Morphometric analysis and watershed development prioritization of Hiranyakeshi Basin in Maharashtra, India

Land, water and soil are limited natural resources and their wide utilization with increasing population is a major area of concern. To mitigate the demand and supply gap between resources and ever increasing demand, it is of prime importance to conserve the natural resources with proper prioritization for its sustainable development. Morphometric analysis of a watershed provides a quantitative description of a drainage system. It is an important aspect of the watershed characterization. The present study aims to assess the morphometric characteristics of Hiranyakeshi basin to prioritize the sub-watersheds for its planning and development. The study region comprises 1078 km² area and lies between 15° 56’ N to 16° 21’ N latitude and 74° 00’ E to 74° 35’ E longitude in Ajra and Gadhinglaj tahsils of southern Maharashtra. The entire study region is divided into 19 sub-watersheds named as H-1 to H-19 by using ARCSWAT software. Various morphometric characteristics of the Hiranyakeshi basin have been assessed by applying GIS techniques and using SRTM data. Strahler's, Horton's and Schumm's methods have been employed to assess the fluvial characteristics of the study region. Each morphometric characteristic is considered as a single parameter and knowledge based weightage has been assigned by considering its role in soil erosion. The compound parameter values are calculated and the sub-watershed with lowest compound weight is given highest priority. The analysis reveals that H-1, H-2, H-3, H-5 and H-13 subbasins should be given high priority for watershed development as they are much more susceptible to soil erosion.