Morphometric Analysis of Markandeya River Sub Basin (MRSB), Belgaum District, Karnataka using Remote Sensing and Geographical Information System

In this present study, Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographical Information System (GIS) techniques are used to update drainage and surface water bodies to evaluate linear, relief and aerial morphometric parameters and to prioritize the watersheds of the Markandeya River Sub-Basin (MRSB), located in Belgaum district of Karnataka state,India. The Markandeya River Sub-Basin has sub-dendritic to dendritic drainage pattern. The highest bifurcation ratio among all the watersheds is 5.14 which indicates a weak structural control on the drainage. The maximum value of circularity ratio is 0.5198 for the watershed MW-3, which also has highest elongation ratio (0.64). The form factor values are in the range of 0.25 to 0.32 which indicates that the Markandeya River Sub-Basin has moderately high peak flow for shorter duration. The compound parameter values are calculated and prioritization rating of four watersheds in Markandeya River Sub-Basin is carried out. The watershed with the lowest compound parameter value is given the highest priority. The watershed MW-1 having a minimum compound parameter (Cp) value of 1.625 is likely to be subjected to maximum soil erosion and hence, it should be provided with immediate soil conservation measures.