Stressed aquifers, water quality deteriorations and the critical role of lateral flows; Insights from India

Stressed aquifers, water quality deteriorations and the critical role of lateral flows; Insights from India | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Stressed aquifers, water quality deteriorations and the critical role of lateral flows; Insights from India Sudarsan Sahu, Chandan Kumar Singh This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7759828/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 4 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract In last a few decades, intensive groundwater extraction for irrigation in India has severely depleted aquifers at several stretches of the country. This study evaluates the impacts of over-pumping on groundwater quality by integrating depth-to-water levels (DTWs) and water quality with stage of groundwater extraction (SoGE) and annual groundwater recharge (GWR) from Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) assessments. About 75% of deeper DTWs (>20 m bgl) and 42-60% of poor-quality samples (exceeding BIS limits) occur in over-exploited, critical, or semi-critical (OCS) zones. Rising SoGE corresponds with falling DTWs, higher pH, and declining water quality, with stronger negative pH-GWR correlations in alluvium (ALV) (r = -0.50) than in hard-rock (HR) aquifers (r = -0.35). Between SoGE ranges of ~60-140% (ALV) and ~50-160% (HR), solutes such as Na, Cl, SO₄, NO₃, HCO₃, F, and TDS increase in groundwater with stronger revelation in HR. Fluoride and nitrate enrichment, linked to irrigation returns, peaks within these ranges but reduces beyond critical thresholds. While most states show rising TDS with increasing SoGE, some (e.g., Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Tamil Nadu) exhibit declining TDS at higher exploitation levels, sustained by lateral groundwater flows from uplands, foothills, and river valleys, often through palaeochannels. These flows help buffer aquifers against quality deterioration, highlighting their critical role in groundwater management under stress. Ground water water quality parameters aquifer exploitation depth to water level India Full Text Supplementary Files HIGHLIGHTS.docx Graphicalabstract.jpg Supplementarymaterial.pdf Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Reviewers agreed at journal 05 Feb, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 02 Oct, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 02 Oct, 2025 First submitted to journal 01 Oct, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7759828","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":523942390,"identity":"6fa923f7-52a8-40ad-a213-2972f4963cb0","order_by":0,"name":"Sudarsan 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