Suitable Water Conservation Measures and its Potential Sites for Sustainable Water Management Using Geospatial Techniques and SWAT model

A study on the Manali watershed used geospatial techniques, the SWAT model, and IMSD guidelines to identify suitable water conservation measures and their sites to combat water scarcity. SWAT model was calibrated and validated for the watershed with performance indicators R ² (0.85 − 0.61) and NSE (0.71 − 0.61) in the acceptable range. SWAT water balance estimation revealed that 78 percent of rainfall contributes to the runoff process as stream flow, which could be reduced through water conservation measures. A multi-criterion weighted overlay analysis, considering factors like land use, runoff, stream density, soil permeability, and slope, classified 15% of the area in Manali watershed as highly suitable, 84.8% as moderately suitable, and 0.2% as less suitable for water conservation. Recommendations included the construction of 32 farm ponds, seven percolation ponds, and four check dams, ultimately leading to the provision of clean water and sanitation to the people in the watershed.