Hydrogeochemical investigation and groundwater quality assessment of Pratapgarh district, Uttar Pradesh

Hydogrochemical investigation of groundwater resources of Paragraph district has been carried out to assess the solute acquisition processes and water quality for domestic and irrigation uses. Fifty-five groundwater samples were collected and analyzed for pH, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, hardness, major anions (F−, Cl−, NO3, HCO3−, SO42−) and cations (Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+, K+). Study results reveal that groundwater of the area is alkaline in nature and HCO3−, Cl−, Mg2+, Na+ and Ca2+ are the major contributing ions to the dissolved solids. The hydrogeochemical data suggest that weathering of rock forming minerals along with secondary contributions from agricultural and anthropogenic sources are mainly controlling the groundwater composition of Pratapgarh district. Alkaline earth metals (Ca2++Mg2+) exceed alkalis (Na++K+) and weak acid (HCO3−) dominate over strong acids (Cl−+SO42−) in majority of the groundwater samples. Ca-Mg-HCO3 and Ca-Mg-Cl-HCO3 are the dominant hydrogeochemical facies in the groundwater of the area. The computed saturation indices demonstrate oversaturated condition with respect to dolomite and calcite and undersaturated with gypsum and fluorite. A comparison of groundwater quality parameters in relation to specified limits for drinking water shows that concentrations of TDS, F−, NO3− and total hardness exceed the desirable limits in many water samples. Quality assessment for irrigation uses reveal that the groundwater is good for irrigation. However, values of salinity, sodium adsorption ratio (SAR), residual sodium carbonate (RSC), %Na and Kelley index are exceeding the prescribed limit at some sites, demanding adequate drainage and water management plan for the area.