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Water quality has emerged as a fast-developing research area. Regular assessment of research activity is necessary for the successful R&D promotion. Water quality research work carried out in different countries increased over the years, and the USA ranked first in productivity while India stands in the seventh position in quantity and occupies the ninth position in quality of the research output. India observes a steady growth in the water quality research. Four thousand six hundred sixteen articles from India assessed from the aspect of citations received distributions of source countries, institutes, journals, impact factor, words in the title, author keywords. The qualitative and quantitative analysis identifies the contributions of the major institutions involved in research. Much of the country’s water quality research is carried out by universities, public research institutions and science councils, whereas the contribution from Ministry of water resources not so significant. A considerable portion of Indian research is communicated through foreign journals, and the most active one is Environmental Monitoring and Assessment journal. Twenty-one percent of work is reported in journals published from India and around 7% ages in open access journals. The study highlights that international collaborative research resulted in high-quality papers. The authors meticulously analyse the published research works to gain a deeper understanding of focus areas through word cluster analyses on title words and keywords. When many papers deal with ‘contamination’, ‘assessment’ and ‘treatment’, enough studies done on ‘water quality index’, ‘toxicity’, considerable work is carried out in environmental, agricultural, industrial and health problems related to water quality. This detailed scientometric study from 1,09,766 research works from SCI-E during 1986-2015 plots the trends and identifies research hotspots for the benefit to scientists in the subject area. This study comprehends the magnitude of water quality research also establishes future research directions using various scientometric indicators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soil contamination with potentially toxic elements (PTEs) in the Malwa region belt of Punjab, India, can be a serious concern as a result of intensive agricultural practices and overuse of agrochemicals. The main objectives of the present study were to evaluate the spatial distribution, geochemical signature, and contamination level/health risk of PTEs in 76 soil samples (0–10 cm) collected from the three districts viz. Muktar, Faridkot, and Moga of Punjab, India. The result shows that PTEs concentrations vary widely in the region, with Fe and Mn distribution patterns being mostly coherent with each other. When compared to the Indian natural soil background values, the average concentration of Pb and Zn were higher than the limit, only Pb exceeded the average values of the world background and upper continental crust (UCC). Spatial autocorrelation plotted with a local indicator of spatial association (LISA) in GeoDa software version 1.18 was used to identify hotspots. A positive spatial autocorrelation (>0.2) was indicated with Moran's I values for Pb, V, Mn, Cu, and Cr, being highest for Pb. A principal component analysis (PCA) identified the major geo-chemical patterns of Fe-Al-V-Cr and TOC-Mn-Zn-HCO3−, which were positively loaded on PC1. This indicates that Fe/Al-oxyhydroxides and organic matter play a dominant role in controlling metal mobility in soils. This can be further substantiated with the Spearman's rank correlation values. The contamination factor (CF) indicates that only Pb and Zn (15.7% and 3.9% samples, respectively) were under high risk. This could be due to the excessive application of chemical fertilizers. The large range of degree of contamination (Cdeg) values suggests that there are variations in the degree of soil pollution due to PTEs. A little over 3.9% of samples had significant contamination, compared to 72.3% of samples with low contamination and 23.6% of samples with moderate contamination. Human non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risk levels were investigated. The hazard index (HI) values for adult ranged from 0.00 to 0.2, and values for children ranged from 0.009 to 1.2. These findings suggest that both children and adults are not at potential risk, except in a few locations. Overall, the results of this study provide the current baseline status of toxic elements in agricultural soil. This would be helpful for developing strategies for sustainable management of the soil resources in the region, as well as for future monitoring programs of the soil quality in the Malwa region as a whole, to track any changes in the contamination levels over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soil degradation in Odisha poses a significant conservation concern for the local environment. The present research focused on a region in central Odisha State, India, affected by drought conditions. Several models have emerged to assess soil loss, with the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) standing out as the most suitable option. The erosion computation process entails utilizing the digital elevation model (DEM), Landsat-9 imagery, and soil data from several sources accessible in different forms and scales. The present analysis took into account various elements, namely, crop management factor (C), practice management factor (P), slope length factor (LS), steepness factor of the slope (S), and rainfall factor (R). Multiplying these factors yielded the average rate of soil erosion. Areas with a high slope length factor, such as those in Kandhamal, Kalahandi, and Nuapada, have a high erosion rate. The study reveals that 57% of the land in the study area experiences very low to moderate soil erosion at a rate of 2–10 tons per hectare per year, while 43% faces moderately to very severe erosion at a rate of 10–25 tons per hectare per year. Erosion hotspots, covering 32,205 square kilometers, are mainly identified in agricultural and forested hilly areas where slopes exceed 10°, such as those in Kandhamal, Kalahandi, and Nuapada, which have a high erosion rate. These districts are especially vulnerable to soil loss and resulting climate action (Sustainable Development Goals-13) because of frequent and severe rainfall, shifting agricultural practices, a thin surface soil covering, natural erosion, and barren hills. The research emphasizes the urgent need for implementing conservation and management measures to protect high-risk areas from further degradation. In conclusion, the study underscores the effectiveness of the RUSLE-GIS model in conducting quantitative and spatial assessments of soil erosion on a river watershed scale. The model is deemed crucial in formulating conservation strategies to address the identified erosion issues in the tropical highlands of the area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trace element pollution of soils surrounding coal-mining areas affects the health of local communities. The increasing coal-mining and associated activities in the Raniganj basin (east India) have led to increased soil concentration of certain trace elements. To quantify the elevated trace element (TE) concentrations in the soil surrounding coal-mining areas, 83 surface soil, coal, and shale samples were collected from open-cast mining areas of the eastern Raniganj basin. The soils present are sandy silt, silty sand, and silty in nature, but almost no clay. They are acidic (pH = 4.3) to slightly alkaline (pH = 7.9) with a mean electrical conductivity (EC) of 340.45 µS/cm and a mean total organic carbon (TOC) of 1.80%. The northern and western parts of the study area were found to be highly polluted by certain metallic trace elements. The relevant environmental indices, geoaccumulation index (Igeo), contamination factors (CF), enrichment factors (EF), and pollution load index (PLI) were calculated and assessed. Analysis revealed that Cr was highly enriched in these soil samples, followed by Pb, Co, Cu, Cd, Fe, Ni, Mn, Zn, As, and Al. Geostatistical analyses (correlation coefficients and principal component analysis) indicated that the occurrence of some trace elements (Al, Cd, Co, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, and Zn) is most likely linked to the various coal-mining operations in the study area. However, the anomalous Cr and Pb distributions are likely influenced by other anthropogenic, mainly industrial, inputs besides coal mining. These results justify the adoption of rigorous soil monitoring programs in the vicinity of coal-mining areas, to identify pollution hotspots and to develop strategies to reduce or mitigate such environmentally damaging pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the last decade the demand of power in India has increased manifold, therefore Government has announced the National Solar Mission of generating 100 GW of solar power up to 2022. Around 60% of the total National Solar Mission target is allotted to the national/international large-scale solar power developers/investors. Hence, it becomes important to know the ground reality of large-scale solar PV developers/investors. This paper deeply analyzes the key barriers and bottlenecks faced by solar power developers in achieving the target and their growth. This article also suggests some motivational factors of solar energy which play an important role in attracting large solar players around the world to invest in Indian subcontinent. It concludes by highlighting some key policies of the Government that can help in addressing some identified barriers in order to ensure a secured sustainable energy future of India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Malaria is endemic and a major public health problem in north east (NE) region of India and contributes about 8-12% of India's malaria positives cases. Historical morbidity pattern of malaria in terms of API (Annual Parasite Incidence) in the state of Assam has been used for delineating the malaria incidence hotspots at health sub centre (HSC) level. Strong spatial autocorrelation (p<0.01) among the HSCs have been observed in terms of API (Annual Parasite Incidence). Malaria incidence hot spots in the state could be identified based on General G statistics and tested for statistical significance. Spatial correlation of malaria incidence hotspots with physiographic and climatic parameters across 6 agro-climatic zones of the state reveals the types of land cover pattern and the range of elevation contributing to the malaria outbreaks. Analysis shows that villages under malaria hotspots are having more agricultural land, evergreen/semi-evergreen forests with abundant waterbodies. Statistical and spatial analyses of malaria incidence showed a significant positive correlation with malaria incidence hotspots and the elevation (p<0.05) with villages under malaria hotspots are having average elevation ranging between 17 to 240 MSL. This conforms to the characteristics of two dominant mosquito species in the state Anopheles minimus and An. baimai that prefers the habitat of slow flowing streams in the foot hills and in forest ecosystems respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study identified groundwater depletion–induced land subsidence by spaceborne differential interferometric SAR (DInSAR) technique and assessed the damaging impacts of land subsidence by characterising the cracks on houses in Mohali-Chandigarh area of India. First, we identified groundwater depletion hot spots using pre-monsoon and post-monsoon groundwater-level (GWL) data of Central Ground Water Board (CGWB), India, for the period of 2005–2018. Both conventional and advanced DInSAR techniques were used to identify temporally consistent subsiding areas and measure precise rates of subsidence in and around groundwater depletion hot spots. We studied the damaging impacts of land surface deformation by characterising the damaging cracks on houses in affected areas. Groundwater depletion and resulting aquifer-system compaction increase effective stress on confining clay layer which leads to stress build-up at the soil-structure interface and causes damaging cracks on houses. A variety of damaging cracks on houses were observed at the affected areas such as Sohana, Landran, Kharar and Kurali localities. We attempted to characterise the damaging cracks on the basis of shape, size, orientation, surface morphology and texture of the cracks; sense of ground movement; and nature of stress build-up at the interface. We identified tensional cracks, compressional cracks and shear cracks with diverse orientations and separation widths. Finally, a comparative assessment of groundwater depletion, land subsidence and damaging impacts on houses has been made. Using DInSAR technique, we identified land subsidence in and around the groundwater depletion areas in Sohana and Landran (both in Mohali City area), Kharar and Kurali (in Mohali district outside Mohali City area) and Sectors 27–28 in Chandigarh with radar line-of-sight subsidence rates of ~6–7.5 cm/year, ~5.5–6.5 cm/year, and ~ 4 cm/year respectively. We observed that the houses in and around Landran appears to be worst affected followed by Kharar, Sohana and Kurali. From this study, it appears that the type of construction of the houses, e.g. prevalence of masonry and reinforced masonry structures, is primarily responsible for the worst damaging impacts of the houses in Landran and Kurali areas besides the magnitude of land subsidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Being one of the important nutrients required by plants during photosynthesis, nitrogen (N) exerts a significant control on primary productivity and carbon dioxide sequestration. Therefore, it is essential to quantify the rates of N cycling processes, such as gross N mineralization and nitrification, to understand the flow and availability of N in different ecosystems. Lack of such data in tropical regions, particularly the Indian subcontinent, has constrained our understanding of N dynamics in soils of the subcontinent. Aims: Here, we report the results of gross N transformation rates from the hot and humid tropical forest soils of the Western Ghats, one of the global biodiversity hotspots located in India. Results: The experiments conducted using the 15N isotope dilution technique showed higher average gross N mineralization (2.6 ± 1.1 mg N kg−1 d−1) and gross nitrification (1.7 ± 1.1 mg N kg−1 d−1) rates in the top soil layers (0–20 cm), which decreased significantly with depth (20–40 cm) indicating potential for higher microbial activity in the top soils. The overall consumption rate of mineral N exceeded its production rate with higher consumption of ammonium (NH4+) than nitrate (NO3-) suggesting NH4+ as a preferred N source for microbes. The consumption of NH4+ was higher through NH4+ immobilization than nitrification indicating active N conservation mechanism and an efficient microbial adaptation. Conclusion: Despite high rates of consumption, accumulation of NH4+ and NO3- in soils of the Western Ghats suggested additional sources of mineral N other than internal recycling of N. Long residence time of NH4+ and NO3- in soils implied longer availability of unutilized mineral N leading to high soil acidity and potential for loss of N through leaching and denitrification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a part of International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS)/International Association of Geochemistry (IAGC) Task Group on Global Geochemical Baselines, CSIR-National Geophysical Research Institute (CSIR-NGRI), Hyderabad, India has carried out geochemical baseline mapping of India to provide high quality data for a wide range of environmental applications. A project based on IUGS global baselines project was initiated by NGRI to cover the whole of India which is having 122 Global Terrestrial Network (GTN)/Global Reference Network (GRNs) of 160 x 160 km. Soil samples were studied in 115 out of the 122 GRN cells in India. 544 topsoil samples were collected for these studies. The soil samples were collected as per the guidelines given in the IUGS/IAGC field manual. The samples were analyzed for 10 major and 12 trace elements (SiO2, Al2O3, Fe2O3, MnO, MgO, CaO, Na2O, K2O, TiO2, P2O5, Ba, Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Rb, Sr, V, Y, Zn and Zr) by X-ray fluorescence spectrometer at NGRI. The analytical data were computed to prepare geochemical maps showing the distribution of major oxides and trace elements all over India. These maps will help to know the distribution of the toxic and hazardous metals and their relation to human health. These maps also help to see the hot spots for the entire country and in suggesting remedial measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Imprints of Marion hotspot magmatism representing the final stages of rifting between India and Madagascar from the Gondwana assembly occur scattered in several localities of southern India. In this study, we report evidence for rift‐related Santonian magmatism from alkali gabbro in the Madurai Block and present mineralogical, petrological, zircon U–Pb geochronological, and whole‐rock geochemical data on the Mundanmudi gabbroic complex. The rock shows mesocumulate textures with plagioclase laths forming the triple junctions and porphyritic texture with hornblende and clinopyroxene as phenocrysts. Geochemically, the gabbros are characterized by moderate to high SiO2 (50–58 wt.%), alkalies (4.14–7.00 wt.%), and high TiO2 (1.71–4.22 wt.%), with calc‐alkaline to high‐K alkaline affinity. Chondrite‐normalized REE patterns are highly fractionated with LREE enrichment relative to HREE and absence of Eu anomalies. The primitive mantle normalized trace element patterns have LILE enrichment relative to HFSE, exhibiting negative anomalies at Nb, Zr, and Ti. The HFSE relationships indicate a within‐plate tectonic setting for the genesis of these gabbros. The major element tectonic discrimination plots suggest MORB‐OFB affinity which is also supported by the Nb–Th relationship endorsing the divergent tectonic processes responsible for the generation of these gabbros. The zircon U–Pb mean age of ca. 85 Ma represents the magmatic emplacement age within a rift‐related tectonic setting during the Santonian (late Cretaceous). Based on the LREE and HREE relationship, it is inferred that the parental magma might have been derived at garnet lherzolite depths above the Marion plume, possibly correlatable with the large igneous province generated at this time in Madagascar. Our study provides new evidence for the final phase of the magmatism at ca. 85 Ma related to India–Madagascar rifting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Food production hinges largely upon access to phosphorus (P) fertilizer. Most fertilizer P used in the global agricultural system comes from mining of nonrenewable phosphate rock deposits located within few countries. However, P contained in livestock manure or urban wastes represents a recyclable source of P. To inform development of P recycling technologies and policies, we examined subnational, national, and global spatial patterns for two intersections of land use affording high P recycling potential: (a) manure‐rich cultivated areas and (b) populous cultivated areas. In turn, we examined overlap between P recycling potential and nation‐level P fertilizer import dependency. Populous cultivated areas were less abundant globally than manure‐rich cultivated areas, reflecting greater segregation between crops and people compared to crops and livestock, especially in the Americas. Based on a global hexagonal grid (290‐km2 grid cell area), disproportionately large shares of subnational "hot spots" for P recycling potential occurred in India, China, Southeast Asia, Europe, and parts of Africa. Outside of China, most of the remaining manure‐rich or populous cultivated areas occurred within nations that had relatively high imports of P fertilizer (net P import:consumption ratios ≥0.4) or substantial increases in fertilizer demand between the 2000s (2002–2006) and 2010s (2010–2014). Manure‐rich cultivated grid cells (those above the 75th percentiles for both manure and cropland extent) represented 12% of the global grid after excluding cropless cells. Annually, the global sum of animal manure P was at least 5 times that contained in human excreta, and among cultivated cells the ratio was frequently higher (median = 8.9). The abundance of potential P recycling hot spots within nations that have depended on fertilizer imports or experienced rising fertilizer demand could prove useful for developing local P sources and maintaining agricultural independence. Key Points: Many nations import mineral phosphorus (P) fertilizers to support agriculture but possess alternative, local, recyclable sources of P in manure and biosolidsA global, subnationally resolved analysis revealed where manure‐rich and populous cultivated areas occur and, in turn, where P recycling potential may be highAbundant P recycling opportunities exist in nations that have relied on fertilizer imports or had rising fertilizer demand, and these could be important to future agricultural independence [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agricultural irrigation has significant potential for altering local climate by reducing soil albedo, increasing evapotranspiration, and enabling greater leaf area. Numerous studies using regional or global climate models have demonstrated the cooling effects of irrigation on mean and extreme temperature, especially over regions where irrigation is extensive. However, these model‐based results have not been well validated due to the limitations of observational data sets. In this study, multiple satellite‐based products, including the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) data sets, are used to isolate and quantify the local impacts of irrigation on surface climate over irrigated regions, which are derived from the Global Map of Irrigation Areas (GMIA). The relationships among soil moisture, albedo, evapotranspiration, and surface temperature are explored. Strong evaporative cooling by irrigation lowers daytime surface temperature over arid and semi‐arid regions, such as California's Central Valley, the Great Plains, central Asia, and northwestern India. However, the cooling effects are less evident in areas of eastern China and the Lower Mississippi River Basin despite extensive irrigation over these regions. Results are also compared with irrigation experiments using the Community Earth System Model (CESM) to assess the model's ability to represent land–atmosphere interactions in regards to irrigation. CESM greatly underestimates the surface temperature response to irrigation. The comparison between the offline and coupled simulations suggests that the irrigation‐induced cooling can be regulated by the interactions between land surface and atmosphere, and amplified signals are found over the "hot spot" regions. Meanwhile, model resolution can also influence the magnitude of the local cooling by irrigation. This study, for the first time, thoroughly investigated the observed local impacts of irrigation on surface climate based on multiple satellite‐based products at the global scale. Strong evaporative cooling of irrigation on daytime surface temperature is found over arid and semi‐arid regions, such as California's Central Valley, the Great Plains, central Asia, and northwestern India. However, the cooling effects are less evident in areas of eastern China and the Lower Mississippi River Basin despite extensive irrigation over these regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The caenogastropod family Littorinidae is almost exclusively marine, but a unique freshwater genus, Cremnoconchus, is known from India. Its members are restricted to montane streams on the western escarpment of the Western Ghats, at altitudes between 300 and 1400 m. Four species and several varieties were described in the 19th century, but no taxonomic study has been carried out for over 120 years and the last anatomical report was in 1935. Nevertheless, they are of unusual evolutionary interest and also of conservation concern as a genus endemic to the Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot. Based on anatomical study of newly collected material and examination of historical and type specimens, we present a systematic revision of Cremnoconchus, illustrating shells, radulae, and reproductive anatomy. The very large eggs, invaginated penial filament, and calcified operculum are unique among Littorinidae. Three valid, described species ( C. syhadrensis, C. conicus, C. canaliculatus) are recognized in the northern Western Ghats in Maharashtra state, where all can occasionally be found sympatrically. We describe an additional six new species from the central Western Ghats in a small area (linear distance 80 km) of Karnataka state, over 500 km south of the previously known range of the genus. Here the species each appear to be restricted to a single drainage system. Because of their highly restricted distribution and fragile habitat, this radiation of nine species is judged to be endangered. © 2013 The Linnean Society of London [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present work is a multi-temporal satellite based study on the spatial dynamic of an important coastal habitat, the Pichavaram mangrove ecosystem, over a period of 15 years. The Pichavaram mangrove forest near Chidambaram, South India is the second largest mangrove forest in the world. Unsupervised classification, the Iterative Self Organising Data Analysis Technique (ISODATA), has been used to classify the mangrove cover into the open and dense classes. The status of the classes has been monitored using Landsat TM of 1991, 2001, and Resourcesat-1 LISS IV of 2006 satellite data. The study demonstrated that by classifying mangrove ecosystem into just the 3 classes using remote sensing data and by studying their temporal variations, it is possible to get a reasonably accurate picture of the extent and condition of the mangrove ecosystem. The total area of the Pichavaram mangrove showed a net increase of 2.51 km within a span of 15 years (1991 to 2006). The hot spots that are at a risk of being degraded, and on the other hand, the mangrove areas that are well managed are identified using Geographical Information System (GIS) tools for the restoration and conservation measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lower atmospheric perturbations often produce measurable effects in the middle and upper atmosphere. The present study demonstrates the response of the middle atmospheric thermal structure to the significant enhancement of the lower atmospheric heating effect caused by dust storms observed over the Thar Desert, India. Our study from multisatellite observations of two dust storm events that occurred on 3 and 8 May 2007 suggests that dust storm events produce substantial changes in the lower atmospheric temperatures as hot spots which can become sources for gravity waves observed in the middle atmosphere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In most of the developing countries, man-made developments in the environment have led to the growing demand to contextualize the land use land cover (LULC) changes and land surface temperature (LST) variations. Due to the modification in the surface properties of the cities, a difference in energy balance between the cities and its nonurban surroundings is observed. The aim of this study is to analyze the spatial and temporal patterns of LULC and LST and its interrelationship in Bengaluru urban district, India, during the period from 1989 to 2017 using remote sensing data. Intensity analysis was performed for the interval to analyze the LULC change and identify the driving forces. The impact of LULC change on LST was assessed using hot spot analysis (Getis–Ord Gi* statistics). The results of this study show that (a) dominant LULC change experienced is the increase in urban area (approximately 40%) and the rate of land use change was faster in the time period 1989–2001 than 2001–2017; (b) the major transition witnessed is from barren and agricultural land to urban; (c) over the period of 28 years, LST patterns for different land use classes exhibit an increasing trend with an overall increase of approximately 6 °C and the mean LST of urban area increased by about 8 °C; (d) LST pattern change can be effectively analyzed using hot spot analysis; and (e) as the urban expansion occurs, the cold spots have increased, and it is mainly clustered in the urban area. It confirms the presence of an urban cool island effect in Bengaluru urban district. The findings of this work can be used as a scientific basis for the sustainable development and land use planning of the region in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]