A Case Study on Groundwater Table Fluctuation and Possible Contaminant Transport to Wells from Haldi River in Nandigram, West Bengal, India

IJEP 46(4): 291-302 : Vol. 46 Issue. 4 (April 2026)

Full Text

Md. Wasim Akram1, Indranil Mukherjee1*, Debasis Sau2, Arun Kumar Gangopadhyay1 and Abhijit Mondal1

1. Aliah University, Department of Civil Engineering, Kolkata – 700 160, West Bengal, India
2. Jadavpur University, Environmental Engineering Division, Department of Civil Engineering, Kolkata – 700 032, West Bengal, India

Abstract

Groundwater pollution poses a significant risk to water resources in many areas because removing groundwater contaminants is very difficult and wells are among the main sources of groundwater extraction. Contamination can originate from industrial discharges or recharge, especially near rivers. Additionally, in regions where well water is used for drinking, the situation becomes more complicated. This paper explores the uncertainty surrounding contaminant transport in the Nandigram area of West Bengal, India. The potential movement of contaminants has been assessed between four main wells in the area, based on the Survey of India maps (toposheet no. F45Q1 and F45K4), including connections between these wells and the nearby Haldi river. Surface water pollution in the Haldi river adds another contamination source for the wells, alongwith possible discharges from industries and agricultural activities. The transport of these contaminants was modelled using numerical techniques with MODFLOW software. Basic hydrogeological data, such as aquifer properties, recharge rates and suspected contamination sources, served as input for a calibrated MODFLOW model to define flow regimes. To simulate contaminant dispersion, MT3DMS, integrated with MODFLOW, was employed. The main contaminants studied were Cr, Cu, Pb, Fe, Cd and Zn. The study observed minimal fluctuations in water levels between dry and wet seasons, considering steady and transient states, respectively. Over a five-year period, Zn showed the highest percentage increase in migration, Fe impacted the largest area, Cu had the smallest percentage increase and Cd affected the smallest area during progression. Notably, except for Cd, all other metals are expected to heavily infiltrate and influence all the wells within this timeframe.

Keywords

Groundwater contaminant transport, Water table fluctuation, MODFLOW, MT3DMS

References

  1. Ashraf, S., Nazemi, A. and AghaKouchak, A. 2021. Anthropogenic drought dominates groundwater depletion in Iran. Sci. reports. 11(1): 9135.
  2. Priyan, K. 2021. Issues and challenges of groundwater and surface water management in semi-arid regions. In Groundwater resources development and planning in the semi-arid region. Ed Pande, C.B. and Moharir, K.N. Springer, Cham. pp 1-17. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-68124-1_1.
  3. Shah, T. 2005. Groundwater and human development: challenges and opportunities in livelihoods and environment. Water Sci. Tech., 51(8): 27-37.
  4. CGWB. 2019. Groundwater year book – India 2018-19. Central Ground Water Board, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India.
  5. Jana, S. and Jana, S. 2023. Seasonal fluctuation of groundwater table and its impact on rural livelihood: A village level study at coastal belt of Purba Medinipur district, India (chapter 20). In Case studies in geospatial applications to groundwater resources. Ed Shit, P., Bhunia, G. and Adhikary, P. Elsevier. pp 385-410. DOI: 10.1016/B978-0-323-99963-2.00005-5.
  6. Guchhait, S., Dolui, G., Das, S. and Das, N. 2023. Groundwater fluctuation and agricultural insecurity: A geospatial analysis of West Bengal in India (chapter 15). In Case studies in geospatial applications to groundwater resources. Ed Shit, P., Bhunia, G. and Adhikary, P. Elsevier. pp 275-288. DOI: 10.101 6/B978-0-323-99963-2.00002-X.
  7. UNEP. 2003. Groundwater and its susceptibility to degradation: A global assessment of the problem and options for management. UNEP/DEWA/RS.03-3. United Nations Environment Programme’s Division of Early Warning and Assessment (UNEP-DEWA), Kenya.
  8. Qadir, M., Sharma, B. R., Bruggeman, A., Choukr-Allah, R. and Karajeh, F. 2007. Non-conventional water resources and opportunities for water augmentation to achieve food security in water scarce countries. Agric. water manage., 87(1): 2-22. DOI: 10.1016/j.agwat.2006.03.018.
  9. Kirby, J. M., Ahmad, M. D., Mainuddin, M., Palash, W., Quadir, M. E., Shah-Newaz, S. M. and Hossain, M. M. 2015. The impact of irrigation development on regional groundwater resources in Bangladesh. Agric. Water Manage., 159: 264-276. DOI: 10.101 6/j.agwat.2015.05.026.
  10. Mukherjee, A. 2020. Changing the groundwater landscape of India: Implications to drinking water, food security, socio-economy and public health. Proceedings Indian National Sci. Academy. 86: 1295-1312. DOI: 10.16943/ptinsa/2019/49708.
  11. Ray, G. 2008. Nandigram and beyond. Gangchil Publishers.
  12. Mor, S. and Ravindra, K. 2023. Municipal solid waste landfills in lower-and middle-income countries: Environmental impacts, challenges and sustainable management practices. Process Safety Env. Prot., 174: 510-530. DOI: 10.1016/j.psep.20 23.04.014.
  13. Ziraba, A. K., Haregu, T. N. and Mberu, B. 2016. A review and framework for understanding the potential impact of poor solid waste management on health in developing countries. Arch. Public Health. 74: 55. DOI: 10.1186/s13690-016-0166-4.
  14. Jayalath, G.N.T. and Ratnayake, A.S. 2025. Overview of coastal and marine pollution: Sources, impacts and challenges (chapter 1). In Coastal and marine pollution: Source to sink, mitigation and management. Ed Vithanage, M., Samarasekara, S.M., James, B.D. and Reddy, C.M. Wiley. DOI: 10.1002/9781394237029. ch1.
  15. Harbaugh, A. W. 2005. MODFLOW-2005: The US Geological Survey modular groundwater model: The groundwater flow process (vol 6). US Department of the Interior, US Geological, Survey, USA.
  16. Zheng, C. and Wang, P.P. 1999. MT3DMS: a modular three-dimensional multispecies transport model for simulation of advection, dispersion and chemical reactions of contaminants in groundwater systems; documentation and user’s guide. Contract report SERDP-99-1. US Army Corps of Engineers.
  17. McDonald, M.G. and Harbaugh, A.W. 1988. A modular three-dimensional finite-difference ground-water flow model. US Geological Survey. DOI: 10.3 133/ofr83875.
  18. Gautam, S.K., Maharana, C., Sharma, D., Singh, A.K., Tripathi, J.K. and Singh, S.K. 2015. Evaluation of groundwater quality in the Chotanagpur plateau region of the Subarnarekha river basin Jhar-khand state, India. Sustain. Water Qual. Ecol., 6: 57-74. DOI: 10.1016/j.swaqe.2015.06.001.
  19. Sulaiman, M. A., Divya, Zafar, M. M., Anjum, S. and Kumari, A. 2023. Groundwater contamination by fluoride and mitigation measures for sustainable management of groundwater in the Indo-Gangetic plains of India. In Groundwater in arid and semi-arid areas: Monitoring, assessment, modelling and management. Ed Ali, S. and Armanuos, A.M. Sprin-ger Nature, Cham, Switzerland. pp 289-314. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-43348-1_1 2.
  20. Burri, N. M., Weatherl, R., Moeck, C. and Schirmer, M. 2019. A review of threats to groundwater quality in the Anthropocene. Sci. Total Env., 684: 136-154. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.05.236.
  21. Saha, D., Marwaha, S. and Mukherjee, A. 2017. Groundwater resources and sustainable management issues in India. In Clean and sustainable groundwater in India. Springer, Singapore. pp 1-11. DOI: 10.1007/978-981-10-4552-3_1.
  22. Maity, P.K., Das, S. and Das, R. 2017. Methodology for groundwater extraction in the coastal aquifers of Purba Midnapur district of West Bengal in India under the constraint of saline water intrusion. Asian J. Water Env. Poll., 14(2): 1-12. DOI: 10.32 33/AJW-170011.
  23. Rahman, M. R. 2015. Causes of biodiversity depletion in Bangladesh and their consequences on ecosystem services. American j. env. prot., 4(5): 214-236. DOI: 10.11648/j.ajep.20150405.13.
  24. Maity, R., Mandal, B. and Gupta, A. 2017. Impact of heavy metals on thread fin cat fish (Arius arius) in the mouth of Haldi river of West Bengal, India. Int. J. Curr. Res., 9(10): 58442-58445.