Abstract
The socio-economic development in Mainland Gujarat has been river centric. The physical environment of these rivers relates to the landscape response to climate change and tectonic forcing. There is a great diversity in the land and water resources of the region; on the one hand, where there is excess run-off in the rivers such as Narmada and Tapi, the population in the Sabarmati basin faces water scarcity. The agricultural growth in these basins has been exceptionally high; however, unplanned irrigation activities have put the surface as well as the groundwater resources under severe stress. The industrial effluents discharged into the main rivers or the tributaries further aggravate these problems. Soil and bank erosion though common are still up to a level where conservation methods can be applied. Thus, the socio-economic relevance of these river basins is very high and a large potential exists to further improve the conditions of water supply, agriculture, soil erosion and pollution. Each geomorphic unit has a unique resource potential, and a scientific evaluation of the potential is necessary for the socio-economic development of the region.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bhandari S, Maurya DM, Chamyal LS (2005) Late Pleistocene alluvial plain sedimentation in Lower Narmada valley, Western India: Palaeoenvironmental implications. J Asian Earth Sci 24:433–444
Central Water Commission (CWC) (2010) ‘Water and Related Statistics’, Government of India. Available at http://cwc.gov.in/main/downloads/
Chamyal LS, Maurya DM, Bhandari S, Rachna R (2002) Late Quaternary geomorphic evolution of the Lower Narmada valley, western India: implications for neotectonic activity along the Narmada-Son Fault. Geomorphology 46:177–202
Gupta A, Kale VS, Rajguru SN (1999) The Narmada river, India: through space and time. In: Miller AJ, Gupta A (eds) Varieties of fluvial form. Wiley, Chichester, pp 113–341
International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage (ICID) (2005) Water Resources assessment of Sabarmati river basin, India. A report by Country Policy Support Programme, New Delhi, p 80
Joshi PN, Maurya DM, Chamyal LS (2013) Morphotectonic segmentation and spatial variability of neotectonic activity along the Narmada-Son Fault, Western India: remote sensing and GIS analysis. Geomorphology 180:292–306
Kale VS, Hire PS (2004) Effectiveness of large monsoon floods on the Tapi river, India: role of channel geometry and hydrologic regime. Geomorphology 57:275–291
Kale VS, Ely LL, Enzel Y, Baker VR (1994) Geomorphic and hydrologic aspects of monsoon floods on the Narmada and Tapi rivers in central India. Geomorphology 10:157–168
Kale VS, Mishra S, Baker VR (2003) Sedimentary records of palaeofloods in the bedrock gorges of the Tapi and Narmada rivers, central India. Curr Sci 84:1072–1079
Maurya DM, RACHNA R, CHAMYAL LS (2000) History of tectonic evolution of Gujarat Alluvial Plains, Western India during Quaternary: a review. J Geol Soc India 55:343–366
Merh SS, Chamyal LS (1997) The Quaternary geology of Gujarat alluvial plains. Indian National Science Academy, New Delhi 98 p
Raj R, Maurya DM, Chamyal LS (1999) Tectonic geomorphology of the Mahi river basin, Western India. J Geol Soc India 54:387–398
Rajaguru S, Gupta A, Kale V, Ganjoo R, Ely L, Enzel Y, Baker VR (1995) Channel form and processes of the flood-dominated Narmada river, India. Earth Surf Process Landf 20:407–421
Sridhar A (2007) A mid-late Holocene flood record from the alluvial reach of the Mahi river, western India. Catena 70:330–339
Sridhar A, Chamyal LS (2010) Sediment records as archives of the Late Pleistocene-Holocene hydrological change in the alluvial Narmada river basin, western India. Proc Geol Assoc (PGA) 121:195–202
Sridhar A, Chamyal LS (2014) Geomorphology of North Western India (Marusthali to Narmada Valley ending up with Vindhyan Scraplands) with special reference to surface waters. Spec Publ Geol Soc India 3:35–42
Sridhar V, Chamyal LS, Merh SS (1994) North Gujarat rivers: remnants of a super fluvial system. J Geol Soc India 44:427–434
Sridhar A, Chamyal LS, Patel M (2014) Palaeoflood record of high magnitude events during historical time in the Sabarmati river, Gujarat. Curr Sci 107:675–679
Srivastava P, Juyal N, Singhvi AK, Wasson RJ, Bateman MD (2001) Luminescence chronology of river adjustment and incision of Quaternary sediments in the alluvial plains of the Sabarmati river, North Gujarat, India. Geomorphology 36:217–229
Acknowledgement
We thank Prof. Dhruvsen Singh of the Department of Geology, University of Lucknow, for inviting us to write this chapter.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2018 Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Sridhar, A., Chamyal, L.S. (2018). Rivers of Mainland Gujarat: Physical Environment and Socio-economic Perspectives. In: Singh, D. (eds) The Indian Rivers. Springer Hydrogeology. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-2984-4_33
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-2984-4_33
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore
Print ISBN: 978-981-10-2983-7
Online ISBN: 978-981-10-2984-4
eBook Packages: Earth and Environmental ScienceEarth and Environmental Science (R0)