Table 2: Aerial coverage of mapped hydrogeomorphic units and their ground water prospects in Panchkula district
| Hydrgeo morphic Unit | Map symbol | Description | Groundwater prospect | Area( sq km) | %Area |
| A. FLUVIAL ORIGIN |
| Channel Bar | CB | Small alluvial patch forming part of the riverbed. | Excellent | 1.82 | 0.20 |
| Valley fill shallow | VFS | Narrow depressions filled with alluvial and colluvial matter of shallow depth (<10m) | Good | 8.46 | 0.95 |
| Flood Plain Deep | FPD | Narrow flat areas along the rivers formed of recent sediments (> 20m thickness) | Excellent | 29.58 | 3.31 |
| Flood Plain Deep Ravenous | FPD-R | Highly dissected flood plain deep | Good | 0.11 | 0.01 |
| Flood plain Shallow | FPS | Narrow flat areas along the rivers formed of recent sediments (< 10 m depth) | Very Good | 29.42 | 3.29 |
| Flood plain shallow ravenous | FPS-R | Highly dissected Flood plain Shallow | Good | 0.08 | 0.01 |
| Alluvial plain deep | APD | Very gently sloping plain of alluvial sediments >20m thickness occupying southern part of the district | Very Good | 115.72 | 12.97 |
| Alluvial plain deep Ravenous | APD- R | Highly dissected Alluvial plain deep | Good | 14.04 | 1.57 |
| Alluvial plain shallow | APS | Very gently sloping plain of alluvial sediment < 10m thickness occupying areas between APD and piedmont. | Good | 67.13 | 7.52 |
| Alluvial plain shallow Ravenous | APS-R | Highly dissected Alluvial plain shallow | Moderate | 9.31 | 1.04 |
| B. DENUDATIONAL ORIGIN |
| Piedmont Alluvial Deeply Buried | PDD | Moderately sloping zone of colluvial and alluvial sediments at the foot of the hills > 20m thickness. | Moderate | 55.51 | 6.22 |
| Piedmont Alluvial Deeply Buried-Ravenous | PDD-R | Highly dissected deeply buried Piedmont Alluvial | Poor | 1.08 | 0.12 |
| Piedmont Alluvial Shallow Buried | PDS | Moderately sloping zone of colluvial and alluvial sediments at the foot of the hills > 20m thickness. | Moderate | 63.25 | 7.08 |
| Interrmon- tane Valley | IV | Narrow linear valley of river Sirsa having widths of 2.5 to 7.5 km, occupied by unconsolidated clastic sediments. | Very good | 78.84 | 8.83 |
| Denudational Hill | DH | Weathered, eroded & Denuded Hills generally made of boulders, sandstone showing rounded crests and attaining relief of about 300m. | Poor | 188.41 | 21.09 |
| C. STRUCTURAL ORIGIN |
| Structure Hill | SH | High rising NW-SE trending hills, with prominent joints, occupying the NE part. | Poor – Nil | 185.80 | 20.80 |
| Water Bodies (Rivers, Ponds) | 44.55 | 4.99 |
| Total | 893 | 100 |
Table 3: Depth to water table in Panchkula district
| Depth Range (meters) | Area (sq. km) | % of total district area |
| 3 – 10 | 286.84 | 32.12 |
| 10 – 20 | 271.747 | 30.43 |
| 20 – 30 | 20.533 | 2.30 |
| Out crop area | 313.984 | 35.15 |
| Total | 893 | 100 |
Table 4: Ground water prospect zones in Panchkula district
| Ground water Prospect zones | Area(sq. km) | % of total district area |
| Excellent to Very Good | 75.95 | 8.50 |
| Very Good to Good | 223.97 | 25.08 |
| Good to Moderate | 89.82 | 10.06 |
| Moderate to Poor | 128.70 | 14.34 |
| Poor to Nil | 375.29 | 42.02 |
| Total | 893.10 | 100.00 |
Groundwater Prospects
The groundwater in the district occurs under the unconfined water table conditions in the upper aquifers which are mainly formed of alluvium and semi-consolidated formations. In the deeper aquifer zones where the water holding formations are shale, silt and clay the ground water occurs in semi-confined to confined conditions. The depth of water level in the phreatic aquifer varies from 8.3 to 30.1 m below ground level (Table-3). In most part of the district the general slope of water table conforms to the topography of the area. Generally the phreatic aquifers within depth of 50m below ground level provide yields between 100 to 500 lpm. The quality of groundwater is good.
Hydrogeomorphological mapping reveals that excellent ground water prospect area in the Panchkula district is only 8.5% (Table-4).
Conclusion
The Panchkula district exhibits diverse hydrogeomorphological conditions due to its location, topography and geology. The main hydrogeomorphic units found are alluvial plain, flood plain, denudational hill, piedmont zone, intermontane valley and structural hill. Excellent to good ground water prospect zones cover about 40% area of the district, whereas rests of the area constituted by denudational and structural hills has moderate to poor and nil prospects.
The groundwater in the districts occurs under unconfined water table conditions in the upper aquifers and semi-confined to confined conditions in the deeper aquifer zones. The level of development of groundwater is still to reach its optimum level. The potential aquifers can be exploited with shallow and deep tube wells. The Piedmont zone should be considered for further exploitation of groundwater through deeper tube wells.
It is to be noted that Raipur Rani and Barwala blocks in Panchkula district show maximum exploitation of groundwater, hence its further exploitation of groundwater in these two blocks should be restricted and possibilities of recharging aquifer zones should be explored.
References
- Drury, S.A. (1987). Image interpretation in geology. Allen and Unwin Pub., London.
- Hydrogeology and ground water resource potential of Panchkula district (1998), CGWB, NWR-Chandigarh.
- National Rural Drinking Water Mission methodology manual for preparation of ground water prospective zone maps, NRSA, Department of Space, Hyderabad, 1999.
- Tood D.K. (1980), Ground Water Hydrology, John Wiley and Sons, New York.