Hydrological impact assessment of SWC measures in Ralegaon Siddhi model watershed

Ralegaon Siddhi watershed is one of the well-known models of watershed management in India. The watershed development programmes (WDPs) via soil and water conservation (SWC) activities have not only enhanced the socio-economic status, but also improved the hydrological regimes of the watershed. Therefore, the present study has been carried out to assess the impact of these SWC activities on hydrological parameters, such as land use, surface runoff and soil loss. The integrated Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographical Information System (GIS) based SCS-CN/GIS and USLE/GIS methodologies were employed for change detection during pre-treatment and post-treatment periods of watershed in land use/land cover (LULC), and further estimation of surface runoff and soil loss. The alteration in land use pattern due to land management activities under Comprehensive Watershed Development Program (COWEDP) has improved the hydrological soil cover complexes of the watershed and resulted into reductions in surface runoff from 45 to 17% and the average rate of soil loss from 8.97 to 2.00t hayr. The study depicted the importance of SWC activities in WDP and elucidated the integrated approach of RS and GIS as an impact assessment tool.