Prioritization for Management of Groundwater Quality-Related Problems of Rajsamand District of Rajasthan

Abstract

A study was conducted during pre- and postmonsoon seasons of the years 2011 and 2012 in Rajsamand district of Rajasthan to prioritize the management of groundwater quality-related problems. The whole district was divided into 6 km × 6 km square grids, and from each grid, one open dug well was selected randomly. The locations of wells were recorded with the help of global positioning system (GPS). The groundwater samples were drawn from 128 selected open dug wells and analysed for standard water quality parameters, and it was found that the TDS of groundwater of Rajsamand district ranged from 164 to 8600 and 152 to 7840 mg kg⁻¹ in premonsoon seasons with the mean value of 1508 and 1425 mg kg⁻¹ in the years 2011 and 2012, respectively. In postmonsoon seasons, the TDS varied from 120 to 5810 and 122 to 5980 mg kg⁻¹ with the mean values of 1142 and 1154 mg kg⁻¹ in the years 2011 and 2012, respectively. The pH of groundwater in premonsoon varied from 6.30 to 8.20 and 6.40 to 8.10 with average values of 7.16 and 7.17 in the years 2011 and 2012, respectively. During postmonsoon seasons, the pH value varied from 6.70 to 8.30 and 6.90 to 8.20 with the mean values of 7.42 and 7.36 in the years 2011 and 2012, respectively. The electrical conductivity of groundwater of Rajsamand district varied from 0.25 to 13.44 and 0.23 to 12.20 dSm⁻¹ with the mean values of 2.35 and 2.21 dSm⁻¹ in premonsoon, whereas in postmonsoons the EC of groundwater varied from 0.18 to 9.08 and 0.20 to 9.40 dSm⁻¹ with mean values of 1.78 and 1.81 dSm⁻¹ in years 2011 and 2012, respectively. The minimum EC was found in Kumbhalgarh, whereas the maximum was recorded in Railmagra block in both years.