Delineation of groundwater potential zones using remote sensing and geographic information system techniques: A case study of Udaipur district, Rajasthan, India

Groundwater is a vital natural capital for the consistent and economic provision of potable water supply for both rural and urban environments. The surface water resources are inadequate to fulfill the water demand. Productivity through groundwater is quite high as compared to surface water, but groundwater resources have not yet been properly exploited. Keeping this view, the present study attempts to select and delineate various groundwater potential zones for the assessment of groundwater availability in the Udaipur district, Rajasthan, India using remote sensing and GIS technique. This study utilized RS and GIS techniques for generating thematic layers of different factors influencing groundwater occurrence. The multi-criteria decision-making technique coupled with GIS have been used to identify groundwater potential zones in the study area. Groundwater potential in the study area was identified by considering eight thematic maps, viz., geomorphology, soil, slope, topographic elevation, land use/land cover, recharge, post-monsoon groundwater depth and transmissivity. These maps were prepared using conventional and remote sensing data with the help of Arc GIS software. These themes and their features were assigned suitable weights as suggested by Saaty (1980) according to the relative importance of theme/feature in groundwater occurrence. The weights of the thematic maps and their individual features were then normalized by using Saaty’s analytical hierarchy process. The selected thematic maps after assigning weights were integrated in a GIS environment to generate a groundwater potential index (GWPI) map, based on which groundwater potential zones were identified in the study area. On the basis of study, the study area were divided into four groundwater potential zones, viz., ‘good’, ‘moderate’, ‘poor’, and ‘very poor’, which cover 20 per cent good groundwater potential, 31.17 per cent moderate, 34.19 per cent poor and 14.64 per cent very poor groundwater potential zone. About 48.83 per cent of the basin falls under poor potential zone. Therefore, immediate attention is required for ensuring sustainable groundwater management in the basin.