STUDIES ON WATER QUALITY PARAMETERS AT MIDDLE REACHES OF DIKHOW RIVER OF ASSAM WITH REFERENCE TO COAL MINE DRAINAGEANURADHA GOGOI AND LAKHI RAM SAIKIAAbstract Seasonal changes in physicochemical parameters of Dikhow River at middle reaches were investigated for a period of two years (2016 and 2017). The objective was to determine the pollution status and suitability of domestic supplies to generate benchmark data for the management of river ecosystem, as this river has a great bearing on the socio- agricultural life. The data indicate that the river is under heavy stress of anthropogenic activities like coal mining waste deposition, industrial effluents etc. The Acid mine drainage is an important environmental concern. The study area was divided into three sampling zones viz. Naginimora, Santak and Simaluguri Puja ghat. pH, Dissolved Oxygen (DO), Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD), Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), Electrical conductivity (EC), Turbidity, Total dissolved solids (TDS), Hardness, Alkalinity, Sulphate, Total suspended solids (TSS) were seem fluctuating specially during the monsoon period. The coal mine pollution seems to modulate the sudden changes in those physicochemical parameters. The study indicates activities from anthropogenic sources along the catchment of the river and the data at sampling stations proves the magnitude of such activities on the quality of the river water. |