Study and Mapping of Ground Water Prospect using Remote Sensing, GIS and Geoelectrical resistivity techniques - a case study of Dhanbad district, Jharkhand, India

Water is an important natural resource, which is available both on surface as well as in recharge zone of weathered layer and in various other suitable water reservoir formations/structures below the surface. As the availability of surface water is erratic and irregular one needs to study and map the underground water reservoirs. Dhanbad district of Jharkhand state is in general part of hard rock terrain, which is mainly covered by Chottanagpur Granite Gneissic Complex and has no perennial river sources for water supply. Therefore, in view of the upcoming industrialization in the region there is need to exploit groundwater resource, which is limited and confined to fractured and weathered zones. Even though the region receives copious rain, the terrain and soil condition allows little storage of water. Hence, the region faces shortage of water in dry seasons. Therefore, it is necessary to explore and study the ground water resources effectively using suitable techniques. Various workers have successfully applied Remote Sensing technique in exploration, evaluation and management of ground water resources in an area as a whole and the results have been published. In this paper also mapping and management strategies for ground water resources have been studied, by analyzing IRS LISS II multi band remote sensing data along with geological as well as geophysical resistivity sounding data carried out at places in GIS environment. Finally, based on the integrated thematic maps, weighted analysis in Arc GIS ground water resource prospect map of the area has been prepared and discussed. The study has brought out that the high groundwater potential zones are confined along lineaments and in pediment areas. Also alluvial fills, valley fills form potential zones. The other geomorphic units like buried pediplain, peniplains and denundational hills form zones of moderate to good groundwater prospects. Dissected pediments, inselberg complex, undulating upland and buried pediment with intermontane valley are zones of poor prospects. Very poor regions occupy a small part of total study area and are mainly confined to undulating upland and residual hills.