Initiatives for implementing geospatial information databases are being implemented across Indian cities. This essay explores one such initiative implemented by a metropolitan planning agency, the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) in a South Indian metropolis. It shows that, contrary to the promises of digital databases as a tool for improving information sharing to aid in
decision-making and further citizen participation, the state agencies tend to use them primarily for surveillance and storage. Such initiatives have led to a spiraling web of information production by different agencies and have reinforced the culture of secrecy rather than opening up information.