Thesis: ‘Hydrogeochemistry of Cauvery Delta with special reference to water quality status PhD Coursework subjects: Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) & Groundwater Hydrology

Thesis: ‘Geology, petrology and radiometric survey of rocks around Sirwal-Madnal and Doranahalli, Yadgir district, Karnataka, India

I was working in a Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India (GoI) funded project titled ‘Groundwater assessment of regional hydrological system using space-borne gravity observation’ which aimed to study the groundwater reserve in the Godavari and Ganga river basins of India in sub-basin scale using satellite data and validate it using ground data. Main duties and responsibilities; o Processing satellite data like GRACE for Total Water Storage (TWS) and Groundwater Storage (GWS) o Processing Hydro metrological data: in situ precipitation data, satellite-based GPM-IMERG precipitation, GLDAS soil moisture, runoff, plant canopy, evapotranspiration and MODIS evapotranspiration data o Collation, analysis and interpretation of rainfall, streamflow and groundwater level data o Estimation of groundwater reserve using in situ data such as groundwater level, specific yield and aquifer thickness o Carry out a literature review to understand the hydrogeological characteristics of aquifers o Uploading cleaned data (Spatial & in situ) to the Modflow groundwater model o Preparation of reports, presentations and manuscripts

I worked on a project titled ‘Formulation of GIS-based master plan under Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) for Thrissur Corporation and Guruvayoor Municipality’ which aimed to prepare a GIS and land use map. Main duties and responsibilities; o Preparation of Landuse and Landcover map on the cadastral scale using ground truth data o Updating the utilities in the urban area in the cadastral scale GIS map based on ground truth data

My PhD work entitled ‘Hydrogeochemistry of Cauvery delta with special reference to water quality status’ focused on studying the rainfall and its characteristics, streamflow, groundwater level and hydrogeochemical data including isotope data to understand the hydrology, hydrogeochemical and anthropogenic processes that cause deterioration of groundwater quality in shallow aquifers of Cauvery delta, India. As part of my thesis, I carried out the following analysis: o Rainfall trend analysis, Climate change indices, seasonality index and departure analysis o Streamflow analysis using Indicators of Hydrologic Alteration (IHA) and baseflow estimation o Groundwater level trend analysis and groundwater flow direction (hydraulic gradient) calculation o Studying the seasonal variation of drinking and irrigation water quality from a field water sample collected o Seawater intrusion study using hydrogeochemical and environmental isotope data As JRF and SRF in the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), the Government of India funded a project titled ‘Decision support system (DSS) for the management of coastal wetlands – a case study of Point Calimere in Tamilnadu, India’. Main duties and responsibilities: o Sediment and water sample collection from the Muthupet estuary to understand salinity intrusion and sediment deposition o Stream flow measurement using the current meter in the Muthupet estuary o Conduct field pumping test to understand aquifer properties o Carryout detailed literature review to understand aquifer geometry

I worked in the Environmental Science division of the Centre for Water Resources Development and Management (CWRDM), my work involved assessing the impact of rooftop rainwater harvesting and artificial ground recharge initiatives in selected watersheds of Thrissur District, Kerala, India. Main duties and responsibilities; o Seasonal groundwater sampling, and laboratory analysis to determine Water Quality o Seasonal groundwater level and Streamflow data measurement o Recharge estimation on a watershed basis o Report preparation

Mazhapolima Monitoring and Coordination Unit (MMCU), is a community-based rooftop rainwater harvesting and well recharge programme, initiated by the Thrissur district administration. Main duties and responsibilities; o Groundwater sampling, analysis and interpretation of GW quality data o Groundwater level measurement o Capacity building and training for the implementation of rainwater harvesting and recharge structures o Documentation of case studies