Site Suitability Analysis of Water Harvesting Structures Using Remote Sensing and GIS – A Case Study of Pisangan Watershed, Ajmer District, Rajasthan

Abstract. Rajasthan is a region with very limited water resources. Water is the most crucial for maintaining an environment and ecosystem conducive to sustaining all forms of life. The principle of watershed management is the proper management of all the precipitation by the way of collection, storage and efficient utilization of runoff water and to recharge the ground water. The present study aim's to identify suitable zones for water harvesting structures in Pisangan watershed of Ajmer district, Rajasthan by using Geographic Information System (GIS) and Multi Criteria Evaluation (MSE). Multi criteria evaluation is carried out in Geographic Information system to help the decision makers in determining suitable zones for water harvesting structures based on the physical characteristics of the watershed. Different layers which were taken into account for multi criteria evaluation are; Soil texture, slope, rainfall data (2000–2012), land use/cover, geomorphology, lithology, lineaments, drainage network. The soil conservation service model was used to estimate the runoff depth of the study area Analytical Hierarchy Processes (AHP) is used to find suitable water harvesting structures on the basis of rainfall. Produced suitability map will help in the selection of harvesting structures such as percolation tanks, storage tank, check dams and stop dams.