HYDROCHEMICAL APPRAISAL OF GROUND WATER QUALITY AND ITS WATER QUALITY INDEX: A CASE STUDY IN MATHURA DISTRICT, INDIA

This study focuses on groundwater quality analysis using analytical and geographical information system (GIS) for prospecting suitable groundwater sites in Mathura district for drinking and irrigation purposes. Physio-chemical parameters of major ions for the 65 locations of water samples collected from March 2016 through September 2016 have been experimentally determined and evaluated by comparing their values with World Health Organization (WHO), Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) and Water Quality Association (WQA). Results show that Total Dissolved Solids (TDS), Total Hardness(TH), Mg2+ and Cl- are found to be higher than (>50%) the permissible limit when compared with the guidelines of the WHO, BIS and WQA. The piper trilinear diagram shows the majority of the groundwater samples are Na-K type. The spatial distribution of various physio-chemical parameters were also plotted in the GIS environment to determine suitable groundwater prospecting sites for drinking and irrigation. The resultant integrated water quality map shows that except for some parts of the north-west Mathura and Southern region, water quality in the Mathura district is largely unsuitable for drinking and irrigation purpose. Water quality index shows that the maximum area of the Mathura district is unsuitable for drinking.