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Deep Drilling for Groundwater in Bengaluru, India: A Case Study on the City’s Over-Exploited Hard-Rock Aquifer System

Author

Listed:
  • Tejas Kulkarni

    (Hydrology and Substance Balance, University of Kassel, 34125 Kassel, Germany
    Kiran Consultants, Bengaluru 560010, Karnataka, India)

  • Matthias Gassmann

    (Hydrology and Substance Balance, University of Kassel, 34125 Kassel, Germany)

  • C. M. Kulkarni

    (Kiran Consultants, Bengaluru 560010, Karnataka, India)

  • Vijayalaxmi Khed

    (Department of Agricultural Economics, University of Agricultural Sciences, Bengaluru—UASB, Bengaluru 560065, Karnataka, India)

  • Andreas Buerkert

    (Organic Plant Production and Agroecosystems Research in the Tropics and Subtropics—OPATS, University of Kassel, 37213 Witzenhausen, Germany)

Abstract

Over-exploitation of groundwater in India’s fastest-growing metropolis, Bengaluru, has resulted in wells being bored to unprecedented depths in a crystalline-rock aquifer. However, key questions about sustainability of this extraction process remain unaddressed due to the complexity of monitoring. Using primary surveys, this study looks at the spatio-temporal evolution of the wells on a city scale, finding that catchments with deficient water infrastructure have deeper wells. To maintain yields, well with depths >400 m are drilled, especially since 2000, leading to unsustainable groundwater extraction. Camera inspections in 54 wells at Electronic City in 2016 and 2017 revealed that water levels in the majority of the wells remained lower at depths <100 m, although some wells had deeper water levels at depths >250 m. Analysis of δ 18 O and δ 2 H signatures of groundwater samples at all depths followed the local meteoric water line indicating recent recharge, implying that drilling deeper only increases the borehole volume and does not tap into newer water sources. Water levels in deeper wells may stabilize at lower depths, are subject to high spatial variability, density of drilling, and high connectivity in upper zones. Given the interconnectedness between shallow and deeper aquifers, our research shows that increasing borewell depths could be a good indicator for falling aquifer water levels. This study fills an important gap in peri-urban, intermediate-scale aquifer conceptualizations across different land uses and provides further evidence for the difficulties of reliable groundwater monitoring in the over-exploited hard-rock aquifers of Bengaluru city.

Suggested Citation

  • Tejas Kulkarni & Matthias Gassmann & C. M. Kulkarni & Vijayalaxmi Khed & Andreas Buerkert, 2021. "Deep Drilling for Groundwater in Bengaluru, India: A Case Study on the City’s Over-Exploited Hard-Rock Aquifer System," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-20, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:21:p:12149-:d:671484
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Vanesa Castán Broto & H.S. Sudhira & Hita Unnikrishnan, 2021. "WALK THE PIPELINE: Urban Infrastructure Landscapes in Bengaluru's Long Twentieth Century," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 45(4), pages 696-715, July.
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