014687   Rao K H V D;Shravya A;Rao V V;Dadhwal V K; Diwakar P G (National Remote Sensing Centre, Indian Space Research Organisation, Balanagar-500 037, Email: khvdurarao@yahoo.com) : Flash flood disaster threat to Indian rail bridges: a spatial simulation study of Machak river flood, Madhya Pradesh. Curr Sci 2017, 112(5), 1028-33.

The recent flood in Machak River, Madhya Pradesh, India is a distinctive paradigm of flash floods that washed off rail tracks and killed a number of passengers besides incredible damage to Indian Railways and to the surrounding villages. This shows the vulnerability of bridges/culverts to flash floods in the country. Flash floods devastated the Machak River during the midnight of 4 August 2015 due to heavy rainfall in the catchment. The duration of flooding was small with less lead-time. Narrow river sections could not accommodate the peak discharge causing severe flooding in floodplains. Hydrological and hydro dynamic simulation was studied in the Machak River using space-based inputs to quantify the causes of flash floods and its impact. Satellite-based rainfall (GPM and IMD's WRF merged product) was used in hydrological modelling in the absence of field rainfall and discharge data. Flood inundation simulations were done using CARTO digital elevation model of 10 m resolution. Inundation extent, depth of inundation, and velocity of flow at different reaches were examined. As the slopes were steep in the upstream catchment area, the lag-time of the peak flood was found to be less and washed off the Machak rail culvert without any alert. The study reveals that quantitative parameters of the disaster are due to high intensity of rainfall, drainage congestion and sudden change of slopes across the catchment.

7 illus, 12 ref

014686   Randive K R;VijayaKumar J;Korakoppa M M;Sahu M K (Geology Post Graduate Dep, RTM Nagpur Univ, Nagpur-440 001, Email: randive101@yahoo.co.in) : Occurence of REE Mineralisation in the layered Gabbros of Phenai Mata Igneous Complex, Gujarat, India. Curr Sci 2017, 112(2), 231-5.

3 illus, 1 table, 40 ref

014685   Raju G S;Siddiraju R;Rajasekar M (Geology Dep, Yogi Vemana Univ, Kadpa, Andhra Pradesh) : Delineration of ground water potencial zones in Lingala Mandal, YSR district, Andhra Pradesh, by using remote sensing and GIS. Int J multidiscipl Res Dev 2017, 4(7), 18-25.

Integration of remote sensing data and the geographical information system (GIS) for the exploration of groundwater resources has become a breakthrough in the field of groundwater research, which assists in evaluating, monitoring, and preserving groundwater resources. In the present study area, various groundwater potential zones for the assessment of groundwater availability in Lingala mandal, Kadapa district, Andhra Pradesh has delineated using remote sensing and GIS techniques. Survey of India toposheets and IRS-P6 LISS III satellite imageries are used to prepare various thematic layers viz. drainage, geology, - 68 - and hydro-geomorphology and land-use & land-cover. Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) data is used for preparing DEM and slope. From 1995 to 2016 rainfall data has been analyzed and correlated with groundwater level data. The groundwater potential zones classified into four class i.e., "good (15.4%), moderate (40.9%), moderate to poor (31.2%) and poor (12.4%) covering an area of 45.69, 121.51, 92.75 and 36.95 respectively. These maps represent hydrogeomorphological aspect, which are essential for planning, development, management and extraction of groundwater. The present information depicted is very useful for planner and local authority in respect of site selection of well types, depth of well, success rate of wells and as well as groundwater development and management.

9 illus, 2 table, 16 ref

014684   Peshin S K;Sinha P;Bisht A (India Meterological Dep, , Lodhi Road, New Delhi-110 003, Email: sunil.peschin@gmail.com) : Impact of diwali firework emissions on air quality of New Delhi, India during 2013-2015. Mausam 2017, 68(1), 111-18.

Diwali is one of the major and most important festivals celebrated all over India which falls in the period late October to early November every year. It is associated with burning of firecrackers especially during the night of Diwali day that leads to degradation of air quality that lasts for a longer duration of time. Firecrackers on burning releases huge amount of trace gases such as NOx, CO, SO₂ and O₃ and huge amount of aerosols and particulate matter. The present study focuses on the influence of firecrackers emissions on surface ozone(O₃), oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5)concentration over the capital urban metropolis of India, New Delhi during Diwali festivity period from 2013-2015. A sharp increase is observed in surface ozone, NOx and particulate matter concentration during the Diwali day as compared to control day for 2013 to 2015 which is mainly attributed to burning of firecrackers. However the average concentration levels of the gaseous pollutants and particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5) on Diwali day exhibited a decline in 2015 and 2014 as compared to 2013 due to increase in awareness campaigns among public and increased cost of firecrackers.

4 illus, 27 ref

014683   Pattanaik D R;Mohapatra M (Office of the Director General of Meterology, India Meterological Dep, New Delhi-110 003, Email: mohapatra.imd@gmail.com) : Active northeast monsoon over India during-an assessment of real-time extended range forecast. Curr Sci 2017, 112(11), 2253-62.

Associated with strong El Nino, the southwest monsoon rainfall over India during June to September 2015 was deficit, while the northeast monsoon (NEM) during October to December 2015 over the southern peninsula was very active, particularly during November and early December. Associated with the active phases of NEM, southeast India, especially Tamil Nadu (TN) and Puducherry experienced unprecedented rainfall activity leading to devastating floods over TN, with the megacity of Chennai being the worst affected. The present study discusses the performance of operational extended range - 67 - forecast (ERF) up to three weeks of this unprecedented NEM rainfall activity over the southern peninsula and TN using the bi-model average (BMA) ERF based on outputs from the Japan Meteorological Agency Ensemble Prediction System and National Centre for Environmental Prediction's (NCEP's) latest version of Climate Forecast System (CFSv.2) coupled model. The BMA forecast captured the likely delay in the onset of NEM over meteorological (met) subdivision TN and associated weak phase of monsoon during October 2015. Similarly, the BMA forecasts also captured the active phases of NEM during November and early December 2015. Although it is difficult to capture the actual magnitude of observed high-rainfall departure over a smaller domain of met-subdivision scale, the BMA-based ERF could capture the active phase of NEM over southern peninsular India, including the metsubdivision TN with a lead time of 1-2 weeks. Quantitatively, the excess NEM rainfall spells during 2015 and particularly that during 5-11 November and 12-18 November 2015 are reasonably well captured in the BMA forecast, although forecast rainfall departure was lower than the actual departure.

9 illus, 18 ref

014682   Pasupalak S;Panigrahi G;Panigrahi T;Mohanty S;Singh K K (Agricultural Meterology Dep, Orissa Univ of Agriculture and Technology, Bhubaneswar, Email: pasupalak@yahoo.co.in) : Extreme rainfall events over Odisha state, India. Mausam 2017, 68(1), 131-8.

Extreme rainfall events are a significant cause of loss of life and livelihoods in Odisha. Objectives of the present study are to determine the trend of the extreme rainfall events during 1991-2014 and to compare the events between two periods before and after 1991. Block level daily rainfall data were used in identifying the extreme rainfall events, while district level aggregation was used in analysing the trend in three categories, viz., heavy, very heavy and extremely heavy rainfall as per criteria given by India Meteorological Department (IMD). The state as a whole received one extremely heavy, nine very heavy, and forty heavy rainfall events in a year. When percentage of occurrence of each category out of the total extreme events over different districts was considered, maximum % of extremely heavy rainfall occurred in Kalahandi (5.8%), very heavy rainfall in Bolangir (23.8%) and heavy rainfall in Keonjhargarh (85.4%). Trend analysis showed that number of extreme rainfall events increased in a few districts, namely, Bolangir, Nuapada, Keonjhargarh, Koraput, Malkangiri, and Nawarangapur and did not change in other districts. In Puri district, extremely heavy rainfall frequency decreased. New all-time record high one-day rainfall events were observed in twenty districts during 1992 to 2014, surpassing the earlier records, which could be attributed to climate change induced by global warming. Interior south Odisha was found as the hot spot for extreme rainfalls.

3 illus, 2 tables, 17 ref

014681   Parveen R;Kulkarni S;Mytri V D (ECE Dep, VTU, Belagavi, Karnataka) : Spatial distribution mapping of vegetation and accuracy assessment using IRS-1C LISS III image. Int J Adv Remote Sens GIS 2017, 5(1), 20-8.

Acquiring vegetation statistics is important to carry out vegetation cover estimation and mapping in non-residential open areas. This paper describes extraction of vegetation and spatial segmentation of vegetation features hierarchically. An image dataset acquired with LISS III sensor (Linear Imaging Self-Scanner III) onboard of the IRS-1C satellite (Indian Remote SensingSatellite-1) was used for the proposed work. Image dataset belonging to different periods with variable vegetation phonological stage, were selected. An automated - 66 - method of vegetation discrimination is proposed. Segmentation methods mostly, depend on edge detection but low resolution LISS III image with complicated topologies can be better handled by analysis of global properties of an image. Firstly, vegetation areas were extracted by separating non vegetation features by Chan-vese segmentation method. Secondly, extracted vegetation was subjected to further hierarchical classification into various vegetation classes by thresholding method using GLCM features. Quantitative validation was done by calculating overall accuracy and Kappa coefficients. Overall accuracy ranging from 70% to 80% was obtained, depending upon the density of the vegetation and interference of clouds in the image. Subjective analysis has yielded satisfactory results.

8 illus, 4 tables, 20 ref

014680   Ozdemir E T;Deniz A;Sezen I;Aslan Z;Vavuz V (Meterology Dep, Istanbul Technical Univ, Maslak, Istanbul, Turkey, Email: etozdemir@itu.edu.tr) : Investigation of thunderstorms over Ataturk international airport (LTBA), Istanbul. Mausam 2017, 68(1), 175-80.

^ssc1 illus, 5 tables, 29 ref

014679   Naresh Kumar;Chauhan V;Dhamodharan S;Rawat G; Hazarika D;Gautam P K R (NO, Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, 33 GMS Road, Dehradun-248 001, Email: nkd@wihg.res.in) : Prominent precursory signatures observed in soil and water radon data at multi-parametric geophysical observatory, Ghuttu for M_w 7.8 Nepal earthquake. Curr Sci 2017, 112(5), 907-9.

2 illus, 5 ref

014678   Naga Ratna K;Mohanty M (NO, Meterological Centre, Hyderabad, Email: knratna@gmail.com) : Some characteristics of southwest monsoon rainfall over urban entres in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Mausam 2017, 68(1), 51-66.

Present study daily rainfall data for 46 years (1969-2014) was selected for the urban stations and surrounding stations for coastal areas of Coastal Andhra Pradesh (CAP) and inland areas of Telanagana (TEL) and Rayalaseema (RSM). The statistics such as regression, standard deviation and coefficient of variance, significance test using t-test, Mann-Kandell test were worked out for the entire period for the stations. The stations were selected on the basis where the period of data is same. The t-test thus performed for all stations showed significance (p <60> 0.001) in seasonal rainfall (JJAS) for all the stations. Further z-statistics using Mann-Kandell test was performed that showed significant increase at 95% confidence level for Gannavaram, Machilipatnam and Visakhapatnam along the coast of Andhra Pradesh state. Over Telengana, Hyderabad (Urban centre) an inland station, showed significant increase at 90% level of confidence for extreme heavy rainfall events. Henceforth, seperate studies for each urban centre (Visakhapatnam, Gannavaram, Machilipatnam and Hyderabad) were done and results showed significant increase in rainfall over urban centres compared to other surrounding stations and the significant increase in rainfall was observed for the coastal stations along Andhra Pradesh coast when compared to inland stations of Telanagana and Rayalaseema.

11 illus, 1 table, 13 ref

014677   Muthamilselvan A;Dhivya M (Centre for Remote Sensing, Bharathidasan Univ, Trichy) : Morphometric analysis of sweta watershed, Perambalur district of Tamil Nadu, India: a remote sensing and GIS approach. Int J Adv Remote Sens GIS 2017, 5(1), 39-47.

Sweta watershed is a small watershed which drains ephemerally in parts of Perambalur district of Tamil Nadu, India. Morphometric parameters for this watershed were computed using satellite imagery of Landsat ETM+ and Geographic Information System on 1:50,000 scales and found that this is one of the useful technique in watershed development and management. Sweta watershed extends over an area of 730 sq. km and exhibits sub-dendritic and trellis drainage patterns. Stream order noticed in this area are ranges from 1st to 6th order. Drainage density is 1.9 per km and has coarse to fine drainage texture with stream frequency of 2.26 km^{2. Low infiltration number 4.10 indicates the high infiltration of the basin. The bifurcation ratio varies from 3 to 5.33 which fall under normal basin shape category. The elongation ratio of 0.6 indicates that this Sweta basin is associated with high relief and steep ground slopes. Perambalur area has been declared as - 65 - one of the over exploited block in Tamil Nadu by Central Groundwater Board, hence the present study has been taken up for the Sweta watershed development and management.}

7 illus, 1 table, 14 ref

014676   Mondal S;Chatterjee S;Maity R;Gain D;Das A; Sinha S (Geological Sciences Dep, Jadavpur Univ, Kolkata-700 032, Email: chatterjeesaurodeep@gmail.com) : Magnetic susceptibility as a proxy for pollution in Triveni-Bandel area, Hooghly district, West Bengal, India. Curr Sci 2017, 112(11), 2306-11.

This study aims at tracing the distribution and concentration of contaminants in fly ash along roads and highways with appreciable traffic by using magnetic proxies. Magnetic susceptibility is used for pollution mapping in the field. The distribution of susceptibility values represents polluted areas strongly influenced by traffic frequency, roadside topography, meteorological conditions (e.g. wind direction) and other factors. A magnetic phase was found to be responsible for the enhancement of magnetic signal in roadside ash. Magnetic methods provide effective tools for delineation of industrial pollution such as fly ash. In the area studied, magnetic susceptibility proved to be an excellent proxy for analysis of intensity of pollution yielding interesting results.

5 illus, 1 table, 9 ref

014675   Mondal D;Pal S (Geography Dep, Subhas Chandra Bose Centenary College, P.O. Murshidabad, Murshidabad-742 149, Email: mandal123dev@gmail.com) : Evolution of wetlands in lower reaches of Bagmari Bansloi-Pagla rivers: a study using multidated images and - 64 - maps. Curr Sci 2017, 112(11), 2263-72.

Numerous seasonally flooded wetlands in the lower Gangetic floodplain offer unique natural habitat for many migratory bird species due to their geographical location and hydro-ecological functioning. The various developmental projects change the riverine flow regime and cause hydro-ecological modification in the Gangetic floodplain wetland system. This study presents a comprehensive spatio-temporal monitoring of wetland dynamics in the lower segment of the Bagmari-Bansloi-Pagla sub-basin of the Ganga- Bhagirathi rivers using image classification technique and some fragmentation indices. Our results reveal that the land-use conversion and fragmentation processes that affect the wetland landscape are generally represented as the evolution, and consecutive drying and squeezing of wetland patches over the study area. The water-spreading area of the wetlands was highest during 1975 after the construction of the Bhagirathi feeder canal. The situation has worsened since 1980 due to cumulative effects of agriculture after the Green revolution, and the whole landscape has become a fragmented, isolated and agronomically managed wetland.

5 illus, 5 tables, 44 ref

014674   Martin S;Behera M D (Centre for Oceans, Rivers, Atmosphere and Land Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology kharagpur, kharagpur-721 302, Email: shafiquematin@gmail.com) : Alarming rise in aridity in the Ganga river basin, India, in past 3.5 decades. Curr Sci 2017, 112(2), 229-30.

2 tables, 11 ref

014673   Mariya;Sultana F M (Geography Dep, Aligarh Muslim Univ, Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh) : Status of sanitation condition in Aligarh city: A challenge for smart city vision. Int J multidiscipl Res Dev 2017, 4(7), 33-7.

Sanitation facility is one of the most important requirement for the healthy and clean environment. Sanitation does not mean only to clean sewerages but to protect those sources of water which support the sustainable development. Safe drinking water, solid waste management and good sanitation are the important measures for improvement in environment and quality of life of the people in the cities. In this direction to improve the city condition, Smart City Mission is an innovative and new initiative by the Government of India to promote cities that provide core infrastructure and give a decent quality of life to its citizens, a clean and sustainable environment. One of the core infrastructure element of Smart City Mission is sanitation and solid waste management through the development in effluent treatment plant, sewage and sludge treatment, waste treatment and recycling etc. The present study is conducted in Aligarh city which is the prime example of sanitation and sewerage problems and is the hub of diseases. The present paper tries to analyse the current parameters of sanitation, and also tries to evaluate that what are the targets for Aligarh city as a Smart City to tackle out these issues. The paper investigates the problem using primary as well as secondary data. Statistical technique of analysis and GIS technique for map making is used to present the results.

3 illus, 3 tables, 13 ref

014672   Manchi S (NO, Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural history, Anaikatti P.O, Coimbatore-641 108, Email: ediblenest@gmail.com) : Visual impact of tectonic movements on the caves in Andaman islands. Ambient Sci 2015, 2(2), 39-41.

Caves are considered as unique natural laboratories for studying biological and geological processes. Constant geophysical characteristics, perpetual darkness, low energy input with all such unique characteristics caves harbour a typical set of fauna especially adapted for the subterranean environments (Biswas, 2010; Biswas & Harries, 2011). The region of the Burmese arc including the Andaman and Nicobar Islands is characterized by highly seismic, seismic and aseismic zones, with earthquake segments of shallow to intermediate centre in the earth crust (Kumar, 1990). The tectonic activity of the Andaman area is intense along two broad belts: the western non-volcanic arc comprising the Andaman Nicobar Islands, and the eastern volcanic arc. The eastern island arc is the most active belt along which a lithospheric convergence has taken place (Jafri et al., 1993).

1 illus, 1 table, 12 ref

014671   Kumar A;et al. (India Meterological Dep, , New Delhi-110 003, Email: ashokcg@gmail.com) : Block level weather forecast using direct model output from NWP models during monsoon season in India. Mausam 2017, 68(1), 23-40.

The forecast for 655 districts and 6500 blocks had been prepared and implemented on 1PstP June, 2014. The procedure for getting forecast for the districts and blocks in India including altitude corrections is based upon regular (0.25 x 0.25) grid output from the T-574 Model and output from 9 km WRF model. A verification study for rainfall forecast at 0.25 x 0.25 degree grid for Indian Window (0-40° N and 60-100° N) is also conducted, which had indicated that skill of the rainfall forecast is good for all parts of the country except oceanic islands and high terrain regions and one can down scale to any level, down to the blocks, the skill scores will not differ much. A detailed verification study for the skill of the forecast at block level for all the eight weather parameters for which the forecast was issued is conducted. The skill of the rainfall forecast is obtained for categorical forecast and as well as for yes/no forecast. The skill scores for rainfall had indicated that highest value of Hanssen and Kuiper (HK) score is 0.44, Hanssen and Kuiper score for quantitative rainfall (HKQ) is 0.18, Ratio score for yes/no forecast is 90 percent and Hit rate (HR) is 0.83. The detailed verification study for the block level weather forecast for monsoon 2014 is presented in the paper and the skill found is good. The study indicates that model forecast has the potential to be used for the block level forecast after making the quick value additions for which hints are given in the conclusion part.

13 illus, 20 ref

014670   Khwairakpam N;Bidyananda M;Singh S S (Earth Science Dep, Manipur Univ, Canchipur, Imphal-795 003, Email: bmaibam@yahoo.com) : Silicate and sulphide mineralogy, and conditions of equilibration of ultramafic rocks of the indo-myanmar ophiolite belt between tusom, Manipur and shomra village, Myanmar. Curr Sci 2017, 112(2), 406-10.

The northeast-India ophiolite complex is exposed in many parts of Nagaland and Manipur, with particularly well-preserved mantle-sequence peridotite present in its southern section in Manipur state. We present the results of an investigation into the petrology and constituent mineral chemistry of this peridotite, which is associated with the Indo-Myanmar ophiolite located between Tusom, Ukhrul District (Manipur) and Shomra village (Myanmar). Mineral compositions indicate that it is an abyssal peridotite that has undergone minimal partial melting (1.5%). Equilibration probably occurred in the upper mantle at a temperature of 1080-1240 °C, a pressure of 23-24 kbar, and an oxygen fugacity between 0.303 and 0.580 log units above the FMQ buffer. Primary and secondary sulphide phases in the studied peridotites have also been analysed. Pentlandite ((Fe,Ni)9S8) was found to be the primary sulphide mineral, which occurred in association with orthopyroxene and awaruite (Ni3Fe). Cu-rich alloys and magnetite occur as secondary minerals that developed during later serpentinization.

2 tables, 21 ref

014669   Khosravi Y;Lashkari H;Asakereh H (Faculty of Sciences, Environmental Sciences Dep, Zanjan Univ, 45371-38791, Zanjan, Iran, Email: khosravi@znu.ac.ir) : Spatial variability of water vapour in south and southwest of Iran. Mausam 2017, 68(1), 9-22.

In this study two regression models, ordinary least square and geographically weighted regression as widely applied techniques, were used in modeling the regression relationships between water vapour and related geographic features, i.e., longitude, latitude, elevation, slope and aspect. Accordingly, the water vapour data in south and southwest of Iran were collected in pixels in the time interval 1981-2010. According to the general OLS regression, the relationship between WV and latitude, elevation and aspect were reverse and with longitude and slope were positive. Analyzing the relationship between geographic features and WV by GWR model determined that greatest coefficients of explanatory variables were in longitude, latitude, slope, aspect and elevation, respectively. Regarding to the model performance, GWR showed an improvement over OLS in estimating the WV and provided more realistic - 62 - and useful results. So that the RP^{2P, Adjusted RP2P and AICc for GWR were 0.967, 0.968 and 9329.38, respectively while these factors for OLS were 0.8478, 0.8475 and 14559.04.}

18 illus, 4 tables, 65 ref

014668   Jiang T;Zhang J;Wu H (Hubei Province Key Laboratory of Processing of Mineral sources and en, School of Resource and Environmental Engineering, Technology Wuhan Un, Wuhan-430070, Hubei, China, Email: zjhwut@sina.com) : Impact analysis of Multiple parameters on Fracture formation during volume Fracturing in Coalbed Methane Reservoirs. Curr Sci 2017, 112(2), 332-47.

Uniaxial and triaxial compression, Brazilian splitting and three-point bending tests have been carried out to determine the mechanical parameters of the coal reservoir in Jiaozuo coal mining district, Henan Province, China. Based on the experimental results and combined with the target reservoir geological characteristics, a 3D geological mechanical model has been established to analyse the hydraulic fracture propagation during volume fracturing using MEYER software. Effects of the modulus of coal rock, difference between horizontal principal stresses, fracturing fluid viscosity and fracturing fluid injection rate on the fracturing network geometry are studied. Results show that fracturing network development intensity in the coalbed methane (CBM) reservoir is determined both by the geological conditions and the hydraulic fracturing parameters. The intensity of fracturing in the CBM reservoir is positively related with the elastic modulus of the coal rock, and is inversely proportional to the difference between the two horizontal principal stresses. Increasing fluid viscosity reduces the fracturing area. Low injection rate is beneficial to improving hydraulic treatment areas when it is larger than that required to guarantee that the crack extends. The results can provide a case reference for optimization design of volume fracturing and productivity prediction analysis of CBM reservoirs.

22 illus, 16 tables, 29 ref

014667   Jena D;Gantait A;Das U K (NO, Geological Survey of India, Eastern Region, Kolkata-700 091, Email: jena.pupu54@gmail.com) : Mineral chemistry of synchysite from Dhani granite, Pali district, Rajasthan, India. Curr Sci 2017, 112(5), 910-12.

2 illus, 2 table, 7 ref

014666   Islam N;Dharanirajan K (Disaster Management Dep, Pondicherry Univ, Brookshabad Campus) : Flood impact assessment in Murshidabad district of West Bengal using remote sensing and GIS. Int J Adv Remote Sens GIS 2017, 5(1), 48-57.

Every year flood devastate Murshidabad district and cause tremendous damage in terms of life and property, particularly in the lowland areas. Because of heavy rain during the month of July to September flood is regularly occurs in Murshidabad. The results are submerged lowland area, loss of life and properties, damage households, reduction of agricultural landforms due to soil erosion and most of the roads are highly vulnerable to the flood. More than 50% crop was damaged in the year (2012) respect to the total geographical area in the district (5324 sq. km) and different kind of diseases were happened in the affected areas. The research objective is to study vulnerable areas to flood hazard and its impact of the Murshidabad district. Herewith we study the drainage system, vulnerable area, agricultural land, affected population and settlements those are highly prone to flood hazard in Murshidabad. Remote Sensing Technology along with Geographic Information System (GIS) has become the key tool for flood monitoring at present study. The study is focused at delineation of flood impact and preparation of flood hazard maps for the vulnerable areas. In this study, survey of India Toposheets (1979), satellite images (IRS P6 2007) and other secondary data were used for the preparation of land use and land cover, drainage map and vulnerability map. The result shows that - 61 - agriculture landforms, roads and many villages of the block are in highly vulnerable to flooding.

5 illus, 2 tables, 12 ref

014665   Imsong W;Bhattacharya F;Mishra R L;Phukan S (NO, Wadia Institute of himalayan Geology, Dehradun-248 001, Email: imsongnar@gmail.com) : Geomorphic evidence of late quaternary displacement of the Karakoram fault in Nubra and Shyok velleys, Ladakh Himalaya. Curr Sci 2017, 112(11), 2295-2305.

The present study ascertains the spatial variability in the extent of activity of the Karakoram Fault (KF) in Nubra and Shyok river valleys (Karakoram), which was known to be active during the Holocene. Towards this we have used conventional morphometric indices supported by geomorphological observations on the pattern of alluvial and bedrock streams, alluvial fan geometry and moraines. The right lateral displacement associated with KF is geomorphologically expressed by the lateral deflections of the bedrock and alluvial streams toward northwest-southeast as they cut across the Fault. Indirect age estimates inferred based on slip rate of KF suggest that the deflection of bedrock streams with prominent shutter ridges is the cumulative expression of activity of KF since the middle Pleistocene, which continued till the late Holocene.

7 illus, 4 tables, 44 ref

014664   Gundalia M;Dholakia M (NO, Gujarat Technological Univ, Ahmedabad-382 424, Email: mjgundalia@gmail.com) : Modeling daily reference avapotranspiration in middle south Saurashtra region of India for monsoon season using most dominant meteorological variables and the FAO-56 Penman-Monteith method. Mausam 2017, 68(1), 1-8.

Many methods are available to estimate reference evapotranspiration (ET_o) from standard meteorological observations. The FAO-56 Penman-Monteith method is considered to be the most physical and reliable method and is often used as a standard to verify other empirical methods. However, it needs a lot of different input parameters. Hence, in the present study, a model based on most dominant meteorological variables influencing ET_o is proposed to estimate ET_o in the Middle South Saurashtra region of Gujarat (India). The performance of five different alternative - 60 - methods and proposed model is compared with the standard FAO-56 Penman-Monteith method. The five quantitative standard statistical performance evaluation measures, Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency coefficient (E), coefficient of determination (R^{2), refined Willmott's index (dr), root mean square of errors-observations standard deviation ratio (RSR) and mean absolute error (MAE) are employed in evaluating the performance of the selected methods and proposed model. The results show that the developed model and Hargreaves and Samani (1985) method with recalibrated parameters provide the most reliable results in estimation of (ET_o) and it can be recommended for estimating (ET_o) in the study region.}

7 illus, 3 tables, 29 ref

014663   Ghaderi G;Karimi L (NO, , Poorab Fars; Mehr Building, 44 La.Pasdaran Blvd., Shiraz, Fars, Iran, Email: ghaderi348@yahoo.com) : Formation of Angerh Minue cave in Asmari karst complex of Zagros mountain, Iran. Ambient Sci 2014, 1(1), 47-50.

The Angerh Minue Cave, located in one km from west Angerh village which is about 97 km far from Shiraz of Fars Province, the Cultural Capital of Iran. The main entrance of the cave is at an altitude of 2430 having a depth of 176 m and length 776 m. It developed along the bedding of limestone layers. Asmari Formation is the host rock of the Angerh Minue cave. Mountainous region of Zagros, where the Angerh Minue cave is located could be referred as seismic region due to the presence of various basement faults, some of which are still active. In the present study, the geological process behind the formation of Angerh Minue Cave has been tried to analyze.

5 ref

014662   Gayathri R;Bhaskaran P K;Jose F (Ocean Engineering and Naval Architecture Dep, Indian Institute of Technology, kharagpur-721 30, Email: pkbhaskaran@naval.iitkgp.ernet.in) : Coastal innudation research: an overview of the process. Curr Sci 2017, 112(2), 267-78.

Coastal - 59 - inundation is the flooding of coastal zone re-sulting from increased river discharge, spring tides, severe storms, or generation of powerful waves from tectonic activity (tsunami). This article discusses the critical factors that contribute to coastal inundation. Among the probable factors that cause coastal flooding and destruction, stormsurge is the most frequent, and hence this article provides a detailed evaluation of theprogress made in storm inundation research. Recent advances in coastal inundation modelling include efforts to understand the nonlinear dynamic interaction of near-shore waves, wind and atmospheric pressure with still water sea level and coastal currents, and their combined effects on storm surge along the coast and interaction with coastal morphology. An advanced storm-surge model comprises different modules, viz. an atmospheric component, and two ocean components for surge and wave simulations; these modules are coupled with each other. The nesting of regional coastal model with an ocean-wide model captures the far-field boundary forcing of extreme events that usually originate from the warm open ocean. Even though significant advancements reported on the efficiency and accuracy of storm surge and inundation prediction, further studies are required to understand the nonlinear interaction of storm surge with coastal landforms and their vegetation (land cover). In the context of rising sea level, increased tropical cyclone activity and rapid shoreline change, it is pertinent to evaluate the future flooding risk associated with landfall of tropical cyclones in densely populated coastal cities.

4 illus, 93 ref

014661   Dora M L;Randive K R;Ramachandra H M;Suresh G (Geological Survey of India, , Central Region, Nagpur-440 006, Email: dorageol@gmail.com) : Iron oxide copper gold mineralization at Thanewasna, western Bastar craton. Curr Sci 2017, 112(5), 1045-50.

Iron oxide-copper-gold (IOCG) at Thanewasna, Maharashtra, India is a new genetic type of ore deposit, being reported from the western margin of Bastar craton, based on integrated field, drilling, mineral chemistry and Raman microprobe studies. It is the fourth such IOCG type being reported from India. Hydrothermal mineralization is structurally confined to en echelon dilatational quartz-chlorite veins along NW-SE trending brittle-ductile shear zone hosted in calc-alkaline granitoid. The mineralization is characterized by chalcopyrite, magnetite and barite which occur as dissemination, stringers and veins associated with hydrothermal K-alteration and chlorite alteration. Chemical analysis shows significant amounts of Cu, Fe, Ba and anomalous Au content. Ore petrography and scanning electron microscope and electron probe micro analyser studies show assemblages of Cu-Fe-Au-Ag-Ni-Ba-REE minerals typical of IOCG type deposits at Thanewasna. Ore textures, mineralogy and alteration characteristics are typical of IOCG-type deposits, further supported by mineral chemistry of magnetite (V versus Ti/V) using EPMA, and thus define a IOCG metallogenic province in Thanewasna area with significant implications for future exploration.

3 illus, 3 tables, 39 ref

014660   Deori B B;Gogoi B;Sarmah K;Paul S K;Kalita B; Doley D (NO, Regional Agricultural Research Station, AAU, Gossaigon-783 360, Email: bidyutdeori@gmail.com) : Rainfall probability analysis of Korkrajhar district of lower Brahmaputra valley zone of Assam. Mausam 2017, 68(1), 171-4.

^ssc4 illus, 2 tables, 6 ref

014659   Das M;Hazra A;Sarkar A;Bhattacharya S;Banik P (Civil Engineering Dep, Jadavpur Univ, Kolkata, Email: banikpabitra@gmail.com) : Comparison of spatial interpolation methods for estimation of weekly rainfall in West Bengal, India. Mausam 2017, 68(1), 41-50.

Rainfall is one of the most eloquently researched contemporary meteorological phenomena affecting the agricultural practices - 58 - dramatically, particularly along the humid, sub-tropics, where agriculture is predominantly rainfed. It is a key parameter of agricultural production in West Bengal due to lack irrigation facilities in most of the areas. Thus, it is very important to have detailed information of rainfall distribution pattern of West Bengal. In practice rainfall data is collected only at few discrete stations scattered all over the whole state. However, rainfall is a spatially continuous phenomenon rather than discrete. Thus it becomes essential to apply a robust spatial interpolation technique to transform the discrete values into a continuous spatial pattern. In the present study, three spatial interpolation techniques namely Kriging, Inverse Distance Weighted (IDW) and SPLINE, are used for a comparative analysis to identify the most efficient interpolation technique. Weekly average rainfall data available between 1901 and 1985 for 19 standard meteorological weeks (SMW), Week 22 to Week 40 are used for the analysis. The errors of the three interpolation techniques are analyzed and the best method is chosen based on the minimum mean absolute deviation (MAD) and the minimum mean squared deviation (MSD) criteria. The IDW method is found to be the best spatial interpolation technique.

6 illus, 2 tables, 14 ref

014658   Chaudhary B S;Sanjeev Kumar (Geophysics Dep, Kurukshetra Univ, Kurukshetra, Haryana) : Use of RS and GIS for land use/land cover mapping of K-J watershed, India. Int J Adv Remote Sens GIS 2017, 5(1), 85-92.

The present study is an attempt to analyze the changes in Land Use/ Land Cover (LU/LC) in Koshalya-Jhajhara (K-J) watershed by using Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographical Information system (GIS). Landsat (7 ETM+ and 8) data have been used for LU/LC mapping and monitoring. Global Positioning System (GPS) and topographical maps have been used for ground truth verification. The classification approach used is a hybrid of unsupervised, supervised and on screen digitization and comparison. The main categories are Dense forest, Open forest, Scrub forest, Built-up Compact, Built-up Sparse, Industry, Cropped in 2 seasons, Fallow land and Water body. Major Change is detected in the area under category built-up which has increased from 7.12 to 24.84 km^{2 over the study period from 1999-2000 to 2015-2016. The area under forest has decreased from 109.35 to 96.78 km2 and under agricultural land from 12.61 to 7.35 km2 respectively over the study period. This indicates that substantial amount of agricultural land and forest land has come under urbanization. This is an unhealthy situation for land management in such a sensitive ecosystem. The area is facing increasing problems of erosion, deforestation and other land use conversions issues which are unsustainable in nature. Further this change detection will be useful for sustained land resources management of K-J watershed.}

6 illus, 2 tables, 17 ref

014657   Biswas S (Geography Dep, Berhampore College, Berhampore, Murshidabad-742 101, Email: bsoham99@gmail.com) : Measurement of Productivity and Liability level of Crops. Curr Sci 2017, 112(2), 311-21.

Crop productivity is the capacity of an area to produce crops; a manifestation of complex interaction of various factors of production that together determine the existing condition of the farm environment. Without proper idea of the present productivity level, effective measures for further improvement cannot be initiated. Geographers and agricultural economists have long been engrossed in measuring agricultural productivity. Here I discuss a new method of measuring crop productivity, i.e. determining crop productivity level of an area with respect to the maximum achievable productivity limit under existing conditions of the farm environment. The method also measures the productivity deficiency level of various crops which makes the selection of liable crops much more sound and logical, and is helpful to formulate both the overall and crop-specific developmental strategies. Standard classes of crop productivity, yield achievement, yield deficit and crop liability levels have been prepared separately based on their index values.

6 illus, 7 tables, 8 ref

014656   Bhaskar V V;Soni V K;Panicker A S (India Meterological Dep, , Pune-411 005, Email: vvvbhaskar@yahoo.com) : Long term characteristics of aerosols over Pune, central India - effect on radiative forcing. Mausam 2017, 68(1), 119-30.

Sun photometer (MICROTOPS II) and Sun-sky radiometer (POM-02, Prede) data for 2003-2013 period are used to study the optical and temporal characteristics of aerosols and their effect on radiative forcing over Pune, central India. The daily mean aerosol optical thickness at 500 nm (AOT₅₀₀) and Angstrom exponent α for the study period were 0.77 ± 0.22 0.92 ± 0.24 respectively. Short wave aerosol radiative forcing (ARF) computed for the year 2013 using Santa Barbara Discrete-ordinate Atmospheric Radiative Transfer (SBDART) model, showed ARF at surface (SUF) and top of the atmosphere (TOA) was negative indicating dominance of scattering type aerosols. AOT, single scattering albedo (SSA) and asymmetry parameter (ASP) derived from Sun sky radiometer showed more AOT and ASP and less SSA during April / May to August indicating prevalence of absorbing soil dust in this period. Atmospheric heating varied from +14.3 to 20.5 W/m^{2 and was more in monsoon (+ 35.4 W/m2). ARF at SUF was found to be a strong function of AOT₅₀₀ (R2= 0.90). The radiative forcing efficiency inferred to scattering nature of aerosols at SUF (-66.2 W/m2/ AOT), TOA (- 0.2 W/m2 / AOT) and atmosphere (ATM) (+ 66.0 W/m2 /AOT). The atmospheric heating rates varied from 0.94 K/day in post monsoon to 2.78 K/day in monsoon. Monthly, seasonal and diurnal variability of AOT₅₀₀ - 57 - and α with role of meteorological factors are also discussed.}

9 illus, 30 ref

014655   Bhanumurthy V;Sharma V K;Jai Sankar (NO, National Remoe Sensing Centre, Hyderabad, Telangana) : Satellite data planning for managing natural disaster events reported using Non-GPS enabled feature phones and social media tweets. Int J Adv Remote Sens GIS 2017, 5(1), 10-19.

Remote sensing images are used for managing the natural disasters like flood. Satellite images over an effected area help in calculating the damage and in relief and rescue operations. Early reporting of disaster event may avoid missing of satellite pass for acquisition over the effected region. Disaster event reporting includes communicating disaster type, disaster location and its severity to disaster management control centres. The common methods used for communication includes voice call, SMS, fax, email, mobile apps and now a day's social media also. The traditional methods used for event reporting needs certain prerequisite hardware/software for functioning, like mobile apps used for event reporting with location information needs an inbuilt GPS to calculate location information. These prerequisite hardware software's increases the cost of communication and may limits its wide usage. There are API's using which, devices not having inbuilt GPS can also find location information which may not be as accurate as GPS but give fair idea about the location. In this study, potential of unconventional methods like spatial disaster event reporting using non-GPS feature phone by calculating location using cell towers co-ordinates and open source maps has been attempted. Use of twitter API's for extracting disaster related tweets for disaster event generation and situation assessment has also been attempted. The information extracted from ground reports and tweets has been used to plan the satellite datasets used for disaster management.

6 illus, 1 table, 8 ref

014654   Araujo A V D;Peixoto R S (Sociedade Espeleologica Azimute, Laboratorio de biologia geral, IF-Setao PE Brazil-400 000, Email: anddrevieira@gmail.com) : Impact of geomorphology and human disturbances on the faunal distributions in Tiquara and Angico caves of campo formoso, Bahia, Brazil. Ambient Sci 2015, 2(1), 25-30.

Characterization of fauna is important for the understanding of communities and ecosystems, enabling the design of actions for conservation. In the present piece of work, we identified total 45 morphospecies belonging to the order Acarina, Pseudoscorpionida, Dictyoptera, Araneida, Amblypygi, Isopoda, Plecoptera, Amphipoda, Zygentoma, Spirostreptida, Coleoptera, Collembola, Diptera, Ensifera, Heteroptera, Hymenoptera, Lepidoptera and Psocoptera from two distinct types of caves of Campo Formoso, state of Bahia in Brazil. It was made to provide subsidies for conservation studies. The targeted caves were Tiquara Cave suffered for many years from saltpeter extraction and Angico Cave less visited cave having high tourist potential. Though the conservation status is much better in Angico cave, but we found comparatively more morphospecies in Tiquara cave.

4 illus, 20 ref

014653   Anbarasan S;Sakthivel R (Geology Dep, Bharthidasan Univ, Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu) : Digital rock surface mapping of sittampoondi anorthosite complex using close range photogrammetry technique. Int J Adv Remote Sens GIS 2017, 5(1), 1-9.

Close-range Photogrammetry techniques have already been applied in many disciplines, such as architecture, archaeology and medicine. According to the ways for acquisition of the images and restitution of the target points, Photogrammetry can also be divided into stereo-Photogrammetry and convergent Photogrammetry. Reviewing the former work of rock engineering applications, Stereo Photogrammetry have been used for characterizing fracture geometry and for investigating rock mass deformation. To Analyse the influence of fractures on hydraulic and mechanical behaviour of fractured rock masses, it is essential characterize fracture geometry at exposed rock faces. Using Digital Close Range Photogrammetry technique, the fracture measurements are obtained without physically touching the rock face and rock surface digitally recorded in three dimensions and in visual format as a database for other applications. An Introduction to the DCRP technique is presented, followed by an outline of the methods used to create high-resolution digital elevation models (DEMs) from extensive photosets obtained using a consumer-grade digital camera. In this study the Sittampoondi Anorthosite Complex has been taken for mapping the rock surface using DCRP technique.

13 illus, 1 table, 12 ref

014652   Alvarez-Vazquez M A;Una-Alvarez E D (History, Art and Geography Dep, Univ of Vigo, Ourense Campus, As Lagoas 32004-Ourense, Spain) : Growth of sculpted forms in bedrock channels (Mino river, Northwest spain). Curr Sci 2017, 112(5), 996-1002.

A - 55 - total of 216 sculpted forms were registered on the granitic bedrock of the Mino River, northwest Iberian Peninsula. Analysis of in situ measurements (length, width and depth) revealed three general type-sets: incipient forms, longitudinal furrows and circular potholes. Maximum depth and upper radius (at the incision surface) were identified as key variables to mathematically determine the growth rate in each set. Three regression models are presented revealing that the development of the forms depends on a power law explaining their size and shape. Morphological and dimensional thresholds were established to better identify stages from incipient (active growth) and inherited (stationary growth) forms.

6 illus, 4 tables, 25 ref

014651   Acharya S;Pathak D (Central Dep of Geology, Geodisaster Research Center, Tribhuvan Univ Kirtipur, Kathmandu, Nepal) : Landslide hazard assessment between Besi sahar and Tal area in Marsyangdi river basin, West Nepal. Int J Adv Remote Sens GIS 2017, 5(1), 29-38.

In the hilly and mountainous terrain of Nepal, landslide is the most common natural hazard especially during prolong rainfall. Every year landslide cost lives and causes injuries. In order to address this problem, the best that can be done is to prepare the landslide hazard map of the area, apply mitigation measures and evacuate the high hazardous area, if necessary. Landslide hazard assessment is the primary tool so as to understand the nature and characteristics of the slope that are prone to failure. Logistic Regression Model is used for the preparation of landslide hazard map of the Besi Sahar-Tal area in Marsyangdi River basin in west Nepal. The causative factors such as elevation, slope, slope aspect, land use, geology, rainfall, lineament density, stream density are used. All the thematic layers of these parameters are prepared in GIS and logistic regression analysis is done by using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS). Five different hazard zones are separated namely very low hazard zone, low hazard zone, medium hazard zone, high hazard zone and very high hazard zone. The high hazard zone is lying along the Marsyangdi River and its tributaries.

7 illus, 3 tables, 15 ref

013547   Ovung T N;Ray J;Teng X;Ghosh B;Paul M;Ganguly P;Sengupta S;Das S (Geology Dep, Calcutta University, 35 B.C. Road, Kolkata-700 019, Email: ayani_ovung@yahoo.com) : Mineralogy of the Manipur Ophiolite Belt, North East India: implications for mid-oceanic ridge and supra-subduction zone origin. Curr Sci 2017, 112(10), 2122-9.

Mineralogical studies on the mantle and crustal sections of the Manipur Ophiolite Belt (MOB) lead to important findings pertaining to its genesis and controlling tectonic milieu. The wide compositional gap in the Cr# and Mg# content of spinel in the mantle peridotites of MOB implies upper mantle melting in two different tectonic settings. The tectonic discrimination diagrams based on spinel chemistry indicate a mid-oceanic ridge (MOR) origin for the high-AI spinel peridotites and a supra-subduction zone origin for the high-Cr spinel peridotites. The pyroxenite mantle dyke, ultramafic cumulate and pillos-basalt record temperature in the range of 600-1030°C, 600-800°C and 700-1005°C respectively. Plotting of clinopyroxene composition of pillow-basalt in the TiO₂-Na₂O-SiO₂/100 (wt%) tectonic discrimination diagram, implies a subduction-related origin of the basalts. Experimental studies on the serpentine stability indicate that it was dominantly affected by high temperature-low deformation setting.

7 illus, 1 table, 42 ref

013546   Karthika M;Krishnaveni;Thirunavukkarasu V (Centre for Water Resources, Anna University, Chennai-608 002, Email: karthikamozhi@gmail.com) : Forecasting of meteorological drought using ARIMA model. Indian J agric Res 2017, 51(2), 103-11.

Drought is a global phenomenon that occurs virtually in all landscapes causing significant damage. Due to the random nature of contributing factors, occurrence and severity of droughts can be treated as stochastic in nature. Early indication of possible drought can help to set out drought mititation strategies and measures in advance. Therefore drought forecasting plays an important role in the planning and management of water resource systems. The principal objective of the study is to carryout short-term annual forecasting of meteorological drought using Auto Regressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) model in Lower Thirumanimuthar Sub-basin located in semi-arid region of Tamilnadu, India is chosen as the study area which is predominantly affected by drought over few decades. Suitable linear stochastic model, non seasonal autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) was developed to predict drought. The best model was selected based on minimum Alkaike Information Criterion (AIC) and Schwarz Bayesian Criterion (SBC). Parameter estimation step indicates that the estimated model parameters are significantly different from zero. The predict data using the best ARIMA model were compared to the observed data for model validation purpose in which the predicted data show reasonably good agreement with the actual data. Hence the models were applied to forecast drought in the Lower Thirumanimuthar sub-basin region up to 2 years in advance with good accuracy.

5 illus, 7 tables, 3 ref

013545   Janapriya S;Bosu S S;Kannan B (Soil and Water Conservation Engineering, Vanavarayar Institute of Agriculture, Manakkadavu, Pollachi-642 103, Email: jans.priya@gmail.com) : Impact of - 48 - climate change on hydrology of Manjalar sub basin of river Vaigai in Tamil Nadu, India. J appl nat Sci 2016, 8(3), 1670-9.

This study evaluates the impacts of possible future climate change scenarios on the hydrology of the catchment area of the Manjalar sub basin of River Vaigai, Tamil Nadu, India carried out at the department of Soil and Water Conservation Engineering, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University during the period of 2011-2014 using Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT). For the climate impact assessment the hydrological model was driven with output of bias corrected Earth System Models of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5): HadGEM2. Climate scenarios were down scaled to a grid resolution of 0.22° x 0.22°. In this study RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5 were included for future assessment with three future periods: 2012-2039, 2040-2069, and 2070-2098. The projected increase in maximum and minimum temperature for RCP 4.5 scenario is 0.8 to 2.3 °C and 0.7 to 1.6 °C and for RCP 8.5 scenario is 1.1 to 4.0 °C and 1.0 to 3.1 °C, respectively. Rainfall is projected to an increase be-tween 9.2 to 15.2 per cent for RCP 4.5 scenario and an increase of 13.6 to 18.8 per cent for RCP 8.5 scenario during 21st century. The soil water storage and stream flow contribution to ground water are likely to increase in RCP 4.5 scenario and it would again decline for RCP 8.5 scenario during 21st century. The increase in annual rainfall evapotranspiration and surface runoff would be more in RCP 8.5 scenario compared to RCP 4.5 scenario. The possible changes projected by the study provide a useful input to effective planning of water resources of the study area.

5 illus, 8 tables, 31 ref

013544   El-Sorogy A;Nour H (Geology and Geophysics Dep, College of Science, King Saud Univ, Saudi Arabia, Email: asmohamed@ksu.edu.sa) : On the occurence of campanian rudist biostrome, arum formation, central Saudi Arabia. Indian J Geomar Sci 2017, 46(4), 780-4.

The lower limestone Khanasir Member of the Aruma Formation in central Saudi Arabia is characterized by Campanian rudist biostrome at its uppermost part. The most abundant rudist fauna are Eodictyoptychus arumaensis, Durania sp. and Biradiolites sp. Succession is overlying continental siliciclastics of Wasia Formation and comprises shale at the base followed by slightly dolomitized, burrow, nodular limestone and caps with rudist biostrome. Abundant microfacies types are wackestones, packstones, grainstones and floatstones with green algae, benthic foraminifers. The succession in general, indicated shallowing upward sequence and rudist biostrome represents a shallow marine lagoonal environment.

5 illus, 17 ref

013543   Dashko R E;Alekseev I V (Doctor in Geology and Mineralogy Sciences, Hydrogeology and Engineerin, Mining Univ (Mines Univ), St. Petersburg, Russia, Email: alekseew.ivan@gmail.com) : Microbially-induced corrosion of structural materials in underground workings of the Yakovlev's mine (Kursk magnetic anomaly, Russia). Biosci Biotechnol Res Asia 2017, 14(1), 167-75.

Role of biocorrosion in the early fracture of underground metal structures at the Yakovlev's mine (Kursk Magnetic Anomaly) of high-grade iron ores (HGIO) is analysed based on integrated study including microbiological methods of investigation. Major natural and technogenic sources of microorganisms input into the iron ore body are specified. Underground microbiota of the Yakovlev's mine along with factors promoting its intensification are studied. Particular attention is paid to favorable conditions existing down the mine that facilitate electrochemical and biochemical corrosion of ferrous metals. During the investigation a wide range of aerobic and anaerobic microorganisms including various species of bacteria, micromycetes and actinomycetes was encountered. Inoculated cultures were frequently characterized by abnormal microbial counts exceeding 10⁶ cells per 1 g of dispersed iron ore. Special microbiological monitoring aimed to study in situ dynamics of deteriorating test metal coupons placed in the aggressive environment of moistened HGIO was conducted. Acquired results are suggesting the necessity of due account of microbial corrosion while assessing safety of mining operations and ensuring stability of the metal arch support.

5 illus, 2 tables, 23 ref

013542   Chakraborty P K;Das L (Agriculture Meterology & Physics Dep, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, West Bengal, Email: pramitikumar27@gmail.com) : Rainfall trend analysis and its future projection over gangetic West Bengal (GWB) region of India during post-monsoon and winter season. J appl nat Sci 2016, 8(3), 1152-6.

Studying the variability of rainfall and its future projection during post-monsoon and winter season is im-portant for providing the information to the farmers regarding crop planning. For evaluating rainfall scenario, long (1901-2005) and short term (1961-2005 and 1991-2005) rainfall data of nine selected IMD stations of South Bengal was collected and subdivided into 30 year period up to 1990 and a 15 year period from 1991 to 2005. The data were subjected to trend analysis and available GCM data were compared with the observed rainfall data. The post-monsoon and winter rainfall changes during - 47 - 1901-2005 were positive (except Krishnangar, -47.67 mm) and negative (except Alipore and Berhampur) respectively. During 1991-2005 all the stations recorded a positive change during post-monsoon, while reverse was true for winter. Among the different GCMs, INGV-ECHM4 estimated the post-monsoon rainfall at the best, whereas winter rainfall successfully estimated by MIROC-Hi. Future projection of both post-monsoon and winter rainfall over the region showed an increasing trend. This will help in policy formulation for water management in agriculture.

1 illus, 8 tables, 23 ref

012749   Zakhem B A;Kattaa B (Geology Dep, Atomic Energy Commission of Syria(AECS), Damascus, Syria, Email: cscientific2@aec.org.sy) : Investigation of hydrological drought using cumulative standardized precipitation index (SPI 30) in the eastern mediterranean region (Damascus, Syria). J Earth Syst Sci 2016, 125(5), 969-84.

The Eastern Mediterranean region has been exposed to drought episodes, which have been occurring more frequently during the last decades. The objective of the present paper is to study the precipitation regime of the Damascus (Mazzeh) meteoric station by analysing drought characteristics using the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) and comparing this with the drought in Cyprus. The cumulative drought - 140 - conceptis proposed to characterize long-term hydrologic drought, which affects the shallow groundwater productivity in terms of quantity and quality. Gamma probability distribution was fitted to the long-term annual precipitation in Damascus from 1918-1919 to 2007-2008 (n = 90 years). Generally, a decreasing trend of 17% to the mean annual rainfall of Damascus and 13% to the mean annual rainfall of Cyprus was estimated between 1970 and 2000. The SPI identifies three major extended drought periods: (1) 9 years of severe drought (1954-1963) with an average 20% precipitation deficit per year compared to the mean. (2) 8 years of severe drought (1983-1991) with a 27% deficit per year on average. (3) 9 years of extreme drought (1993-2002) with a 31% deficit per year on average. The cumulative standardized precipitation index (SPI 30) demonstrates positive values for the first period and is indicative of having no effect on the global water balance. SPI 30 exhibits sensitive equilibrium with near zero values/a near zero value (±1.5) for the second period. For the third period, however, the SPI 30 decreases below -10 indicating an extreme hydrological drought that has negative consequences on the recent groundwater recharge. It is required to develop and implement a sustainable groundwater management strategy to reduce long-terms drought risks. Generally, the SPI 30 in Cyprus is parallel to that in Damascus with a 3-5 year delay. Thus, the central zone of the Eastern Mediterranean region is facing big challenges and has been suffering from three decades of moderate to severe hydrological drought (SPI 30=-5 to -10) causing a severe decrease in springs discharges of the region. Therefore, in order to reduce the climate change effects on water resources, it is necessary to adopt a sustainable proactive management plan during the frequent severe droughts.

8 illus, 3 table, 37 ref

012748   Yadav B S;Wanjari N;Ahmad T;Chaturvedi R (Geology Dep, Univ of Delhi, Delhi-110 007, Email: bhupendra07@gmail.com) : Geochemistry and petrogenesis of proterozoic granitic rocks from northern margin of the Chotanagpur Gneissic complex (CGC). J Earth Syst Sci 2016, 125(5), 1041-60.

This study presents the geochemical characteristics of granitic rocks located on the northern margin of Chotanagpur Gneissic Complex (CGC), exposed in parts of Gaya district, Bihar and discusses the possible petrogenetic process and source characteristics. These granites are associated with Barabar Anorthosite Complex and Neo-proterozoic Munger-Rajgir group of rocks. The granitic litho-units identified in the field are grey, pink and porphyritic granites. On the basis of geochemical and petrographic characteristics, the grey and pink granites were grouped together as GPG while the porphyritic granites were named as PG. Both GPG and PG are enriched in SiO₂, K₂O, Na₂O, REE (except Eu), Rb, Ba, HFSE (Nb, Y, Zr), depleted in MgO, CaO, Sr and are characterised by high Fe* values, Ga/Al ratios and high Zr saturation temperatures (GPG_avg <126> 861 °C and PGavg<126> 835 °C). The REE patterns for GPG are moderately fractionated with an average (La/Yb)_N<126> 4.55 and Eu/Eu* <126> 0.58, than PG which are strongly fractionated with an average (La/Yb)_N<126> 31.86 and Eu/Eu* <126> 0.75. These features indicate that the granites have an A-type character. On the basis of geochemical data, we conclude that the granites are probably derived from a predominant crustal source with variable mantle involvement in a post-collisional setting.

12 illus, 1 table, 59 ref

012747   Weldegebriel K G (NO, , ) : Development of an integrated system prototype to improve decisions in land use palnning and management in Ethiopia, Hawzen. J Remote Sensing GIS 2017, 8(1), 41-52.

Constitutional land use planning provides a means of legal control over changes in land use and provides an opportunity to allocate land use to areas best suited to that activity. However, since land use planning is not surveying properly and essentially only deals with suggestions to improve land use system. Land use planning and resource management is a challenging task to many developing countries, due to limited technical resource. Currently land use planning and management is poorly managed, mainly caused by a lack of appropriate organization and access of integrated up-to-date geo-geospatial information, leading to unhurried decision making. Due to the rapid growth, - 139 - urbanization and expansion of investment in Hawzen Woreda, the Office of Land Administration urgently needs to upgrade its land use planning system, while optimizing its limited resources. This study was conducted first to assess and evaluate the current practice in land use planning and management, and second to exploit the use of available low-cost Geographic Information Systems technologies in order the classify the parcels to land use based on criterion. Methods included PostgreSQL to create the database and use of the Open Geospatial Consortium standards of geo-spatial information and dissemination of this information through geoportal. An integrated system has been developed and tested; spatial analysis and decision support systems are applied and its relevance was validated by experts and managers in the Wereda. The study showed that with the use of low-cost GIS technologies, land use planning and management can be significantly vital.

012746   Wei J;Weifeng S;Xiaojing M;Hui J (School of Resources and Geoscience, China Univ of Mininig and Technology, Xuzhou-221 116, China, Email: wju@cumt.edu.cn) : Tectonic stress accumulation in Bohai-Zhangjiakou seismotectonic zone based on 3D visco-elastic modelling. J Earth Syst Sci 2016, 125(5), 1021-31.

Future earthquake potential in the Bohai-Zhangjiakou Seismotectonic Zone (BZSZ) in North China deserves close attention. Tectonic stress accumulation state is an important indicator for earthquakes; therefore, this study aims to analyse the stress accumulation state in the BZSZ via three-dimensional visco-elastic numerical modelling. The results reveal that the maximum shear stress in the BZSZ increases gradually as the depth increases, and the stress range is wider in the lower layer. In the upper layer, the maximum shear stress is high in the Zhangjiakou area, whereas in the lower layer, relatively high values occur in the Penglai-Yantai area, which may be affected by the depth of the Moho surface. Besides, weak fault zones will be easily fractured when the maximum shear stress is not sufficiently high due to their low strengths, resulting in earthquakes. Therefore, based on the modelling results, the upper layer of the Zhangjiakou area and the lower layer of the Penglai-Yantai area in the BZSZ in North China are more likely to experience earthquakes.

7 illus, 3 table, 63 ref

012745   Vittal A;Blurath G (NO, , ) : Evaluation of water quality for irrigation purpose in Sitanadi basin, Udupi district, Karnataka. J Remote Sensing GIS 2017, 8(1), 9-24.

Present study has been carried out with the objective to assess various factors controlling the groundwater quality with respect to irrigation, seasonal variations of groundwater quality for pre and post monsoon periods and to compare its suitability for irrigation use confirming to the latest water quality standards for irrigation. Sitanadi basin is located in the west coast of peninsular - 138 - India, Udupi district of Karnataka. It extended between 13°20" and 13°35" N latitudes and 74°40" and 75°10" E longitude. The geographical area of basin is about 643.65 sq. km. A total of 56 open dug wells were inventoried for groundwater samples collection in Sitanadi basin. Two sets of groundwater samples were collected from the dug wells during pre-monsoon and post-monsoon seasons of 2013, 2014 and 2015. Immediately after sampling, pH, EC, and TDS are tested in the field by a portable pH and an EC meter. These samples are used for analysis of major cations (Mg²⁺, Na⁺, Ca²⁺, K⁺) and major anions (HCO₃^-, Cl^-, SO₄^2-, NO₃^2-). These parameters are used to derive irrigation quality of ground water such as SAR, % Na, Residual Sodium carbonate, Magnesium Hazards, Kellie's ratio, CAI-I and CAI-II, Ca²⁺/Mg²⁺ ratio, Soluble Sodium Percentage, Potential salinity and Exchangeable Sodium Percentage. The ground water is found to fit to use for irrigation purposes except in few locations with respect to very few parameters such as Kelliy's Ratio and Soluble Sodium Percentage.

012744   Unnikrishan C K;George J P;LOdh A;Maurya D K; Mallick S;Rajagopal E N;Mohandas S (National Institute of Weather Forecasting, ESSO, MoES, Noida-201 309, Email: unnikrishan@ncmrwf.gov.in ) : Validation of two grided soil moisture products over India with in situ observations. J Earth Syst Sci 2016, 125(5), 935-44.

Surface level soil moisture from two gridded datasets over India are evaluated in this study. The first one is the UK Met Office (UKMO) soil moisture analysis produced by a land data assimilation system based on Extended Kalman Filter method (EKF), which make use of satellite observation of Advanced Scatterometer (ASCAT) soil wetness index as well as the screen level meteorological observations. Second dataset is a satellite soil moisture product, produced by National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) using passive microwave Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer 2 measurements. In-situ observations of soil moisture from India Meteorological Department (IMD) are used for the validation of the gridded soil moisture products. The difference between these datasets over India is minimum in the non-monsoon months and over agricultural regions. It is seen that the NRSC data is slightly drier (0.05%) and UKMO soil moisture analysis is relatively wet during southwest monsoon season. Standard AMSR-2 satellite soil moisture product is used to compare the NRSC and UKMO products. The standard AMSR-2 and UKMO values are closer in monsoon season and AMSR-2 soil moisture is higher than UKMO in all seasons. NRSC and AMSR-2 showed a correlation of 0.83 (significant at 0.01 level). The probability distribution of IMD soil moisture observation peaks at 0.25 m³/m³, NRSC at 0.15 m³/m³, AMSR-2 at 0.25 m³/m³ and UKMO at 0.35 m³/m³ during June-September period. Validation results show UKMO analysis has better correlation with in-situ observations compared to the NRSC and AMSR-2 datasets. The seasonal variation in soil moisture is better represented in UKMO analysis. Underestimation of soil moisture during monsoon season over India in NRSC data suggests the necessity of incorporating the actual vegetation for a better soil moisture retrieval using passive microwave sensors. Both products have good agreement over bare soil, shrubs and grassland compared to needle leaf tree, broad leaf tree and urban land cover types.

6 illus, 3 table, 24 ref

012743   Tikader S (Geography Dep, Michael Madhusudan Memorial College, Durgapur-712 216, Email: sribashtikader@gmail.com) : Spatio-temporal changing pattern of LULC: An overview. Int J Geomatics Geosci 2016, 7(2), 235-44.

Bhatar block is one of the most densely populated block in the district of Burdwan. With the growing population, and their increasing requirements in various sectors, land use land cover (LULC) patterns are undergoing a qualitative as well as quantitative change in which the area under agriculture is gradually increasing. Unprecedentedly forest cover of the block has also increased its area during assessment period. Different land use and demographic data were extracted from Census of India. Information regarding land use change was collected from field survey during 2015-16 and different secondary sources. Microsoft Excel, Arcview3.2a and QGIS2.12 RS-GIS software were used for the study. Over 80% land of the block is used as cultivated land against 46% for - 137 - India. This is possible for the presence of the highly fertile soils on the Ajoy-Damodor flood plain. Above 75% population of the area depends directly and indirectly on agricultural activity. Experience gathered during field visit and information collected from local farmers that numbers of ponds of the region have been terminated and converted into agricultural field which is unsustainable for the local ecology and environment. The high rate of depletion of water bodies would affect local weather, soil quality, crop quality and quantity and hence the living pattern of people of the region in future.

7 illus, 3 table, 9 ref