Study of Groundwater Stress in Northwest India using Geospatial tools

This study investigated the groundwater status in northwestern India (NWI) for the period 2002-2022. Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) total water storage and Global Land Data Assimilation System (GLDAS) products - soil moisture and plant canopy surface water were used to estimate groundwater storage. In situ well data were collected for the states of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh. Ordinary kriging was used to interpolate the well data spatially at a 0.5 degree grid. The interpolated groundwater levels were used to interpret the groundwater status in NWI. The pixelwise trend map for the study area showed that groundwater storage has been declining significantly in NWI, with the most pronounced decline in Punjab and Haryana. The decline in groundwater levels is a result of excessive groundwater extraction for irrigation and other uses. The study provides valuable information on the groundwater status in North-Western India and can be used to inform policies and interventions to mitigate the groundwater crisis in the region..