Chennai: Australian groundwater management firm Sinclair Knight Merz (SKM) is in talks with the Institute of Remote Sensing and Centre for Water Resources, Anna University, in Chennai on partnering for a project to mapping underground aquifers in the southern state of Tamil Nadu.
“The focus will be on groundwater management,” said Dr Zafar Sadiq Mohamed Ghouse, an executive consultant with SKM. “Currently, the data on groundwater is isolated within the department. The focus will be on inter-department cooperation to share the data. Once it is done, then it will be uploaded in the web. This will generate awareness among the end users and public about their groundwater resources.”
An official report released last year showed that 451 water samples taken from various parts of Tamil Nadu had high levels of chloride, fluoride and nitrates.
In addition, the state has been facing shortages of water for agriculture. It is locked in a dispute with neighboring Karnataka state over use of water from the Cauvery River.
Several decisions requiring further releases from Karnataka have been handed down, as the growing season has progressed without sufficient rains.
Source: OOSKA News
