Hydrochemical Evaluation and Assessment of Groundwater Quality through Water Quality Index Around Chandrapur Industrial Area, Maharashtra, India

Abstract

The present study focuses on assessing the current status of Groundwater quality for drinking purpose around Padoli MIDC of Chandrapur region. Stratigraphically, the area is comprising Archean granite and gneiss at base and overlain by Kamathi and Barakar sandstone of Gondwana group of rocks. For assessment of groundwater quality, total fifty-two (52) groundwater samples were collected from dug well and bore well during the post monsoon season 2022. The physico-chemical parameter like pH, EC, TDS, TA, Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+, K+, HCO3-, SO42-, Cl-, NO3- and F-were analysed and compared with the BIS 2012 standards. it shows that most of the well samples are within the allowable limit set by BIS, except TDS, TA, Ca and Mg. The dominance of cations and anions of the study region shows increasing abundance as Ca2+> Na+> Mg2+> K+ and Cl-> HCO3->SO42-> NO-3 respectively. Suitability of groundwater for drinking purpose is also evaluated on the basis of water quality index and hydrochemical characteristics through Piper and Gibbs plot. Based on water quality index, 64% of the well samples are favourable for drinking status. The hydrochemical facies of study area is of Mixed type and alkaline earth in nature. Gibbs diagram reveal that Evaporation is the major process for controlling the groundwater chemistry of the region.

Introduction

Water, especially groundwater, is a vital resource for drinking and agriculture worldwide, with about 66% of the global population relying on it. Groundwater quality and quantity are threatened by population growth, industrialization, agriculture, and improper waste disposal. Monitoring groundwater quality through physical, chemical, and biological analyses is essential for sustainable use.

The study focuses on Chandrapur district in India, a geologically diverse area with granite, basalt, sandstone, and shale formations, influenced by industrial and agricultural activities. Groundwater samples (52 total) were collected and analyzed for parameters such as pH, EC, TDS, major ions, and contaminants following standard methods.

Results show that while pH levels are generally within acceptable limits, many samples exceed safe thresholds for TDS, calcium, magnesium, and chloride, indicating pollution from both natural geochemical processes and human activities like fertilizer use and industrial discharge. Water Quality Index (WQI) assessment revealed about 65% of samples fall in excellent to good categories, but 19% are poor and 17% very poor, especially near industrial zones.

Hydrochemical analysis using Piper plots indicates the groundwater is mainly mixed type, alkaline earth in nature, with Ca and Na as dominant cations and chloride as the main anion, suggesting influences from rock weathering and ion exchange processes.

Conclusion

In the present study, water quality index was used to assess the groundwater quality and hydrochemical characteristic was identified through Piper and Gibbs plot. All the pysico-chemical parameters are below the limit standards set by the BIS 2012, except TDS, TH, Ca and Mg having samples 30%, 40%, 21% and 48% above the standard respectively. The cation and anion dominance are in the order ofCa2+> Na+> Mg2+> K+ and Cl-> HCO3->SO42-> NO-3respectively.The water quality index shows the result that majority of the samples are in the Excellent to Good category. Based on piper diagram the hydrochemical facies of the study area indicate mixed type of groundwater and alkaline in nature. Gibbs plot shows that the evaporation is the dominance process for the quality degradation in study area. The groundwaters status in the study region certainly deteriorate which can be enhanced by treating the water, improving agronomic techniques improves the quality of groundwater in the study region.

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Copyright © 2025 Ankit Surtekar, Hari Patode. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.