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Geophysical and hydrochemical studies for sustainable development of groundwater resources in northwestern part of Telangana State, India

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Abstract

Studies have been carried out to assess groundwater potential using geophysical analysis and water quality indices in parts of Nyalkal and Zaheerabad Mandal, Medak District, Telangana State. As a part of the study, 50 groundwater samples were collected and 103 Vertical Electrical Soundings (VES) had been carried out. The water quality was assessed with respect to various major ion chemistry and trace elements. It is found that major ions and trace elements are within the permissible limits, except Al, Pb, and Zn metals, which slightly exceeded beyond permissible limits. However, the results of VES reveal that in some parts of the study area, the resistivity range for topsoil (26.61–930 Ωm), lateritic zone (453–738 Ωm), clayey/sandy clay layer (4.71–94.2 Ωm), weathered/fractured bedrock (60.5–928 Ωm) and weathered/vesicular/massive basalt (8.05–676 Ωm) are found with the formation of thick overburden and fractured basement. It is also found that the groundwater prospects are moderate to high depending on the extent of the weathering zone.

Research Highlights

  • Geophysical investigations were carried out to decipher the aquifer geometry and potential zones.

  • Groundwater quality for major and trace elements were carried out and compare with WHO standards.

  • An integrated analysis was made for sustainable development of groundwater resources.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are highly thankful to the Director, CSIR-National Geophysical Research Institute for his kind permission to publish the paper. The manuscript no. is NGRI/Lib/2019/Pub-93. Authors thank the Head, Department of Applied Geochemistry, Osmania University for providing the lab facility and special thanks to the Dr V Sudharshan, and Dr B Ramana Kumar for the support and encouragement. Authors are also thankful to the Editor and Associate Editor of the journal for their guidance and to the anonymous reviewer for his scientific comments on improving the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CSIR-National Geophysical Research Institute, Hyderabad, 500 007, India

    Sakram Gugulothu & Ratnakar Dhakate

  2. Department of Applied Geochemistry, Osmania University, Hyderabad, India

    K Sreedhar & Praveen Raj Saxena

  3. Central University of Karnataka, Gulbarga, Karnataka, India

    A Ramesh

Authors
  1. Sakram Gugulothu
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  2. Ratnakar Dhakate
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  3. K Sreedhar
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  4. A Ramesh
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  5. Praveen Raj Saxena
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Contributions

Sakram Gugulothu: Data collection, analyses and interpretation, conceptualization of manuscript, writing-reviewing-editing of manuscript. Ratnakar Dhakate: Data interpretation, review and editing, conceptualization. K Sreedhar: Data collection, analyses and interpretation. A Ramesh: Data analyses and methodology. Praveen Raj Saxena: Visualization and conceptualization.

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Correspondence to Sakram Gugulothu.

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Communicated by Rajib Maity

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Gugulothu, S., Dhakate, R., Sreedhar, K. et al. Geophysical and hydrochemical studies for sustainable development of groundwater resources in northwestern part of Telangana State, India. J Earth Syst Sci 129, 202 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12040-020-01452-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12040-020-01452-7

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