Upload
others
View
0
Download
0
Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF GEOMATICS AND GEOSCIENCES
Volume 3, No 3, 2013
© Copyright by the authors - Licensee IPA- Under Creative Commons license 3.0
Research article ISSN 0976 – 4380
Submitted on January 2013 published on March 2013 605
Prioritization of sub-basins of Ghataprabha River using morphometric
parameters Rajat Kumar Panda
1, Nagarajan R
2
1- Research Scholar, Center of Studies in Resources Engineering, IIT Bombay
2- Associate Professor, IIT Bombay
ABSTRACT
Drainage morphometric analysis of river basins indicates the prevailing hydrological
processes. Drainage lines of the Ghataprabha River, has been demarcated from SRTM DEM
and substantiated with the thematic maps. Geographical Information System (GIS) was used
in integrating the data and geo-referencing. Areal, linear, drainage length and density and
relief parameters were determined. Surface storage potential of individual sub-basins was
assessed using the morphometric and terrain parameters and prioritized for development.
Keywords: Ghataprabha river, drainage density, morphometric analysis.
1. Introduction
Drainage network is a function of the climate, soil, geology and relief of the basin. Studies on
quantitative analysis of drainage basins have indicated that distribution of surface water in
different landforms is controlled by the geomorphic characteristics of the basin (Singh, 1992).
Morphometric aspects of river basins are used in characterizing watersheds for prioritization
of developments (Nookaratnam et al., 2005). Synergistic analysis of drainages along with
geomorphology and geology provides an insight to predict the hydrological behavior for un-
gauged basins at sub-basin levels (Esper, 2008). The sub-basins vary in their basin area,
drainage density, bifurcation ratio, circularity ratio, constant of channel maintenance etc.,
which are used in prioritization process. Spatial variation in lithology plays an important role
in controlling sediment yield. The organic content, infiltration capacities, and resistance to
erosion are substantially decreased over the cultivated soils. Nookaratnam et al., (2005) used
the sediment yield index (SYI) model and morphometric information in positioning of check
dams within the micro-watershed.
Sediment yield controlled by those factors that control erosion and sediment delivery,
including local topography, soil properties, climate, vegetation cover, catchment morphology,
drainage network characteristics, and land use (Hovius, 1998). Geomorphological
Instantaneous Unit Hydrograph (GIUH) technique is used to derive the runoff characteristics
of the sub-basins in the Varada River, western ghat sections, India. The rainfall-runoff
modeling of a river basin involves the production function and the transfer function. The
production function determines the proportion of gross rainfall actually involved in the runoff.
The transfer function spreads the net rainfall over time and space in the river basin. Such a
transfer function can be modeled using the approach of the GIUH. These models make it
possible to forecast the hydrograph shape and runoff variation versus time at the basin outlet
by Tejaswini et.al (2011). Biggs et al (2007) studied the water availability (water flow) and
demand (irrigation and settlement) of Krishna River.
Prioritization of sub-basins of Ghataprabha River using morphometric parameters
Rajat Kumar Panda, Nagarajan R
International Journal of Geomatics and Geosciences
Volume 3 Issue 3, 2013 606
2. Study area
Krishna River basin is one of the largest river basins in Peninsular India. It has a catchment
of 258,948 km2. It originates from Western Ghats (mountains) that receive summer monsoon
rainfall (June-September). It passes through tropical wet, tropical wet/dry, semi-arid region of
Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh (administrative units) before it joins the Bay of
Bengal. The spatial water demand from the river has lead to disputes over water sharing.
Ghataprabha River is one of the major tributaries of Krishna. This basin is a closed basin. It
has a catchment area of 7600 km2, is spread between 15
0 45’ and 16
0 25’ N and 74
0 00’ and
750 55’E (covers parts of Maharashtra, Karnataka states) and is shown in the figure 1. It joins
River Krishna before Almatti Dam.
Figure 1: Location of Ghataprabha River within Krishna River basin, India
3. Materials and methods
Digital elevation model was generated from Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission (SRTM)
with a ground resolution of 30 m. It was used to classify the basin into sub-basins and
calculate slope.Topographic sheets of 1:50,000 scales were used in demarcating the
individual drainage lines and the surface storage structures such as tanks and reservoirs. They
were digitized and created a geo referenced data base. Drainage characteristics such as
drainage density, bifurcation ratio, constant for channel maintenance, stream frequency,
length of overland flow, elongation ratio, circularity ratio, etc. were computed. Land cover
information was interpreted from the Indian Remote Sensing satellite image (IRS P6,
Prioritization of sub-basins of Ghataprabha River using morphometric parameters
Rajat Kumar Panda, Nagarajan R
International Journal of Geomatics and Geosciences
Volume 3 Issue 3, 2013 607
RESOURCESAT) LISS III (23.5m) resolution dated 25th
Dec 2010 and Jan 7 2011. Terrain
and morphometric information were used in estimating the sediment yield estimates.
4. Basin Description
4.1 Climate/weather
The river starts from the tropical wet climatic zone, traverse through the semi-arid / arid
zones before its joins the River Krishna. 80% of the annual rainfall is received from the
summer south-west monsoon (June-October) and 20% in winter north-east rainfall. There is a
wide variation. Summer temperature reaches more than 400C in May/April. The relative
humidity is about 30% during non-monsoon periods and 85% during monsoon periods. The
number of rainy days in a month during June to September ranges between 12-25days and the
amount of rainfall from 175 to 520 mm.
4.2 Slope
Digital elevation model generated from SRTM data, figure 2 exhibit the spatial distribution of
elevation contours which are grouped into <526m; 526-814m; 814-712m and 712-973m
above MSL. Minimum contour is 380m and the maximum is 981m above MSL. Majority of
the basin falls under the 380-526 and 526 – 814m elevation level. Figure 3 shows the slope
categorization derived from the SRTM 30m resolution data. The slopes were grouped (based
on the histogram) into 1-30; 3-8
0; 8-36
0; 36-67
0 and >67
0. Majority of the areas are in the 1-3
and 3-80 slope category on the downstream.
Figure 2: Digital elevation model – Ghataprabha River (SRTM data)
Prioritization of sub-basins of Ghataprabha River using morphometric parameters
Rajat Kumar Panda, Nagarajan R
International Journal of Geomatics and Geosciences
Volume 3 Issue 3, 2013 608
Figure 3: Distribution of slope in Ghataprabha River basin
4.3 Geomorphology
The geomorphic units that are observed include - non-dissected lowland plateau basalts (with
gently undulating topography, good thickness of weathered material), dissected high level
plateau basalt (highly undulating, low in weathering), buried pediment (in Kaladgi
sedimentary and Precambrian crystalline, gently undulating to flat areas), shallow buried
pediment in Kaladgi sedimentary (gently undulating weathering up to 2m, transitional zone
from valley bottom to upland) and hills and pediments (mostly in Kaladgi sedimentaries and
Granites)
4.4 Geology
Laterite occurs as capping over Deccan traps, Quartzites and Sandstones and the thickness
varies from 1 to 40m. Alluvium occurs along the major streams and river courses. Oldest
rocks are the Granite Gneisses and Migmatites of Peninsular Gneissic complex of Achaean
age. They are intruded by Pegmatite, quartz vein and basic dykes. Kaladgi series is
represented by Limestone, Dolomitic limestones, Shaley limestones, Shales, Quartzites,
Quartzitic sandstones and Siltstones. Lower Kaladgis consists of Conglomerates,
Orthoquartzites, Siltstone, Limestones and Dolomites. Solution cavities in limestones are also
observed. Badami series consists of Quartzites, Sandstones and Shales. Deccan traps are hard,
massive, jointed with spheroidal weathering at places. Thickness of individual flows varies
from 20 to 45m.
Prioritization of sub-basins of Ghataprabha River using morphometric parameters
Rajat Kumar Panda, Nagarajan R
International Journal of Geomatics and Geosciences
Volume 3 Issue 3, 2013 609
4.5 Soil cover
The soils in this region are of in-situ in nature. Shallow and light-textured soils are observed
on the ridges, ridge slopes, medium textured soils of moderate depth on gently sloping areas
and very deep, heavy textured soils on level to nearly level low lying areas along the
river/stream banks. Characteristics of soils that are formed on different lithological units are:
1. Basaltic landscapes – a). Shallow soils (25-30cm) reddish brown to gray, sandy loamy
to clayey in texture. Poor water holding capacity and well drained. The color ranges
from dark reddish brown to dark brown; gravelly sandy loam to clayey loam; well
drained with high permeability. b). moderately deep soils (45-90cm), dark grayish
brown to very dark grey, moderately drained. Deep to deep clayey loam, dark brown
to dark grayish brown soils on gently sloping land with normal relief. c). Very deep
black soils (100-150cm) occupy low lying areas, high water holding capacity and low
permeability, dark brown to very dark brown with clayey loam to clay, moderately
drained.
2. Limestone - very deep, very dark grey calcareous clayey soils with high water holding
capacity, low permeability; surface texture varies from silty clay to clay, moderately
drained and low permeability.
3. Sandstones - very deep (maximum depth of 15cm), very dark brown and slightly
calcareous clayey loamy soil, moderately drained and permeability, dark reddish
brown and clay loamy sandy to sandy clay loam.
4. Slates and phyllites - shallow (10-30cms), reddish brown clayey loam with low
calcareous, well drained, moderate permeability and susceptible to erosion.
5. Ferruginous quartzites - shallow to deep, reddish brown, gravelly sandy clayey loam,
well drained and high permeability, found on gently sloping to undulated topography
with excessive relief.
6. Gneissic rocks - deep to very deep (50-80cm), very dark grey calcareous clayey soils
which tend to crack during summer, high water holding capacity and low
permeability, soil texture is clay. Alluvial soils are restricted to drainage courses, very
deep dark brown to dark grayish brown silty, clay loams, well drained.
4.6 Cultivation
The main crops that are grown under rain fed conditions are Jowar, Bajra, Millet and Pulses.
The canal irrigation is prevalent in this region and helps in the cultivation of crops such as
Jowar, Wheat, Millets, Cotton, Safflower, Tobacco, Groundnut, Ginger, Linseed, Chillies,
Tur, Gram. Paddy, Sugarcane, Vegetables etc. Some of the lift irrigation schemes have been
functioning for the irrigation purposes. The surface water is not enough to meet the water
demand. In order to satisfy the needs of water demand there has been cases of over
exploitation of ground water causing the faster depletion which is a major concern for the
basin. Apart from this the siltation of surface water structures is quite common resulting in
the reduction of volume capacity of the basin. 1028.96 sq.km of reserved forest area (170
patches) falls within the basin and 18.49 sq km of water tank/ponds (240 numbers) are
present.
Prioritization of sub-basins of Ghataprabha River using morphometric parameters
Rajat Kumar Panda, Nagarajan R
International Journal of Geomatics and Geosciences
Volume 3 Issue 3, 2013 610
5. Drainage analysis
5.1 Stream order
Streams follow the path of least resistance and the stream patterns indicate the spatial
distribution of similar / dissimilar material characteristics. Strahlers’s stream ordering method
was followed. Figure 4 shows the spatial distribution of stream orders and sub-basins within
Ghataprabha River. The stream order reflects the ratio between the soil erodability and the
eroding force exerted on the soil surface. Stream order, reflects a change in the physical
characteristics of the soil. There are seventeen fifth order streams (Table 1 and 2). One
representative fifth order sub-basin from the each agro climate is selected for further studies.
Figure 4: Spatial distribution of micro watersheds, natural drainages and canal network –
Ghataprabha River
Bifurcation ratio (Rb) is defined as ratio of number of streams in Nth
order to N+1th
order
(Horton, 1945), representing the stages of a river development. In matured basin of uniform
relief, an orderly stream development, and more or less uniform bifurcation ratio could be
observed. It ranges between 3 and 5 for river basins where geologic structures do not distort
the drainage pattern. Potential flood damage increases as the value of bifurcation ratio
increases (McCullagh, 1978). Low values of bifurcation ratio are attributed to the relatively
gentle slope (low relative relief) and comparatively hard rock formations that restricted the
branching of the streams and higher bifurcation ratio implies structural control.
Prioritization of sub-basins of Ghataprabha River using morphometric parameters
Rajat Kumar Panda, Nagarajan R
International Journal of Geomatics and Geosciences
Volume 3 Issue 3, 2013 611
Table 1: Morphometric parameter of sub-basin in Ghataprabha river
S
ub
-bas
in
id Micro
watershed P (km)
Drainage Order Number
(Km)
Rb
m I II III IV V VI
1 Kaporodha
Halla 48.32 134 36 9 3 1 183
2063.1
2 3.43
2 Hiranyakeshi 242.67 1849 472 112 27 4 1 2465 185.27 4.61
3 Ambaole Nadi 52.51 152 41 7 1 201 233.71 5.52
4 Chitra Nadi 44.84 245 56 17 2 1 321 329.48 4.54
5 Tamraparni
River I 62.05 330 84 24 3 1 442 329.48 4.61
6 Chandvad Nadi 20.19 70 17 2 1 90 60.01 4.87
7 Tamraparni
River II 25.48 116 29 8 2 1 156 124.60 3.41
8 Patne Nadi 25.12 81 26 8 3 1 119 85.93 3.01
9 Tamraparni
River III 104.15 532 140 33 6 1 712 606.10 4.89
10 Hanihol Nadi 42.05 194 53 16 5 1 269 206.91 3.79
11 Markandeya
River 182.34 688 193 53 9 1 944 913.88 5.52
12 Bellary Nala 117.29 510 141 35 8 2 1 697 733.28 3.60
13 Gadhar Nadi 74.14 386 102 27 7 3 1 526 416.23 3.35
14 Hire halla 114.58 757 183 32 7 2 1 982 802.74 3.99
15 Kanvi halla
Hirehall 25.04 13 4 2 1 20 35.57 2.42
16 Gavankop Halla 67.93 399 107 27 7 2 1 543 451.34 3.41
17 Hirehalla 45.97 110 26 3 1 140 146.96 5.30
18 Mallapur Halla 43.56 127 29 5 1 162 157.16 5.06
19 Yadawad Halla 95.02 467 109 21 6 1 604 609.08 4.74
20 44.36 106 28 8 1 143 136.83 5.10
21 Lokapur Halla 56.68 227 45 11 4 1 288 251.61 3.97
22 Midchi Halla 61.04 232 48 10 2 1 293 275.31 4.16
23 Hirehalla
Kaladgi 65.06 277 68 17 4 2 1 369 352.94 3.26
24 30.67 48 11 2 1 62 60.64 3.95
25 24.72 41 10 2 1 54 38.86 3.70
26 28.34 53 12 2 1 68 67.47 4.14
27 51.85 85 24 8 1 118 117.15 4.85
28 Kakke Halla 42.20 123 34 5 2 1 165 158.33 3.73
29 25.50 37 10 2 1 50 51.10 3.57
30 36.34 56 14 3 1 74 76.22 3.89
31 27.72 45 11 3 1 60 65.66 3.59
32 22.73 36 10 4 1 51 53.72 3.37
33 20.01 39 12 4 1 56 51.37 3.42
34 43.08 113 25 6 2 1 147 173.94 3.42
35 39.13 85 20 7 3 1 116 133.81 3.11
36 43.08 98 28 8 2 1 137 133.08 3.25
37 35.95 107 22 6 1 136 123.37 4.84
38 48.73 150 34 6 2 1 193 210.72 3.77
39 36.11 108 25 6 1 140 130.06 4.83
40 29.45 46 15 3 1 65 63.42 3.69
41 35.72 31 9 2 1 43 58.44 3.31
42 40.25 73 17 5 2 1 98 100.48 3.05
43 51.51 126 36 7 2 1 172 154.31 3.54
44 66.00 223 48 13 3 1 288 296.19 3.92
Prioritization of sub-basins of Ghataprabha River using morphometric parameters
Rajat Kumar Panda, Nagarajan R
International Journal of Geomatics and Geosciences
Volume 3 Issue 3, 2013 612
45 127.86 505 115 25 7 1 653 683.66 4.89
46 30.72 58 16 4 1 79 72.65 3.88
47 16.54 33 7 2 1 43 30.37 3.40
48 34.74 125 32 7 1 165 124.32 5.16
49 53.23 232 55 13 1 301 234.41 7.15
50 44.20 96 27 6 1 130 106.01 4.69
51 30.90 76 20 4 1 101 95.59 4.27
52 Ghataprabha 749.50
Notation : Basin Perimeter (P), Cumulative drainage order , Cumulative drainage length
(km) Mean bifurcation ratio (Rbm), Basin Relief (Bh), Ruggedness Number (Rn)
Table 2: Drainage morphometric parameters – Ghataprabha River
Sub-
basin
Area A
(km2)
Stream
Frequenc
y Fs
Dd Rt Rc C Di If Cc Lg
1 93.68 1.95 22.02 3.79 0.50 0.05 0.09 43.02 0.52 0.02
2 957.75 2.57 0.19 10.16 0.20 5.17 13.30 0.50 0.25 2.58
3 104.83 1.92 2.23 3.83 0.48 0.45 0.86 4.27 0.50 0.22
4 81.70 3.93 4.03 7.16 0.51 0.25 0.97 15.84 0.55 0.12
5 112.85 3.92 2.92 7.12 0.37 0.34 1.34 11.43 0.55 0.17
6 18.56 4.85 3.23 4.46 0.57 0.31 1.50 15.68 1.09 0.15
7 33.70 4.63 3.70 6.12 0.65 0.27 1.25 17.11 0.76 0.14
8 33.00 3.61 2.60 4.74 0.66 0.38 1.38 9.39 0.76 0.19
9 275.96 2.58 2.20 6.84 0.32 0.46 1.17 5.67 0.38 0.23
10 81.80 3.29 2.53 6.40 0.58 0.40 1.30 8.32 0.51 0.20
11 574.39 1.64 1.59 5.18 0.22 0.63 1.03 2.61 0.32 0.31
12 462.03 1.51 1.59 5.94 0.42 0.63 0.95 2.39 0.25 0.32
13 233.16 2.26 1.79 7.09 0.53 0.56 1.26 4.03 0.32 0.28
14 417.31 2.35 1.92 8.57 0.40 0.52 1.22 4.53 0.27 0.26
15 23.68 0.84 1.50 0.80 0.47 0.67 0.56 1.27 1.06 0.33
16 215.83 2.52 2.09 7.99 0.59 0.48 1.20 5.26 0.31 0.24
17 91.61 1.53 1.60 3.05 0.54 0.62 0.95 2.45 0.50 0.31
18 82.22 1.97 1.91 3.72 0.54 0.52 1.03 3.77 0.53 0.26
19 354.00 1.71 1.72 6.36 0.49 0.58 0.99 2.94 0.27 0.29
20 85.13 1.68 1.61 3.22 0.54 0.62 1.05 2.70 0.52 0.31
21 132.15 2.18 1.90 5.08 0.52 0.53 1.14 4.15 0.43 0.26
22 134.56 2.18 2.05 4.80 0.45 0.49 1.06 4.45 0.45 0.24
23 213.01 1.73 1.66 5.67 0.63 0.60 1.05 2.87 0.31 0.30
24 34.34 1.81 1.77 2.02 0.46 0.57 1.02 3.19 0.89 0.28
25 21.44 2.52 1.81 2.18 0.44 0.55 1.39 4.57 1.15 0.28
26 43.23 1.57 1.56 2.40 0.68 0.64 1.01 2.46 0.66 0.32
27 93.02 1.27 1.26 2.28 0.43 0.79 1.01 1.60 0.56 0.40
28 96.85 1.70 1.63 3.91 0.68 0.61 1.04 2.78 0.44 0.31
29 28.37 1.76 1.80 1.96 0.55 0.56 0.98 3.17 0.90 0.28
30 47.25 1.57 1.61 2.04 0.45 0.62 0.97 2.53 0.77 0.31
31 34.96 1.72 1.88 2.16 0.57 0.53 0.91 3.22 0.79 0.27
32 32.10 1.59 1.67 2.24 0.78 0.60 0.95 2.66 0.71 0.30
33 24.89 2.25 2.06 2.80 0.78 0.48 1.09 4.65 0.80 0.24
34 78.62 1.87 2.21 3.41 0.53 0.45 0.85 4.14 0.55 0.23
35 82.50 1.41 1.62 2.96 0.68 0.62 0.87 2.28 0.47 0.31
36 75.91 1.80 1.75 3.18 0.51 0.57 1.03 3.16 0.57 0.29
37 64.30 2.12 1.92 3.78 0.63 0.52 1.10 4.06 0.56 0.26
38 116.97 1.65 1.80 3.96 0.62 0.56 0.92 2.97 0.42 0.28
39 62.08 2.26 2.09 3.88 0.60 0.48 1.08 4.72 0.58 0.24
40 44.81 1.45 1.42 2.21 0.65 0.71 1.02 2.05 0.66 0.35
41 64.87 0.66 0.90 1.20 0.64 1.11 0.74 0.60 0.55 0.55
Prioritization of sub-basins of Ghataprabha River using morphometric parameters
Rajat Kumar Panda, Nagarajan R
International Journal of Geomatics and Geosciences
Volume 3 Issue 3, 2013 613
42 74.59 1.31 1.35 2.43 0.58 0.74 0.98 1.77 0.54 0.37
43 99.39 1.73 1.55 3.34 0.47 0.64 1.11 2.69 0.52 0.32
44 163.89 1.76 1.81 4.36 0.47 0.55 0.97 3.18 0.40 0.28
45 440.04 1.48 1.55 5.11 0.34 0.64 0.96 2.31 0.29 0.32
46 40.68 1.94 1.79 2.57 0.54 0.56 1.09 3.47 0.76 0.28
47 13.14 3.27 2.31 2.60 0.60 0.43 1.42 7.57 1.26 0.22
48 50.80 3.25 2.45 4.75 0.53 0.41 1.33 7.95 0.68 0.20
49 95.69 3.15 2.45 5.65 0.42 0.41 1.28 7.71 0.56 0.20
50 55.61 2.34 1.91 2.94 0.36 0.52 1.23 4.46 0.79 0.26
51 44.01 2.29 2.17 3.27 0.58 0.46 1.06 4.98 0.70 0.23
52
Notation ; A - Area, Fs - Stream Frequency, Dd - Drainage Density , Rt - Texture Ratio , Ff- Form
Factor , Rc Circularity ratio , Re -Elongation Ratio ,
C - Constant of Channel Maintenance , Di - Drainage Intensity , If -Infiltration Number, Lg -
Length of Overland Flow
5.2 Areal parameters
Elongation ratio (Re) is the ratio of the diameter of a circle (D) of the same area as that of the
basin to the maximum length of the basin. Values near to 1.0 are typical of regions of very
low relief (Strahler, 1964). Circularity ratio (Rc) describes the nature of the basin. Basin
shape may be indexed by simple dimensionless ratios of the basic measurements of area,
perimeter and length. A perfectly circular basin has form factor 0.785. High “circularity
ratio” reflects rapid discharge from the basin and basins of low circularity ratio have high
channel storage and low sediment yield–delivery ratio. Low circularity ratio implies low
relief for the sub-basin and high circularity ratio reflects rapid discharge from the basin and
basins of low circularity ratio have high channel storage and low sediment yield–delivery
ratio (Singh, 1992). Smaller the value of form factor, more elongated will be the basin. Form
factor ratio (Ff) is the quantitative expression of drainage basin-outline. The circular shape
implies sharp peak flows that are difficult to manage than that of the elongated basin. A
perfectly circular basin has form factor 0.785 and smaller the value of form factor, more
elongated will be the basin. Stream frequency (Fs) is the ratio of total number of streams (Nt)
in a basin to the basin area. It is a measure of the closeness of the drainage. High drainage
frequency means indicate more surface Run off and low drainage frequency means more
percolation and hence has groundwater potential (Sreedevi et al., 2009), used as an indication
of hydrological characteristics of the basin for watershed management. As mean annual
runoff is directly related to total stream frequency and total basin area, and inversely related
to drainage density and runoff characteristics is reflected in hydrographs, the same can be
used to understand micro watershed prioritization for watershed management.
Drainage density (Dd) is the total length of streams in a catchment per unit area, is a measure
of the wetness of the basin. It is used for hydrological analysis, and for comparing the
behavior of the various catchments. It characterizes the catchments components such as soil,
lithology, land-use, slope, climate, vegetation and the catchments response to rainfall. Figure
5 shows the drainage density distribution of Ghataprabha River Higher drainage density is
found where impermeable rocks are found and that implies rapid runoff, which increases the
peak of the hydrograph. It varies between 22.02 and 0.19. Drainage density is quite high in
the basin 1 and 4 depicting the less permeable nature of material present in the area and high
runoff and greater slope and basin 41 and 2 has minimum drainage density. The inverse of
drainage density is termed as “constant of channel maintenance”. It depends on the basin
relative relief, lithology, climate, etc and decreases with increasing erodibility (Schumm,
1956). It varies between 0.05 and 3.17. Higher values suggest more area is required to
Prioritization of sub-basins of Ghataprabha River using morphometric parameters
Rajat Kumar Panda, Nagarajan R
International Journal of Geomatics and Geosciences
Volume 3 Issue 3, 2013 614
produce surface flow which implies that part of water may get lost by evaporation,
percolation etc.; lower value indicates less chances of percolation/infiltration and hence more
surface runoff.
5.3 Relief parameters
The relief parameter helps in understanding the landscape development and erosion
characteristics of a basin. If the basin relief is exposed up of steep slope, then this will lead to
faster surface runoff resulting less infiltration to the ground. Basin relief and Ruggedness
number have counted for the morphometric analysis. The basin relief is measured with the
help of SRTM (30m) data. Bain relief is the difference from highest elevation to lowest
elevation. Ruggedness number tells about how an area is susceptible to erosional activities.
Higher the Ruggedness number greater is the proneness to erosion. Dissection index is the
ratio between the relative relief and absolute relief of the basin which always varies between
zero (complete absence of dissection) and one (extreme case, vertical cliff at sea shore).
Landscape dissection is one of the influencing factors of drainage density (Montgomery and
Dietrich, 1994).
Figure 5 : Distribution of drainage density
Semi-arid regions receive sporadic events of rainfall. It could be harvested for immediately
drinking water purposes. It is pertinent to identify sub-basins that do not have any storage
facilities (including tanks/reservoirs). One among the strategies that are used in the river
basin management is to identify potential sub- basins for small or medium storage
Prioritization of sub-basins of Ghataprabha River using morphometric parameters
Rajat Kumar Panda, Nagarajan R
International Journal of Geomatics and Geosciences
Volume 3 Issue 3, 2013 615
facilities(mostly for drinking water and rain fed agriculture support), irrespective of existing
functional or non-functional (degraded ones), whose storage performance can be improved.
It is assumed that there is no constraint on sediment yield, in addition to surface run-off,
direct rainfall could be harvested, by the proposed storages, constructed, maintained and
managed by the people from the villages for their drinking water purposes. Areal and linear
morphometric parameters derived for individual sub-basins were grouped into five categories
representing the suitability – 1 (minimum) and 5 (maximum).
Table 3: Significance of parameters in Sub-basin prioritization for surface water storage
development
Class Tanks A Elevation mts
(MSL) Fs Dd Rf C Lg If
1 Nil 0-50 >900 >4 >4 < 2 <0.1 <0.1 > 10
2 1 – 5 50-100 700-900 3-4 3-4 2-4 0.1-
0.4
0.1-
0.2
5-10
3 5 – 10 100-
300
600-700 2-3 2-3 4-6 0.4-
0.6
0.2-
0.3
3-5
4 10 –30 300-
900
500-600 1-2 1-2 6-8 0.6-
1.0
0.3-
0.6
1-3
5 >30 >900 <500 <1 <1 > 8 > 1 >1 <1
The cumulative suitability of the sub-basin having minimum or no tanks were assessed in
terms of area, drainage frequency and density, texture, infiltration, length of flow and
elevation and prioritized (Table 3). It is essential to have one (minimum) storage facility in
sub-basins to meet the demands. There are 15 sub-basins where there is no tanks, followed by
28,3,3 and 2 sub-basins where in number of tanks available within the basin 1-5, 5-10, 10-30
and >30 tanks respectively. The preferred need based basins are also highlighted. Information
on population and agriculture lands within the sub-basin could further improve the precision
of this approach.
5.4 Conclusion
SRTM data derived elevations, slope, substantiated with the topographic sheet information
were integrated with the use of GIS. Terrain and Morphometric parameters were analyzed on
sub-basin level in prioritizing them for development of surface water storage infrastructure.
Suitability of the parameters was derived from the cumulative contribution of the derived
parameters.
1. 15 and 28 sub-basins that do not have tanks and less than 3 tanks respectively, within
their periphery. Population and agriculture demand information could further used for
prioritization.
2. Micro-level information on soil, agriculture / forest cover and potential users
(population and Agriculture) need to be analyzed, in improving the precision of this
method. In catchment areas, site based investigation is recommended.
Acknowledgement
The authors wish to express the acknowledgement for the help, support and encouragement
received from Head, Center of Studies in Resources Engineering, Indian Institute of
Technology, Bombay.
Prioritization of sub-basins of Ghataprabha River using morphometric parameters
Rajat Kumar Panda, Nagarajan R
International Journal of Geomatics and Geosciences
Volume 3 Issue 3, 2013 616
6. References
1. Biggs, T., Gaur, A., Scott, C., Thenkabail, P., Gangadhara Rao, P., Gumma, M.,
Acharya, S., and Turral, H., (2007), Closing of the Krishna Basin: irrigation, stream
flow depletion and macro scale hydrology. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water
Management Institute (IWMI), Research Report 111, pp 38-39.
2. Biswas, S., Sudhakar, S. and Desai, V. R., (1999), Prioritization of sub-watersheds
based on morphometric analysis of drainage basin: A Remote Sensing and GIS
approach, Journal of Indian Society of Remote Sensing, 27(3), pp 155-166.
3. Esper, A.M.Y., (2008), Morphometric analysis of Colanguil river basin and flash
flood hazard, San Juan Argentina, Environmental Geology 55, pp107–111.
4. Horton, R.E., (1945), Erosional development of streams and their drainage basins, a
hydro-physical approach to quantitative morphology, Geological Society of America
Bulletin 56(3), pp 275–370.
5. McCullagh, Patrick, (1978), Modern Concepts in Geomorphology, Oxford University
Press, University of Michigan.
6. Miller, V. C., (1953), A quantitative geomorphic study of drainage basin
characteristics in the clinch mountain area, Technical report 3, Department of
Geology, Columbia University.
7. Nookaratnam, K., Srivastava, Y.K., Venkateswarao, V., Amminedu, E., and Murthy,
K.S.R., (2005), Check dam positioning by prioritization of micro-watersheds using
SYI model and morphometric analysis — remote sensing and GIS perspective,
Journal of the Indian Society of Remote Sensing 33 (1), pp25–38.
8. Schumm, S.A., (1956), Evolution of drainage systems and slopes in badlands at Perth,
Amboy, New Jersey, Geological Society of America Bulletin, 67, pp597–646.
9. Singh, S., (1992), Quantitative geomorphology of the drainage basin, In: Chouhan,
T.S., Joshi, K.N. (Eds.), Readings on Remote Sensing Applications, Scientific
publishers, Jodhpur. ISBN: 81-7233-040-5.
10. Snow, J.W., (1976), In: Schwerdtfeger, W. (Ed.), The climate of northern South
America: Colombia Climates of South and Central America, Elsevier Scientific
Publishing Company, Amsterdam, pp 358-379.
11. Sreedevi, P.D., Subrahmanyam, K., and Ahmed, S., (2004), The significance of
morphometric analysis for obtaining groundwater potential zones in a structurally
controlled terrain, Environmental Geology 47, pp412–420.
12. Sreedevi, P.D., Owais, S., Khan, H.H., and Ahmed, S., (2009), Morphometric analysis
of a watershed of South India using SRTM data and GIS, Journal of Geological
Society of India, 73, pp 543-552.
Prioritization of sub-basins of Ghataprabha River using morphometric parameters
Rajat Kumar Panda, Nagarajan R
International Journal of Geomatics and Geosciences
Volume 3 Issue 3, 2013 617
13. Strahler, A., (1957), Quantitative analysis of watershed geomorphology, Transaction
AGU, 38, pp 913- 920.
14. Strahler, A.N., (1964), Quantitative geomorphology of drainage basins and channel
networks, in: Chow, V.R. (Ed.), Handbook of Applied hydrology, Mc-Graw-Hill,
New York, Chapter 4, pp 40-74.
15. Tejaswini N. Bhagwat, Amba Shetty and, V.S. Hegde (2011), Spatial variation in
drainage characteristics and Geomorphic Instantaneous Unit Hydrograph (GIUH);
implications for watershed management- A case study of the Varada River basin,
Northern Karnataka, Catena 87, pp 52-59.