IDENTIFICATION OF SOURCE OF GROUNDWATER RECHARGES USING ISOTOPIC SIGNATURES IN AQUIFERS OF UPPER GANGA-YAMUNA DOAB WESTERN UTTAR PRADESH, INDIA

Abstract

Groundwater is the backbone of India's agriculture and drinking water security. It is a common-pool resource of water, used by millions of farmers across the country for irrigation purpose, remains the only drinking water source in most of India's rural households, and supports industrial water demand in many cases. The scarcity of water resources and ever increasing demands underline the importance of identifying, quantifying and managing groundwater to offset the problems of over-extraction and contamination. For better management of aquifers, the disposition and inter-relationship between various aquifers and streams is desired to be understood. The proposed area for the research project is Upper Ganga-Yamuna Plains covering Meerut, Muzaffarnagar, Bagpat and Saharanpur districts of Uttar Pradesh, and Haridwar district of Uttrakhand; where groundwater table is reported to be falling at a faster rate (approximately I m /year).