Groundwater quality in Deccan upland region of Chandanapuri Valley, Sangamner, Maharashtra, India

The present study is an attempt to decipher physico-chemical characteristics of groundwater collected along Mulmala stream in the Chandanapuri valley through monitoring of its morphological, geological and land use constraints. The Mulmala stream is located in the semi-arid irrigated tract of Western Deccan upland, flowing over Aa and Pahoehoe basalts and alluvium at base of the upland where quality of groundwater is declining. In view of this, 13 groundwater samples (2 borewell + 11 dug well) were collected and analyzed for pH, EC, TDS, Na⁺, K⁺, Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, HCO ₃ ⁻² , Cl⁻, S0 ₄ ⁻² , NO₃ ⁻ using standard methods. Survey of India’s toposheets (47 I/2 and 47 I/3) and geology map were georeferenced and used for extraction of drainage networks and geological information, respectively, in ArcGIS-10 software. Extracted drainage networks were ordered by Strahler method for bifurcation ratio calculation. Topographic and slope values along with a longitudinal profile were obtained from CartoDEM (v3). Land use mapping were carried out from IRS’s Resourcesat-1-LISS III satellite imagery, acquired on December 2008 and October 2010. Finally, incorporation of morphometric, geologic, hydrologic information was carried out with land use. The geochemical and land use data suggests, Chandanapuri valley inching towards vigorous anthropogenic activity having potentially deleterious effects on its natural setting, especially in the northern alluvium strip. The steady decline in forest cover and an equal or more increase in agricultural as well as excavating the Deccan upland for highway construction can have cascading effect on the Mulmala basin ecology. Timely sustainable steps with people participation can halt this deterioration in the study area.