Changing landuse of Basna Nala basin and its impact on biodiversity in Phaphamau Environs

All over the world urbanization and rurbanization are the twin processes bringing about drastic physical and cultural landscape alterations around the cities. This is also causing degradation in terrestrial and aquatic biodiversity. Drainage pattern, drainage mode and waterscape are also getting changed.

Basna drain is a tributary of holy river Ganga in the suburb of Phaphamau, Allahabad. The drain extends from 25° 30 ’N to 25° 40 ’N latitude and 81° 45 ’E to 81° 55 ’E longitude in Holagarh and Soraon Blocks of Soraon Tehsil, Allahabad district. It originates from a big pond near Holagarh. Basna drain passes through Phaphamau suburban area with 25 Kilometer length and 15.5 meter average width. The average depth of the drain is 2.97 meter and area of catchment of the drain is 1273.8 hectare in Phaphamau suburban region, which spreads over Malak Chaturi, Malakiya, Mohanganj, Singarpur, Gaddopur, Mata Din Ka Pura, Prasiddh Ka Pura, Shantipuram, Phaphamau Bazaar and Ganga Nagar. During October month average flow of the Basna drain was measured at three sites. At site no-1 flow was 0.56 meter/second near Ganganagar, at site no-2 flow was 0.80 meter/second near Mohanganj and at site no-3 flow was 0.65 meter/second near Malak Chaturi. This study in context with urbanization is of paramount significance environmentally. But the over-exploitation of the natural resources like biotic, pedogenic and land and water of the drain's basin area has led to a number of environmental problems in the region. At the same time land use change supplemented by various human activities has led to extinction of many plant and animal habitats and species. In this context the relevance of biodiversity for human survival is becoming a major environmental issue.

The rapid rate of urbanization exhibits that in coming days the Basna drain will shrink and be reduced into a polluted urban nala and the Basna nala will be losing all its aquatic biodiversity i.e. fish, frog and other phyto and zooplanktons which are today an integral part of the trunk stream Ganga.

Hence in place of uncontrolled rapid growth of squatter settlement in Phaphamau suburban area a proper land use and resource planning should be formulated and implemented by government machinery in collaboration with local people. Local people of the study-area should be imparted environmental education and awakened to keep the environment and biodiversity of the study-area healthy for the coming generation.