Hydro-Geochemical Characteristics of Groundwater Uses for Agricultural & Drinking and Groundwater Quality of Pollution Index in the Western Part of Telangana, South India

Abstract

Groundwater is a major valuable asset, which helps to sustain human ecology, particularly in crystalline terrains. Hence, proper quality monitoring of groundwater is a crucial task in understanding its suitability for drinking water and irrigation water practices. For this, fifty groundwater samples were taken and evaluated for physical, chemical characteristics and major ions during in pre and post-monsoon seasons. The results obtained were compared with IS 10500 standard which shows more than 80% of the samples in both seasons were unfit for drinking. The obtained results were checked to know the irrigation suitability. It is found that most of the samples (80%) were fit for agricultural practices in both seasons. The major water facies were CaCl, mixed CaMgCl and NaCl water types in pre and post-monsoon seasons. The spatial distribution diagrams of the major ions were high concentration in Northern areas followed by Western and South-Western portions. As per the groundwater quality of pollution index (GQPI), most of the study region (62 percent) comes under the low contamination zone and the rest (38 percent) under the moderate to unacceptable zone in drinking water specifications. Factor analysis reveals that the study region which predominant of weathering of silicate minerals, ion exchange and anthropogenic inputs of major contamination of groundwater quality.