ECO-CHRONICLE 159

ECO CHRONICLE ISSN: 0973-4155 RNI No. KERENG/2006/19177 Vol. 13, No. 3, September, 2018 PP: 159 - 168

DELINEATION OF GROUNDWATER POTENTIAL ZONES IN DEVIKULAM TALUK, , , USING REMOTE SENSING, GIS AND MIF TECHNIQUES

Suresh, S.1, Rajesh, S.2 and Mani, K.1

1 Department of Geography, University College, Trivandrum 2 Department of Geology, University of Kerala, Trivandrum, India Corresponding author: [email protected]

ABSTRACT

The present study focuses on delineation of groundwater potential zones in Devikulam Taluk, a small hill station in Idukki district, Kerala using Geo-Spatial and Multi-Influencing Factor (MIF) techniques. The factors determining the groundwater potential such as rainfall, vegetation, slope, geology, geomorphology, soil, drainage density, lineament density, land use/ land-cover of the given area varies according to the given area. However these factors are interdependent and have major or minor effects upon other factors. Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographic Information System (GIS) techniques are adopted to prepare the base thematic layers of the above factors and MIF technique is adopted to assign weightage to each factor based on the effect it have upon the other factors. Based on assigned weights, a weighted overlay analysis is performed to demarcate the groundwater potential zones. From the results it is observed that around 95% of the total study area possess moderate to poor groundwater potential and only 5% of the study region poses good groundwater potential. The charnokite rocks, wall-like steep slopes, the clayey soil type are the significant limiting factors of the infiltration capacity in the study region. Such deficit groundwater potential demands an efficient and sustainable water management plans in the study region. Key Words: Groundwater Potential, Multi- Influencing Factor, GIS and Remote Sensing.

INTRODUCTION

A portion of water from precipitation (rain, snow, sleet surface areas and move from the topographic high to and hail) percolates through the pore spaces of the soil adjacent low-lying lakes, streams, rivers and wetlands. and occupies the void spaces of the earth’s crust through Exceptionally at some instances we can observe a the interconnected pore spaces (conduits) whereby it is natural upward/uphill movement of water (Jose et.al, termed as groundwater. The water bearing formations 2012), viz. waves (powered by wind), tides (caused by of the earth’s crust such as soil and rock layers trap the the moon’s gravitational forces) and tsunamis (often seeping water and sponge the water in tiny cracks, triggered by earthquakes and underwater landslides or cavities and pores. Such water saturated layers of the volcanoes) can cause water to go against gravity. geological strata will become groundwater reservoirs like aquifers, springs or wells. The total amount of empty The terrestrial groundwater makes up about 34% of all pore space in the rock and soil layers is defined as available fresh water resources, whereas the lentic porosity, which determines the amount of water that an (lakes) and lotic (streams and rivers) systems contributes aquifer can hold. Generally water moves downward/ only 3% (Danielopol et al. 2003). Groundwater is the downhill, i.e., from the areas of high hydraulic potential subterranean ecosystem, where nature stores and to low hydraulic potential under the influence of gravity. redistributes water and provides a number of services In a nutshell, water that falls on the upland area, doesn’t to society (Hunt, 2007), that are of immense socio- run-off to the lowland at once, it will recharge the sub- economic value. 160 ECO-CHRONICLE

Population explosion was observed worldwide in recent Senthilkumar et.al, 2014; Suresh et al, 2014; Waikar decades, for instance, in India about 17.4% of population et.al, 2014). Number of researches was carried out increase was recorded in the past decade (Census of around the world with regard to the specific India, 2011). As a result there is an escalated demand applications of RS and GIS tools in delineating for food production and clean water supply to agricultural, groundwater potential zones. From such researches domestic, commercial and industrial sectors, which it was understood, the factors involved in determining eventually ended up in over exploitation of groundwater the groundwater potential zones such as geology, resources. The worldwide abstraction of groundwater geomorphology, slope, intensity of rainfall, soil-texture, from the aquifers far beyond the natural renewal rate lineaments etc. vary according to the given area and (Gleeson et al, 2012) on one end; the erratic precipitation hence the results will also vary with the given geo- rate owing to the climate change and alterations in the environmental conditions (Teeuw 1995., Sander et. al, earth’s temperature on the other end; greatly threatens 1996; Das, 2000; Sener et.al, 2005; Ganapuram et.al, the quantity of available groundwater resources. 2008). The present study is also a similar study, which Moreover, growing urbanization and industrialization primarily focuses on the integral use of RS, GIS and (Jha et.al, 2006) reckless waste deposition, exponentially conventional surveys to delineate of groundwater increasing production and use of synthetic chemicals potential zones in a small mountain Taluk, Devikulam put the groundwater resources under growing pressure. of Idukki district, Kerala. As such, the groundwater resources are encountering quantitative and qualitative problems. Ultimately it poses Study Area a greater risk to health of the groundwater ecosystems and the groundwater dependent ecosystems such as Devikulam is small hill station, located in the Idukki rivers, lakes and wetlands. Inayathulla et.al, 2013, district, 5 km away from the renowned tourist location reported India will encounter serious water scarcity . The name Devikulam itself is a conjunction of problems in the near future. two words Devi, the goddess and Kulam, the pond. This village is known for its picturesque landscapes and also Given that groundwater resources are the most has got a historical importance in connection with the essential for the sustenance of life forms, a quantitative epic ‘Ramayana’. Henceforth the lakes and falls of this understanding at various spatial and temporal scales region were considered to be sacred and the water is is required for sustainable protection and management also known for its curative powers. Geographically, of these resources. The understanding of the Devikulam Taluk is located on the eastern side of the unharnessed groundwater potential, the progressive (Fig.1), stretches between the latitudes decline in the groundwater table, prevailing water use of 9056’56" N to 10021’29"N and longitudes of 770 48’ patterns, the gaps in the demand and supply, socio- 31" E to 77016’14"E covering an area of 1140 km2, 700 economic importance is termed as water literacy, which metres above Mean Sea Level (MSL). Anaimudi, the is indeed the need of the hour (Agarwal, 2008). During highest peak of South India (2695m) is located between the last 3 decades, the framework has been evolving the borders of Devikulam Taluk, Idukki District and from purely conceptual towards solution-oriented and Kothamangalam Taluk, Ernakulam District. According ready to support decision-making. As such, there is a to the recent census the total population of this region growing need for cost and time effective techniques is 177621 (Idukki District Census Handbook, 2011). for assessment, monitoring and management of the According to the United Plantations Associations of groundwater resources (Sundarapandiyan et.al, 2013). South India (UPASI), the peak regions (north-western The recent technologies like Remote Sensing (RS) and and south-eastern regions of Devikulam Taluk) such Geographical Information System (GIS) provides a as Anaimudi receives rainfall throughout the year range of tools which eases the human efforts, saves whereas the villages located in the rain-shadow region time and money, and yields effective outputs which can of the Western Ghats such as , Vattavada, be readily used for decision making. In the recent past, Kanthaloor, Keezhanthoor, Kottakombur Talayar several studies proved that, integrated use of RS and receives an average rainfall less than 1000mm GIS tools along with conventional surveys is an efficient (Singadurai, 2013). Devikulam Taluk receives the approach for studying geological, structural and highest rainfall in the months of June to Sempetember geomorphological conditions together with conventional and lowest rainfall is recorded in the month of January. surveys (Solomon et.al, 2006; Thapa et.al, 2008; Rao Average monthly rainfall varies 1166mm in July and et.al, 2009; Nagarajan.et.al, 2009; Mayilvaganan et.al, 13mm in January. Devikulam Taluk is one of the ideal 2011; Nag et.al, 2011; Neelakantan et.al, 2012; regions for groundwater research, because of its Arkoprovo et.al 2012; Pandian et.al, 2013; Chuma et.al, geographical, geological and geomorphological 2013; Suganthi et.al, 2013; Kamal et.al, 2014; characteristics. The present study is a geo-spatial ECO-CHRONICLE 161 approach to identify the groundwater potential zones geomorphology, soil, drainage density, lineament of Devikulam Taluk. density, land-use/land-cover of the study area is considered. The methodology adopted for the present DATA USAGE AND OVERALL METHOROLOGY study is shown in Fig. 2. These layers are geo-referenced and vectorised from various spatial data sources such The sub-surface recharge is an important factor as Survey of India toposheets scaled 1:25,000, determining the water table of the given area, the greater Geological Survey of India Maps, Satellite Images the rate of recharge the higher the water table. As (LANDSAT 7 and 8), Soil Survey Organization Reports mentioned in the introduction part, this hydrological and Google earth web application. These thematic layers recharge of the aquifers varies geographically and were converted into a raster format of 30m resolution strongly dependent on various factors such as intensity and subjected to weighted overlay analysis in Arc GIS of the rainfall, land-use/land-cover pattern, geology, 10 environment. The weight for each individual geomorphology, soil type, among other factors (Scanlon parameter is assigned based on the Multi Influencing et al. 2002). For the present study slope, geology, Factor (MIF) technique (Shaban et al., 2006).

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Figure 1. Location Map Drainage Density Hortan (1932) introduced the drainage density as an important indicator of the linear scale of landform elements in stream eroded topography. Higher the drainage density, the lesser the infiltration capacity i.e., low void ratio of the terrain leads to soil erosion. This is because much of water coming as rainfall goes as runoff. Here drainage density is calculated using spatial analysis IDW technique tool in ArcGIS software. Fig.3 shows the drainage density classes of the study area.

Fig. 2 Methodology Chart Geomorphology Studies on geomorphology provide an orderly and accurate description of various landforms and land forming processes (Parthasarathy, et.al, 2010). In order to understand the physical setting, knowing geomorphic processes and their work is much essential. The geomorphological attributes were prepared from SOI toposheets and ETM+ satellite imagery. The main geomorphological features in the study area are barren valley, escarpment, highly dissected denudational slope, plateau, river, tanks, structural hill and valley fill. Barren valleys cover only a small part of the study area and are 162 ECO-CHRONICLE

Fig. 3 Drainage Density confined to Munnar plateau and Adimali. This barren valley is almost occupied by settlements. Munnar town and Adimali towns are situated in this area. Escarpment in this region is formed by denudational action, which covers the eastern side of Eravikulam National park, Luckom tea estates and Deviar Colony of Mannamkandam Village (Fig.4). Due to rocky terrain, highly dissected slopes are formed almost all over the study area. Valley fills are created by the depositional action of rivers along the river course in the river valley. These are highly fertile and are covered by forests.

Geology The present study area comes under the Western Ghat region. The main rock Fig.4 Geomorphology types identified in this area are Biotite gneiss, Charnockite, Calc Granulite, Quartzite, Hornblende-biotite Gneiss, Granulite and Granite Gneiss (rocks of archean age). In the present study, geological map is prepared using Idukki District Geological Map (GSI) with a scale of 1:250,000. Granites are igneous rocks with pink and grey in colour. Granites are characterised by the presence of quartz, orthoclase, plagioclase and various accessory minerals like biotite, hornblende etc., and infiltration is limited in these rock types. Charnockites are characteristics of both igneous and metamorphic rocks. They exhibit intrusive relations with country rocks and are distinctly foliated. Biotite Fig. 5 Geology gneiss is a metamorphic rock, characterised by their gneissic structure. Gneissic structure is a composite structure due to the alteration of schistose and granulose bands and tentacles. Fig.5 shows the detail spatial information of geological structure of study area.

Slope Slope is the upward or downward inclination of surface between hills and valleys and forms the most significant aspect of landscape assemblages (Prasannakumar, 2007). A high sloping region causes more erosion and less infiltration and thus has poor groundwater prospects compared to the ECO-CHRONICLE 163

Fig.6 Slope low slope region. Slopes are always perceptible and are more significant in high range mountain regions of Devikulam Taluk. Slope map was prepared from SRTM DEM data. Based on the angle of inclination the slope is classified into a range starting from level slope to steep slope. From the slope map it is understood that the inclination angle of the slope ranges from 0.5 to greater than 70 degrees and 80% of the study region constitutes moderately steep to very steep (wall-like) slopes.

Soil Type The type of soil and its porosity governs the rate of infiltration and groundwater storage potential. The major soil series identified in the Study area is Fig.7 Soil Types Thommankuthu, Chinnar, Venmani, Pampadumpara and (Fig.7). Thommankuthu Series texture is sandy clay to clayey, mixed, isohyperthermic Ustic Palehumults. It covers an area of about 103 km2. Drainage density is high and moderate to high permeability observed in these groups. Chinnar series is a member of loamy-skeletal, mixed, thermic, typic Haplustolls. These soils are formed on gneissic material on gently sloping eastern slopes of the rain shadow regions of Marayur, occupying 97 km2. Soils have high gravel content which limits soil volume. Venmani soils have reddish brown to dark reddish brown, very strongly acid, loam to clay and fine to moderately fine textured. It covers 132 km2.Soil and Fig. 8 Land Use / Land Cover water conservation measures, addition of manures and fertilizers at critical stages of crop growth are the management measures required.Pambadum series is a member of clayey, mixed, isohyper- thermic, Ustic Kandihumults. It covers 93 km2. These soils are formed on gneissic material on steep to very steeply sloping hills and with poor water holding capacity. Anaimudi soils have dark reddish brown to dark brown. Almost 62% of area is covered by Anaimudi series. These soils have poor water recharge capacity and are prone to severe erosion.

Land use / Land cover Land cover and land use changes are one of the four major environmental problems 164 ECO-CHRONICLE globally, together with biodiversity, atmospheric aerial images. It is an expression of an composition and climate change (Walker and Steffen, underlying geological structure such as a fault. The study 1997; Walker, 1998). Therefore, it is always important of lineaments plays an important role groundwater to monitor land use change within a certain period of exploration, site selection for engineering projects such time and predict patterns of future land use changes on as Dams, studies associated with earthquakes etc. In a spatial basis (Nurmiaty, et.al., 2014). Mapping is the groundwater researches, lineament density is considered most efficient method for projecting changing land use as good potential zones, as they reflect high porosity (Mani, 2012). Standard visual interpretation methods and hydraulic conductivity of the underlying materials. were applied to identify and interpret the land use pattern Such lineaments have been deciphered from LANDSAT of the area and various land use classes delineated ETM+ and PAN data. The densities of the lineament are includes Forest, Barren land, Scrub, Plantation, Grass, depicted in Fig.9. Settlement and Water body. The dominant land use is of plantation and forest (Fig.8). Weighted Overlay Analysis As mentioned in the methodology section, slope, geology, Lineament Density geomorphology, soil, drainage density, lineament density, A lineament is simply a linear feature in a landscape, land-use/land-cover are the parameters considered for which are easily extractable features in satellite and the present study. Each parameter is interdependent on other parameters viz. each parameter Fig.9 Lineament Density has a major effect (A) and minor effect (B) upon other parameters (Fig.10). For each major and minor inter-related factor, a weightage of 1 and 0.5 is assigned respectively. A relative rate is calculated for each factor by cumulating all the weights of major and minor inter- related factors (A+B). A factor with higher relative rate shows larger impact on the groundwater potential zones and vice versa. This relative rate is further used to calculate a score for each influencing factor using the following formula: (A + B) x 100 (A + B) Where, Fig.10. Relationship between Major and Minor Factors A is the major inter-relationship between two factors B is the minor inter-relationship between two factors A+B is the relative weight of each factor

The inter-relationship between the parameters chosen for the present study, their relative weight and the scores derived for each parameter is detailed in Table 1.

Delineation of groundwater potential zones The groundwater potential zones were demarcated through integration of the above mentioned thematic layers using raster calculator (a tool in Arc GIS software module). The integration is ECO-CHRONICLE 165 done by grouping the reclassified layers through MIF categories, namely very high, high, medium, low and very factors by which groundwater potential zones are derived. low (Fig 12). From the results it is observed that, potential The derived zones are further re-classified into 5 groundwater zones are moderate to very low in majority (almost 95% of the total area) of the Fig.12 Groundwater Potential Map study regions and high and very high on only 5% of the total area of the study region (Table 3).

The high groundwater potential zones are found to be located in and around the major water bodies and western parts of the Mannamkandam village whereas the groundwater potential is moderate to very low in Marayur village, Kanthalloor village, Keezhanthur village, some parts of Vattava village, eastern parts of Kunjithanni village, some parts of Mankulam village, Kannan Devan Hills and Mannamkandam village. From the results it is understood that Table 1. Effect of influencing factor, relative rates and score for each potential factor Influencing Major effect Minor effect Weight Weight for Proposed Proposed factors A B for Minor relative rates score for Major effects (A+B) each effects B influencing A factor

Lineaments Drainage, Land use /Land 1+1 0.5+0.5+0. 4 13 Geology cover, Slope, 5+0.5 Geomorphology, Soil

Geomorphology Land use /Land Lineaments, 1+1+1+ 0.5+0.5 5 16 cover, Geology, Drainage 1 Slope, Soil

Geology Geomorphology, Slope, Land use 1+1+1 0.5+0.5+0. 4.5 14 Drainage, /Land cover, Soil 5 Lineaments

Slope Geomorphology, Lineaments, 1+1+1 0.5+0.5+0. 4.5 14 Drainage, Land Geology, Soil 5 use /Land cover

Drainage Slope, Land use /Land 1+1+1+ 0.5+0.5 5 16 Lineaments, cover, 1 Geology, Soil Geomorphology

Land use /Land Geomorphology, Lineament, 1+1 0.5+0.5+0. 4 13 cover slope Geology, 5+0.5 Drainage, Soil

Soil Geology, Geomorphology, 1+1+1 0.5+0.5+0. 4.5 14 Drainage, slope Land use /Land 5 cover, lineament Sum 32 100 166 ECO-CHRONICLE

Table 2. Table 3. Classification of Weighted Factors influencing the Potential Zones Groundwater potential regions

Hydrological Reclassified Classes Groundwater Weight- SI. Category Area Area in 2 Parameters Potential age No km %

Very Low Very low 16 1 Very Low 10.6 3.31 Low Low 12 2 Low 561.4 48.64 Drainage 3 Medium 502.36 43.47 Density Moderate Moderate 9 4 High 52.36 4.03 High High 5 5 Very High 13.28 0.56 Very High Very high 1 Total 1140 100

Very Low Very Low 1 the wall-like steep slope, the charnokite rock type and gravelly clay soil are the Low Low 3 major factors which limits the rainwater Lineament infiltration in the study region. Density Moderate Moderate 6 Groundwater potential zones are very High High 9 less in the study region. Such deficit calls Very High Very High 13 for an immediate attention with efficient water storage and management plans to Charnockite Low 5 avoid water crisis. Biotite Gneiss High 9 Geology CONCLUSION Khondalite Very High 14 Geo-spatial approach for delineating Residual Mount, Denudational groundwater potential proves to be Structural Hills, Low 4 efficient in terms of labour, money and Linear Ridge, time saving thereby it provides a precise Residual Hill Geo- results which enables quick decision making for effective water resources morphology Piedmont Zone, Moderate 8 management. The geo-spatial and MIF Lower Plateau techniques adopted in the present study Valley Fill High 12 is empirical, to identify the groundwater Water body Very High 16 potential zones. This method also aids to identify suitable sites for harnessing Very Low Very Low 14 groundwater. The method can also be Low Low 11 adapted to various areas with rugged terrain. The results of the present study Slope Moderate Moderate 8 may also be used as guidelines for future High High 5 artificial recharge projects. It is also a Very High Very High 2 valuable practical tool for the regions of the developing nations, where data Settlement, Rock Very Low 1 scarcity (in terms of quantity and quality) Barren, Scrub, Low 3 is often an obstacle for solving real-world Mining, Grass land water problems.

LU/LC Forest, plantation Moderate 6 REFERENCES

Agricultural Land High 9 Agarwal, E., Agarwal, R., Garg, R. D. and Water Bodies Very High 13 Garg, P. K. (2012) Delineation of Groundwater Potential Zone: An AHP/ Gravelly Clay Very Low 7 ANP approach, Department of civil Soil Engineering, Indian Institute of Loam Very High 14 Technology, Roorkee, India. ECO-CHRONICLE 167

Aman A., Randriamanantena H P., Podaire A., and and Exhibition on integrated water, Waste water and Froutin R., (1992), Upscale integration of normalized isotope Hydrology. difference vegetation index: The problem of spatial heterogeneity, IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Jha, M. K., Chowdhury, AQ., Chowdary, V. M. and Peiffer, Remote Sensing Vol. 30, PP: 326 – 338. S (2006), Groundwater Management and development by integrated Remote Sensing and GIS; Prospects and Arkoprovo, B., Adarsa, J. and Prakash, S. S. (2012), constraints, Water resource management vol. 21, Delineation of Groundwater Potential Zones using pp.427-467. Satellite Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systm Techniques: A case study from Ganjam district, Jose, S K., Jayasree, R., Santhoshkumar, R. and Rajendran, Orissa, India, Research Journal of Recent Sciences; vol.1 S. (2012), Identification of Groundwater Potential zones in (9), pp.59-66. Palakkad district, Kerala through multicriteria analysis techniques using Geoinformation technology, Bonfring Chuma, C., Orimoogunje, O. I. O., Hlatywayo, D. J. and International Journal of Industrial Engineering and Akinyede, J. O. (2013), Application of Remote Sensing management science, vol.2, special issue 1. and Geographical Information Systems in determining the groundwater potential in the crystalline basement of Mani K., (2012), ‘ The process of rural change and Bulawayo Metropolitan area, Zimbabwe, Advanced in changing pattern of population in Devikulamtaluk, Idukki Remote Sensing, vol. 2, pp. 149-161. district, Kerala, Ph.D thesis, Kerala University library, Thiruvananthapuram. Danielopol, D. L., C. Griebler, A. Gunatilaka, and J. Notenboom. 2003. Present state and future prospects Mayilvaganan, M. K., Mohana, P. and Naidu, K. B. (2011), for groundwater ecosystems. Environmental Delineating groundwater potential zones in Conservation 30:104–130. Thurinjapuram watershed using geospatial techniques, Indian Journal of Science and Technology, vol.4, no.11. Das, D., 2000. GIS application in hydrogeological studies. Available from: http://www.gisdevelopment.net / Nag, S. K. and Lahiri, A. (2011 Integrated approach using application/nrm/ water/overview/wato 0003.htm Remote Sensing and GIS techniques for delineating (accessed March 2010). groundwater potential zones in Dwarakeswar watershed, Bankara district West Bengal, Internatonal Journal of District Census Hand Book, Idukki., (2011), Census of Geomatics and Geosciences, vol 2, no 2. India, Directorate of Census Operations, Kerala. Nagarajan, M. and Sujit Singh. (2009), Assessment of Ganapuram, S., Kumar, G., Krishna, I., Kahya, E., Groundwater Potential zones using GIS techniques, J. Demirel, M., 2008. Mapping of groundwater potential India Soc. Remote Sensing vol. 37, pp. 69-77. zones in the Musi basin using remote sensing and GIS. Advances in Engineering Software 40, 506e518. Neelakantan, R. and Yuvaraj, S. (2012) Evaluation of Groundwater using Geospatial data: A case study from Gleeson, T., Y. Wada, M. F. P. Bierkens, and L. P. H. van Salem Taluk, Tamil Nadu, International Journal of Remote Beek. 2012. Water balance of global aquifers revealed Sensing & Geoscience vol. 1, issue. 2. by groundwater footprint. Nature 488:197–200. Nurmiaty., Baja S., and Arif S., (2014), GIS-Based Horton. R.E (1932), “Drainage basin Characteristics Modelling of Land Use Dynamics Using Cellular Transactions”, American Geophysical Union, 13, pp 350-61. Automata and Markov Chain.

Hunt, C. E. (2007), Thirsty Planet: Strategies for Pandian, M. and Kumanan, C. J. (2013), Geomatics Sustainable water development, Academic Fountation, approach to demarcate Groundwater potential zones New Delhi, pp. 29. using Remote Sensing and GIS techniques in part of Trichy and Karur district, Tamilnadu India, Scholars Inayathulla, M., Nanjundi, P., Mohankumar, T. M., Swamy, Research Library, Archives of Applied Science Research G. and Krishna (2013), Identification of groundwater vol. 2, pp. 234-240. potential zones in Hard rock terrain A case study from parts of MalurTaluk, Kolar District using Remote Sensing Parthasarathy. G R.,andRengan G R., (2010), and GIS Techniques, Research and Reviews: Journal of Momograph on Landforms-11, Madurai Kamaraj Engineering and Tehnology (International Conference University, Madurai. 168 ECO-CHRONICLE

Prasannakumar V., (2007), Geomorphology of Kerala , Suganthi, S., Elango, L. and Subramanian S. K. (2013), International centre for Kerala studies, University of Groundwater Potential Zonation by Remote Sensing and Kerala, Kariavattom. GIS techniques and its relation to the Groundwater level in the Coastal part of the Arani and Koratalai River basin, Rao, P. J., Harikrishna, P., Srivastav, S. K., Satyanarayana, Southern India, Earth Sciences, Research Journal, P. V. V. and Rao, B. V. D. (2009), Selection of Groundwater vol.17, no.2 potential zones in and around Madhurawada Dome, Visakhapatnam District: A GIS approach, J.IndGeophys. Sundarapandiyan, P. and Annaduraqi, R (2013), Union vol.13, no.4, pp. 191-200. Groundwater Potential Zoning at Kancheepuram using GIS techniques, IRACST- Engineering Science and Sander, P., Chesley, M., Minor, T., 1996. Groundwater Technology; An International Journal (ESTIJ), vol.3, assessment using remote sensing and GIS in a rural No.1 groundwater project in Ghana: lessons learned. Hydrogeology Journal 4, 78e93. Suresh, S., Mani, K. and Rajesh, S. (2014), Multi Influencing Factor Technique for Identifying Groundwater Scanlon, B., R. Healy, and P. Cook. 2002. Choosing Vulnerable Zone in Pambar River Basin, DevikulamTaluk appropriate techniques for quantifying groundwater Using Geospatial Technology, Diaster Risk and recharge. Hydrogeology Journal 10:18–39. Vulnerability Conference, Proceedings of the 2ndDiaster Risk and Vulnerability Conference. Sener, E., Davraz, A., Ozcelik, M., 2005. An integration of GIS and remote sensing in groundwater investigations: Teeuw, R., 1995. Groundwater exploration using remote a case study in Burdur, Turkey. Hydrogeology Journal sensing and a lowcost geographic information system. 13, 826e834. Hydrogeology Journal 3, 21e30.

Senthilkumar, G. R. and Shankar, K. (2014) Assessment Thapa, R., Ravindra, K. and Sood, R. K. (2008) Study of Groundwater potential zone using GIS, Frontier in of Morphotectonics and Hydrogeology for Groundwater Geosciences vol. 2, pp 1-10. Prospecting using Remote Sensing and GIS in the North West Himalaya District, Sirmour, Himachal Pradesh, Shaban, A., Khawlie, M., Abdallah, C., 2006. Use of India, Remote Sensing Centre Science Technology & remote sensing and GIS to determine recharge potential Environment vol. XXXVII. part B4. zone: the case of Occidental Lebanon. Hydrogeology Journal 14, 433e443. Waikar, M. L. and Nilawar, A. P (2014), Identification of Groundwater Potential Zones using Remote Sensing Singadurai. S., (2015), Groundwater Information Booklet and GIS Technique, International Journal of Innovative of Idukki District, Kerala, Ministry of water resources, Research in Sciences, Engineering and Technology Central Groundwater Board, Thiruvananthapuram. vol.3, issue. 5.

Soil Survey Organization (2009), Bench Mark soils of Walker B., (1998), GCTE and LUCC – a natural and Kerala, Soil Survey Organization and Agriculture timely partnership, LUCC Newsletter 3, PP: 3-4. Department, S.C Unit. Walker B., Steffen W., (1997), The terrestrial biosphere Solomon, S. and Quiel, F. (2006), Groundwater study and global change: implications for natural and managed using Remote Sensing and GIS in the central highland ecosystems. A synthesis of GCTE and related research. of Eritrea, Hydrology journal, pp. 729-741. IGBP Science No.1. IGBP, Stockholm.