DECADAL TRANSFORMATION OF LAND USE - LAND COVER AND FUTURE SPATIAL EXPANSION IN BANGALORE METROPOLITAN REGION, INDIA: OPEN-SOURCE GEOSPATIAL MACHINE LEARNING APPROACH

Abstract. Land use and land cover (LULC) are the terms by which we can denote how the people are utilising the land to serve different purposes and what covers the earth's surface, respectively. This study will present LULC changes and future spatial expansion of the Bangalore Metropolitan Region (BMR), which comprises of Bangalore urban district, Bangalore rural district, and Ramanagara district. The Bangalore metropolitan region is spread across an area of 8005 sq. km and is undergoing a phase of rapid population expansion, which causes increasing concrete space and decreasing green space. This study will focus on achieving the following objectives: Comparing the Spatio-temporal changes, accessing the pattern of expansion, future projection of LULC pattern in Bangalore Metropolitan Region, and finding how the population growth impacts the land use changes. The study is based on an urban expansion model for the years 2030 and 2050 in BMR. The study has used two add-on tools, i.e., the Dzetsaka classification tool and Modules for Land Use Change Simulations (MOLUSCE) in QGIS, to generate the land cover transformation. The core upshots of this technique show the land use and land cover transformation, and urban expansion pattern in the Bangalore Metropolitan Region. It also illustrates the Spatio-temporal changes and how dispersion or expansion has occurred in the last five decades and predicts the future three decades changes. The results are expected to aid society and several organisations such as city planners and policymakers.