifth of Assembly constituencies in Goa exhibited high and medium change in the nightlights radiance during pandemic times of 2019-20, indicating significant impact on economic activities, according to a study.
     The study was conducted by Bharati Institute of Public Policy (BIPP) at the Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad. It analysed the nightlights of Goa through satellite images.
     BIPP-ISB Executive Director Ashwini Chhatre on Wednesday said nightlights are a better representation of economic activity in manufacturing and services than agriculture.
     He added that the report presents data and visualisation and provides relevant insights into economic activity for all the Assembly constituencies in Goa.
     "The three nightlight variables highlighted include total radiance, change in total number of lit pixels and percentage change in lit pixels.
     "An increasing number of lit pixels suggest that economic activities are expanding to new areas, as previously dark pixels begin to show radiance in satellite image," Chhatre said.
     Total radiance denotes increasing economic activity without saying anything about its distribution over space, he added.
     The study has analysed data from 2015 to 2020 as the nighlights have become a reasonable indicator for GDP at the national and sub-national levels, with a high level of spatial granularity, according to the statement released along with the data.
     The institute has said that in recent times, night-time radiance, traced from outer space through satellites, has increasingly emerged as a pertinent measure for changes in economic activities irrespective of their sources.
     As per the observations about various assembly constituencies of Goa, the data shows pandemic impact on total radiance across constituencies from 2019 to 2020.
     "Only three constituencies of Calangute (North Goa), Cortalim, Nuvem (both in South Goa) fall in the high change in total radiance category. Only 20 per cent of constituencies exhibited high and medium change in night light radiance from 2019-2020 illustrating a significant pandemic impact," according to the data.
     It further said that "in all, 14 constituencies have shown no change in total nightlight radiance, impact of the pandemic remained muted over here".
     The analysed data also shows that during the five years of 2015-19, the change in total nightlight was the highest in eight constituencies in Goa — Siolim, Calangute, Cortalim, Nuvem, Benaulim, Velim, Curtorim and Canacona.
     During the same years, medium change in total radiance was observed in Mandrem, Pernem, Saligao, Santa Cruz, St Andre, Cumbarjua, Shiroda, Cuncolim, quepem, Vasco, Dabolim and Navelim, the data showed.
     It further said that "it signifies that 50 per cent of the constituencies of Goa fall in the high and medium categories for change in total radiance, while 30 per cent falls in the category of low change in total radiance". PTI RPS NSK HRS
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(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)