Characterization of groundwater potential and artificial recharge sites in Bokaro District, Jharkhand (India), using remote sensing and GIS-based techniques

Anarchic use of groundwater for domestic and industrial purposes poses a major threat to the rapidly depleting groundwater resources of India. In the present study, an integrated remote sensing and GIS-based methodology is used for the mapping of groundwater potential zones and identification of suitable sites for artificial recharge in the Bokaro District of Jharkhand, India. The study area is classified into three different zones, namely ‘poor’, ‘moderate’ and ‘good’ in terms of its groundwater potential. Only small isolated patches in the eastern and central parts of the district have been identified to have good groundwater potential with a sustainable yield of 87.18 MCM (million cubic metres). The percent area coverage of regions with good groundwater potential is only ~5 %. The sustainable yield for areas characterized to have moderate groundwater potential is 962.11 MCM, while those with poor potential are estimated to be 53.31 MCM. Overall, the results show that 95 % of the study area have moderate to poor groundwater potentiality. Sensitivity analysis, using effective weight and variation index, reveals slope, drainage density and soil as the parameters with the greatest influence on the computation of groundwater potential index. The present study also focuses on the identification of suitable artificial recharge sites, using multi-criteria analysis technique, for augmenting the depleting groundwater reserves of the area. The results reveal that 84.95 % of the study area is either highly or moderately suited for artificial recharge, which is primarily attributed to the predominance of favourable geology and geomorphologic features in the study area.