Abstract:
Increased demand for water has resulted into over dependence on groundwater, especially in regions where surface water resources are limited and temporal rainfall is uneven. Exploitation of groundwater for various reasons has resulted in depletion of the resource and rapid decline in groundwater table in several parts of India. Quantification of the rate of natural groundwater recharge is a pre requisite for efficient groundwater resource management. In this paper attempts are being made to study the different methods of estimating the groundwater potential, comparing them to arrive at the most suitable technique of practical utility and examining the groundwater level pattern of Warangal district.
Piezometric level data of 50 observation wells spread around the district was collected from the groundwater department for the period 2003-2012. The software Surfer is used to plot the piezometric levels, the groundwater slope and the flow contours. Even though the groundwater slope is similar over the study years, the water levels have dropped by 8% to 10% in 2012. Groundwater recharge is estimated by three methods viz., Yearly Water Level Fluctuation, Fluctuation in Monsoon Season as recommended by Groundwater Estimation Committee (GEC, 1997) and Average Water Level Fluctuation over Ten Years. The study showed that the second method is more conservative while the third method is found best suitable for groundwater potential calculation in Warangal district. The study throws an insight into the exploitation level of groundwater resources in Warangal district. The result of the study helps to take measures which avoid over exploitation of groundwater and acts as an aid for developing better groundwater management policies.
