A GIS-based approach in drainage morphometric analysis of Rihand River Basin, Central India

The study on morphometric attributes of the Rihand River Basin (RRB) in Central India was carried out for characterizing the hydrological response behavior using geographic information system (GIS). The RRB supports production of more than 20,000 MW electricity from coal-based thermal power plants. In light of this the management of RRB becomes paramount to sustain the industrial needs and livelihood of more than two million people in the study area. The Rihand River Basin comprises a dendritic drainage pattern where the maximum number of streams was found in the first order and the stream order increased with decrease in stream number. The mean bifurcation ratio was 1.57 which indicates that the drainage pattern is not affected by structural disturbances. The mean value of stream frequency, drainage density and drainage texture was 0.60 km/km², 0.06 and 0.03, respectively. These characteristics showed dominance of coarse drainage texture, low runoff, low erosional potential, permeable subsurface material, high vegetation cover and low relief. The elongation ratio and form factor were 0.25 and 0.30, respectively, which suggest elongated shape of the basin having a flatter peak of flow for longer duration. Flood flows of such elongated basin are easier to manage and would be helpful in determining the effect of the catchment characteristics on hydrological assessment of the study area. The dominant slopes were east facing indicating high moisture content and low evaporation in the study area. The slope map revealed gentle and moderate nature which are excellent for groundwater recharge in the RRB.