District Gadchiroli
1 Introduction
Gadchiroli district was carved out on the 26th of August 1982 by the division of erstwhile Chandrapur district. Earlier, it was a part of Chandrapur District and only two places namely Gadchiroli and Sironcha were tahsils of Chandrapur District before the formation of Gadchiroli District.
Gadchiroli tahsil was created in 1905 by transfer of Zamindari Estate from Brahmapuri and Chandrapur tahsil. Gadchiroli district was created on August 26, 1982 by bifurcating the Chandrapur district in the place of Brahmapuri, which is part of the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra. In ancient times the region was ruled by the Rashtrakutas, the Chalukyas, the Yadavas of Deogiri and later the Gonds of Gadchiroli. In the 13th century Khandkya Ballal Shah founded Chandrapur. He shifted his capital from Sirpur to Chandrapur. Chandrapur subsequently came under Maratha rule. In 1853, Berar, of which Chandrapur (then called Chanda until 1964) was part, was ceded to the British East India Company. In 1854, Chandrapur became an independent district of Berar. In 1905, the British created the tehsil of Gadchiroli by transfer of Zamindari Estate from Chandrapur and Brahmapuri. It was part of the Central Provinces till 1956, when with the reorganisation of the states, Chandrapur was transferred to Bombay state. In 1960, when the new state of Maharashtra was created, Chandrapur became a district of the state. In 1982 Chandrapur was divided, with Gadchiroli becoming an independent district in the place of Brahmapuri.
Gadchiroli district is situated on the North-Eastern side of Maharashtra State & district is situated on the North-Eastern side of Maharashtra State & have State borders of Telangana and Chhattisgarh. Naxalism is highly prevalent in Gadchiroli district and subsequently has been highlighted as part of the Red Corridor, used to describe areas in India that are plagued by Naxalites. They took the shelter in the dense forest & hills of this district.
Total population of the district is 10,72,942. Male and female population is 5,41,328 and 5,31,614 respectively (As per Census 2011). SC and ST population in the district is 1,20,754 and 4,15,306 (As per 2011 Census). The literacy rate of district is 74.4%(as per census 2011). The percentage of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes community population that resides in the district is 11.25% and 38.7% respectively ( As per Census 2011).
The district is categorised as Tribal and undeveloped district and most of the land is covered with forest and hills. The district has forests cover near about 76 % of the geographical area of the district. This district is famous for Bamboo and Tendu leaves. Paddy is the main agriculture produce in this district. The other Agriculture Produce in the district are Jwar, Linseed, Tur, Wheat. The Main profession of the people is farming.
There are no large scale Industry in the entire district except the Paper Mill at Ashti in Chamorshi Taluka and Paper Pulp Factory at Desaiganj. Due to this, the district is economically backward. There are many Rice Mills in the district as the Paddy is the main agriculture produce here.The Tussar Silk Worm Centre exist in Armori taluka of the district. Only, 18.5 kilometers Railway route passes through the district.
Seven languages are spoken in the district ie, Gondi, Madiya , Marathi, Hindi, Telugu, Bengali, Chattisgadi.
The district is divided into six Sub-Divisions i.e. Gadchiroli, Chamorshi, Aheri, Etapalli, Desaiganj and Kurkheda respectively and each sub-division has two talukas. 457 Gram Panchayats and 1688 Revenue Villages. The district has three Legislative Assembly Constituencies namely Gadchiroli, Armori and Aheri. Basically, the district is distributed into 12 talukas and 12 Panchayat Samitis. There are 9 Nagar Panchayats in Gadchiroli district and three Municipaltis exist in the district i.e. at Gadchiroli, Desaiganj(Wadsa) and Armori.
The main river basin of the district is Godavari which borders the southern boundary of the district and flows West to East. The major sub-basins of the Godavari are Pranhita sub-basins which is named after the confluence of two major sub-basins ie Wainganga and Wardha River near Chaprala village of Chamorshi Taluka; and Indravati sub-basin.
The eastern part of district ie, Dhanora, Etappali, Aheri and Sironcha talukas; are covered by the forest. Hills are located in the areas of Bhamaragad, Tipagad, Palasgad and Surjagad in the district.
2 Climate and Rainfall
Summer is hot in Gadchiroli district and the temperature is very high in the district. May and June are considered the hottest month of all. Due to the extreme heat and Due to dense forest the high concentration of steam in the air, the weather is disturbed during May and June. The months of December and January are very cold in this district. Rainfall is not uniform in all the blocks of the district. The district normal rainfall for the year is 1254.1 mm
3 Geomorphology, Drainage and Soil Types
The major area of the district is having undulating topography on large scale. Except a narrow strip along Godavari and Pranhita rivers. Main physio-graphic features of the district are the Sirkonda, Bhamragad, Aheri and Dandkaranya hill ranges. The eastern part of district ie Dhanora, Etapalli, Aheri and Sironcha talukas are somewhat higher part of district and are covered by thick forest. Hills are located in the area of Bhamaragad, Tipagad, Palasgad and Surjagad in the district. The low land of the district shows rolling topography with isolated hill rocks.
The entire Gadchiroli district is included in the drainage basin of Godavari river. At the South Western boundary of the district, near Sironcha, Godavari enters the district and flows eastwards for about 50Km along Southern boundary of the district. After its’s confluence with Indravati, at the South-Eastern corner, the Godavari turns South into Andhra Pradesh. The Western boundary for a distance of 225 Km is formed by the flow of Wainganga river which divides Chandrapur and Gadchiroli district. Khobragadi, Kathani and Mirgadola rivers are major tributaries. The Pranhita river, formed by confluence of Wainganga and Wardha rivers; forms the SouthWestern boundary for 190 Km till it’s confluence with the Godavari. Dina river is the main tributary. The Indravati river enters in Maharashtra near Kowande village of Bhamragad Tehsil in the district and forms the South-Eastern boundary for a distance of 120 Km before joining the Godavari. Parlkota (Nimbra), Pamulgautam(Kotari) and Bandia are the major tributaries. The River Godavari confluence with Wainganga river at Sironcha; Godavari and Indravati at Somnur; Wardha and Pranhita near Chaprala in Chamorshi Taluka; Parlkota (Nimbra), Pamulgautam(Kotari) and Indravati (Triveni Sangam) near Bhamragad. The predominant soil cover in the district is clay, clay-gravel, sandy loam, deep black soil, reddish & yellowish-brown soils on hill slopes, brown & gray soils of plains and laterite & lateritic soil. Geomorphology, Drainage,Landuse and Soil Types.
4 Geology
Geologically the district contains almost all geological formations except Deccan Trap. Mainly Granite Gneiss, sandstone, Bedded Limestone and Laterite are found in this district.
Geological sequence of Gadchiroli district | ||
| Formation | Lithology |
Recent | Alluvium | Soil, laterite |
Upper Gondwana | Chikhiala Formation | Grey to black ferruginous sandstones Ferruginous conglomerate and Sandstones |
| Kota Formation | Ferruginous Conglomerates and Sandstones Calcareous Sandstones and Limestones |
Lower Gondwana | Kamthi Formation | Friable, ferruginous, medium to coarse grained sandstones and ferruginous conglomerates |
Pre-Cambrian | Pakal (Cuddapahs) | Limestone with intercalated shales, Conglomerates, Breccias, Quartzites and Sandstones |
Archeans | Gneissic Complex | Basic Intrusives and Quartz Pegmatite veins, Granite Gneisses, Banded Magnatite Quartzite and other unclassified metamorphics |
Archeans
The rocks of the Archeans age occupies more than 70% of the area of the district, especially in the northern part. The rocks comprises of Granite, Gneisses and unclassified metamorphics consisting mainly of Schist, quartzite, etc.
Granites: The Granites are coarse grained and light pinkish in color primarily composed of biotite, flesh colored feldspar and quartz. Most of the outcrops of granites are highly weathered and are intruded by quartz and pegmatitic veins.
Gneisses: The gneisses occupy the vast area in the central and northern part of the district and show profound weathering and occupy relatively lower altitude forming plains.
Quartzites: The quartzites and Banded Hematite Quartz which appears to belong to one cycle of sedimentation are remnants of the older metasediments occurring as isolated hills and Konlls.
Pre- Cambrians
Pre-cambrian sedimentaries in the area belongs to Pakhals of Cuddapahs and lies unconformably on Archeans.
Pakhals: The rocks of the Pakhals mainly occupy the northern part of Sironcha block and comprises of quartzites, shales, Limestone. The Pakhals consist of plae yellowish brown floggy quartzite underlain by gritty conglomerate. The floggy quartzites are overlain by shales and slates with bands of limestone and dolomite which in turn overlain by quartzites and slates.
Gondwanas
The rocks of Gondwana system mainly occupy the southern part of the district in Sironcha block. The rocks belong to Kamthi beds of Lower Gondwana, Kota and Chikhiala beds of Upper Gondwana System. The contact between the Gondwana and the Pre-cambrian sedimentaries in the district is faulted due to which Chikhiala Juxtaposed against the Pakahals alaong a NW-SE plane as observed in the southern part around Molukapalli and karneli.
Kamthi Formation: Mainly consist of grey to brownish soft, friable, medium to coarse grained current bedded sediments with occasional red ferruginous shales.
Kota formation: Occurs unconformably over Kamthi formation. The rock types are calcareous sandstones and Limestones.
Chikiala formation: Mainly consists of conglomerates with interbedded sandstones which are light brown, reddish yellow or buff colored and often ferruginous.
5 HYDROGEOLOGY
Based on the existing data and the data generated it is observed that there is two aquifer Systems prevailing in the district
Archeans
The prolonged in situ weathering of the crystalline hard rocks has produced a layer of unconsolidated saprolite material and it is the important source of water for rural domestic requirements. The thickness of the weathering mantle is limited to 20 m. The permeability of the weathered mantle is very low and the yield are likely to be poor.
The unweathered hard rocks of Archeans consisting of Granite Gniesses, Schists etc. occupies a major part of the district, especially in the northern part. These rocks form steep hills, ridges and hillocks having high runoff.
The rocks of Archeans lack in effective intergranualar porosity and permeability. The occurrence of groundwater in these formations is controlled by the degree of weathering, jointing and fracturing.
The fresh hard rock underlying the weathered zone is rarely a significant aquifer except where extensively fractured, as the available storage is negligible in the rock matrix and likely to be low in the fractures. High yields are generally associated with the presence of fractures and other secondary openings.
Sedimentary rocks
The sedimentary rocks of the district can be divided into two groups:
- Sedimentary rocks of Precambrian age
- Sedimentary formations of Gondwana.
Sedimentary rocks of Precambrian age
The Precambrian sedimentaries occupy the south and southwestern part of the district and are characterised by marked topographic breaks and transition as they rest with the basal conglomerate over the Archeans at places giving rise to springs and seepages. In general the rocks are argillaceous in nature interbedded with shales and clays. The secondary porosity and permeability due to jointing and fractures at places form these formations as good aquifers.
Sedimentary formations of Gondwana
The semiconsolidated Gondwana formations constituting of Kamthi, Kota and Chikhiala stages are by far the best aquifers in the area. These groups of rocks cross an area about 740 sq km. These are composed of Sandstones, Shales and conglomerates. The sedimentary formations have primary porosity and permeability. The chikhiala group of rocks generally occupies flat top hills and ridges and forms ideal recharge areas. Due to the variation of permeability between different stages number of springs can be seen especially between Kota and Chikhiala Stages. The Kota group of rocks generally occupies intermediate and discharge areas.
Among the Gondwanas, Kamthis are best aquifer which is represented by friable, ferruginous medium to fine grained sandstones and conglomerates interbedded with shales and Clay. The exploratory drilling and subsequent pumping test have revealed that the thickness of the Kamthis in this area is more than 300 m and the groundwater occurs in semi confining to confining conditions.
Carbonate rocks
The carbonate rocks of the district can be divided into two groups:
- Carbonate rocks of Precambrian age
- Gondwana Limestone
Carbonate rocks of Precambrian age
Limestones and dolomite of Cuddapahs form good aquifer at places in the northern part of the district. These carbonate rocks show Karstification as reported around Bugga Gutta SE of Umanur.
Gondwana Limestone
Limestones of Kota Stages form as an aquifer in the southwestern part of the Sironcha Block. The groundwater occurs both in confining and unconfining conditions in limestone and dolomite of Kota stage. At places solution cavities and other secondary fractured forms the limestone as a good aquifer.
Alluvium
The occurrence of Alluvium consisting of sand, gravel, silt, clay and Kankar is limited to either side of banks of major rivers. The thickness of alluvial deposits is very limited and is generally within 30m. The total area of these alluvium is around 10 sq km. The alluvium consists of fine to coarse sands and silt associated with clay horizons at various depths. The groundwater occurs under semi confining to confining conditions.