Quality, Standards and Testing

The study applies geostatistical techniques to the groundwater quality data of December 1994 in parts of Jammu district. Groundwater quality deterioration has led to considerable interest in the design of investigative studies and monitoring programs on the issue.

Various management measures need to take into account the spatial and temporal behavior of groundwater. The spatial dependence between observations can be expressed by semi variance, which is a measure of the average similarity between observations at a given distance apart. One of the prime reasons for obtaining a semivariogram is to use it for estimation of the variable at unsampled locations.

A detailed survey of the river Hindon was carried out to understand the nature of waste effluents and their impact on water quality.  As per the study, the river water is subject to varying degrees of pollution, caused by numerous untreated waste outfalls of municipal and industrial effluents.

The main sources, which create pollution in the river, include municipal wastes of Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar and Ghaziabad districts received through tributaries as well as direct outfalls. In the non-monsoon months, the river is completely dry, right from its origin upto Saharanpur town. The effluents of Nagdev nala and Star Paper Mill at Saharanpur generate the flow of water in the river.

The report presents a literature review on the status of research related to saltwater intrusion and groundwater management in coastal and deltaic environments in the east coast of South India. The area is typically characterized by highly productive and alluvial aquifers and high use of both surface as well as groundwater. Seawater intrusion into the freshwater aquifers is extensive due to increased pumpages.

A quantitative understanding of the patterns of movement and mixing between freshwater and saline water and the factors that influence these processes is stressed in the report. It presents the mechanics of saltwater intrusion through studies by Ghyben and Herzberg and later on by Hubbert. A comprehensive review of studies by Reilly and Goodman relating to saltwater intrusion is discussed. Later advances in understanding saltwater-freshwater relationship through numerical models like sharp interface model and miscible flow model are described.

The study assesses the suitability of groundwater for drinking and irrigation use and examines the likely impact of Yamuna river water quality on groundwater. Delhi is faced with severe problems associated with groundwater quality and quantity. The quality varies spatially and seasonally, with depth and is primarily governed by the extent and composition of dissolved solids present in it. Surface water bodies play a role and the hydraulic gradient determines the lateral and vertical migration in the groundwater flow system.

Groundwater samples were collected through extensive field surveys covering entire Delhi area representing various geo-hydrological and land-use conditions. The data has been analysed with respect to BIS and WHO standards to examine its suitability for various uses. The area has a peculiar feature of infiltration of surface water to groundwater from river Yamuna and from various drains.

The study models the variations in water quality parameters of Yamuna river by means of stochastic approach using Central Water Commission’s monthly data for the period 1990-95 and makes projections for the year 1996. The results obtained for different water quality variables have been compared with the observed values and were found to be satisfactory. 

The study conducts an extensive water quality survey in sixteen reaches of Kali river in western Uttar Pradesh to estimate the inflow of two major nutrients (nitrate and phosphate) from point and non-point sources. The study intends to validate the present model based on the principle of conservation of mass and reaction kinetics phenomenon.

Data was taken for one annual cycle on a monthly basis and criteria developed to compute the non point source load from nine sub-basins in various stretches of the river. The computed loads at each section obtained from the predictive equation have been compared with the values observed in the field. The performance of the developed equation has been evaluated using percentage error estimation and correlation statistics. Remote sensing and geographical information systems (GIS) have been used to develop correlation between basin characteristics and non-point source loads.

Dear Users of IWP,

This manual produced by BIRD-K and DRDPR (GoK) provides the details of the Sachetana project that aims to provide safe drinking water to fluorosis affected populations through the adoption of innovative technologies for rainwater harvesting and groundwater recharge.

The project is being implemented through the Gram Panchayats of 60 villages from 4 taluks among three districts of Karnataka state over a period of five years (2006-11).

The objectives of the project include:

• Provision of safe drinking water through innovative rain harvesting structures
• Recharge of groundwater through excavation of percolation ponds
• Recharge of existing bore wells and direct recharge of aquifers
• Awareness generation activities to promote sustainable management and management of water resources and water harvesting structures.

A recent study monitoring water quality of river Ganga in Hardwar shows that it does not meet the standards for outdoor bathing set by the Central Pollution Control Board. This is primarily due to the continuing discharge of untreated wastewater and effluents from various drains directly into the river. The outfall from the sewage treatment plant (STP) at Jagjeetpur alone releases about 129 million litres daily (MLD) into the Ganga with a fecal coliform concentration of about 34 million/100ml!

Scientists from People’s Science Institute (PSI) took samples from 10 drains falling into river Ganga at different locations in Hardwar on January 2^nd and 3^rd, 2010 along with samples of the river water at 3 locations.