Browsing by Author "Kumar, Suraj"

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    Assessment of traditional rainwater harvesting system in barren lands of a semi-arid region: a case study of Rajasthan (India)
    (Elsevier, 2022-06-25) Yadav, Basant; Patidar, Nitesh; Sharma, Anupma; Panigrahi, Niranjan; Sharma, Rakesh K.; Loganathan, V.; Krishan, Gopal; Singh, Jaswant; Kumar, Suraj; Parker, Alison
    Study region Dudu station, Rajasthan, India Study focus Rainwater harvesting can be used as a method to recharge aquifers. This can happen with a variety of scales and technologies. One such example is shallow infiltration ponds (Chaukas) which recharge groundwater and increase soil moisture facilitating pastureland development. A HYDRUS-1D model was used to estimate potential groundwater recharge. The model was calibrated using field data from 2019 and validated using data from 2020. The time series of Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) was derived at annual scale to assess changes in the vegetation cover. New hydrological insights for the region The modeling revealed that an additional 5% of the rainfall depth was being recharged into the groundwater. In addition, the additional soil moisture was allowing natural grass cover to develop, which could be used by the local community as pastureland. These twin benefits that the local communities are realizing could be scaled up beyond Dudu, to India, and worldwide, as many regions have barren land that is slightly sloping, together with permeable soils, which are the only conditions for the construction of Chaukas. These Chauka systems have helped in sustainable water resources management in these water-stressed regions and the additional livelihood support through developed pastures for animal husbandry.
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    Estimation of groundwater recharge in semiarid regions under variable land use and rainfall conditions: a case study of Rajasthan, India
    (PLOS (Public Library of Science), 2023-03-22) Yadav, Basant; Parker, Alison; Sharma, Anupma; Sharma, Rakesh; Krishan, Gopal; Kumar, Suraj; Le Corre Pidou, Kristell; Campo Moreno, Pablo
    In the semiarid regions of India, the annual rainfall is very low (~650 mm) and erratic; hence groundwater recharge is vital to support crops, especially in the winter season. For groundwater budgeting it is essential to consider how groundwater recharge is affected by both land-use and rainfall distribution. This study used a soil water balance approach, considering hydrological, meteorological, hydrogeological and crop information to understand the recharge process in semiarid regions. The approach was used at a sub-watershed scale where farmers grow rainfed and irrigated crops. Delayed recharge response on the water table was considered to estimate actual recharge, which closely matches the observed water levels in the field. The recharge estimated in rainfed agricultural lands, rainfed-irrigated agricultural lands, and barren lands was 29%, 17%, and 31% of the total inflow.