Journal of Geological Society of India (Online archive from Vol 1 to Vol 78)

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Groundwater Scenario in Lakshadweep Islands


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1 Central Ground Water Board, Bangalore - 560 102, India
     

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There are 36 islands in Lakshadweep archipelago, of which 10 are inhabited. The study focuses on the hydrogeological conditions prevailing in nine of these inhabited islands. Groundwater is the major source of fresh water and the well density is high in the range of 296 to 620 per km2. The aspect ratios of these islands indicate that the shape of the islands have significant role on the stability of fresh water lens. The changes in water level do not reflect the real changes in the water resources as it is greatly influenced by tides. Moreover, the Ghyben-Herzberg relation in its ideal form does not hold good in these tiny oceanic islands. Hence, the rainfall recharge in the islands was assessed based on daily water budgeting. A relation between water surplus and annual rainfall could be established. This approach of recharge estimation could be applied for similar oceanic islands.

Keywords

Groundwater, Oceanic Islands, Coral Islands, Aspect Ratio, Lakshadweep.
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  • Groundwater Scenario in Lakshadweep Islands

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Authors

Najeeb K. Md.
Central Ground Water Board, Bangalore - 560 102, India
N. Vinayachandran
Central Ground Water Board, Bangalore - 560 102, India

Abstract


There are 36 islands in Lakshadweep archipelago, of which 10 are inhabited. The study focuses on the hydrogeological conditions prevailing in nine of these inhabited islands. Groundwater is the major source of fresh water and the well density is high in the range of 296 to 620 per km2. The aspect ratios of these islands indicate that the shape of the islands have significant role on the stability of fresh water lens. The changes in water level do not reflect the real changes in the water resources as it is greatly influenced by tides. Moreover, the Ghyben-Herzberg relation in its ideal form does not hold good in these tiny oceanic islands. Hence, the rainfall recharge in the islands was assessed based on daily water budgeting. A relation between water surplus and annual rainfall could be established. This approach of recharge estimation could be applied for similar oceanic islands.

Keywords


Groundwater, Oceanic Islands, Coral Islands, Aspect Ratio, Lakshadweep.

References