P. Kundal

Water resources development action plan for sasti watershed, Chandrapur district, Maharashtra using remote sensing and geographic information system

Today the world is facing the biggest crisis for water. The available both surface and groundwater resources are not sufficient to meet all the water requirements for all purpose. The optimal and sustainable development of the resource is a prerequisite so that it is assessed reliably to avoid any future problems regarding its qualitative and quantitative availability. The interpretation of remote sensing data in conjunction with ancillary data and sufficient ground truth information makes it possible to identify and outline various ground features such as geological structures, geomorphic features and their hydraulic characters, that may serve as direct or indirect indicators of the presence of ground and surface water. Remote sensing and Geographical Information System (GIS) have emerged to meet ever-increasing demand for more precise and timely information. These techniques permit rapid and cost effective natural resource survey and management. Remotely sensed data provides unbiased informations on geology, geomorphology, structural pattern and recharging conditions, which logically define the groundwater regime and help to generate water resources development action plan. The present study is an attempt to prepare a water resource development action plan for Sasti watershed of Chandrapur district, Maharashtra using remote sensing and G1S.

Additional Coralline Algae from the Lower Miocene to Late Holocene Sediments of the Porbandar Group, Gujarat

The Neogene-Quaternary sediments well exposed in the Porbandar Basin are characterized by coralline algae. The limestone, calc-arenites and marls are the dominant lithology of this sequence. The present paper documents ten species of coralline algae. Among these, the nongeniculate coralline algae are represented by four species and geniculate coralline algae include six species. The sediments yielding this algal flora range in age from the Lower Miocene to Late Holocene.

Neogene-quaternary calcareous algae from Saurashtra basin, Western India: Implications on paleoenvironments and hydrocarbon exploration

The Cenozoic and Quaternary sediments of Saurashtra basin encompass signatures of sea level fluctuations, environments of deposition and presence of hydrocarbons. These sediments are divided into seven formations that in order of superposition are: Deccan Trap (late Cretaceous to Eocene), Gaj (early Miocene), Dwarka (middle Miocene to early Pliocene), Miliolite (middle Pleistocene), Chaya (late Pleistocene to late Holocene), Katpur (middle Holocene) and Mahuva Formation (late Holocene). The fossil calcareous algae are significant constituents of these sediments and in all 88 species so far have been recorded by different workers from three prominent areas: Dwarka-Okha area (38 coralline algal species:28 nongeniculate and 10 geniculate), Porbandar area (37 coralline algal species:25 nongeniculate and 12 geniculate species) and Diu area (13 calcareous algal species:6 nongeniculate coralline algal species, 5 geniculate coralline algal species; 1 dasycladalean algal species and 1 halimedacean algal species) of the Saurashtra basin. The present paper provides a checklist of these 88 calcareous algal species documented from the different formations of this basin and their implications for paleoenvironments and petroleum exploration.

Spatial Analysis of Impact of Orange Cultivation over Groundwater Regime: A Case Study of Kolar Watershed, Nagpur District, Maharashtra

There is a common belief that the area under orange cultivation is increasing day by day in Vidarbha region of Maharashtra. It is posing threat to the groundwater reserve, to the extent of its overexploitation, which is a matter of concern to the state administrators. In view of this, an attempt is made in the present study to analyze temporal variation in the area of orange cultivation for small part of Nagpur district by using high resolution satellite data. The impact of change in the cultivation area of oranges on groundwater regime within the study area has also been analysed. Initially, the change detection study of the area has been carried out for the period 2003 to 2012 which shows that there is drastic reduction in the area under orange cultivation. This has also well reflected in the groundwater assessment as well as in the groundwater table trends of observation wells. The study indicated that a balance between recharge and withdrawal of groundwater has been achieved in the study area and groundwater regime is stabilized over the period of study.

Nongeniculate coralline algae from early middle Miocene offshore sequence of Kachchh basin, Western India: Paleoenvironmental significance

The present paper reports five nongeniculate coralline algal species, viz., Lithothamnion valens Foslie, Mesophyllum roveretoi Conti, Phymatolithon calcareum (Pallas) Adey and Mckibbin, Melobesioideae gen. et spec. indet. and Lithoporella melobesioides Foslie form the early middle Miocene Chhasra Formation of Offshore Sequence of Kachchh basin, western India. The present day depth distribution of Lithothamnion and Mesophyllum and growth forms of five nongeniculate coralline algal species points that the two cores belonging to the Chhasra Formation of offshore sequence of Kachchh basin were deposited in inner shelf environment at 60-100m depth in moderate-energy conditions.