Groundwater is a vital and invaluable resource, serving as a critical water supply for human life, industrial activities, and agricultural production. It plays a pivotal role in sustaining human existence and driving societal progress. In this study we conducted a comprehensive analysis of the hydrochemical characteristics and controlling factors on the groundwater quality, corrosiveness, and scaling tendency for drinking/domestic and agricultural uses in the Sutlej River basin of eastern Punjab, India. The results of the spatial ionic distribution of major ions and metals of groundwater samples revealed the overall consistency and local differences in their ionic concentrations. Sodium Absorption Ration (SAR), Na%, Kelly’s Index (KI), Soluble Sodium Percentage (SSP), and Potential Salinity (PS) results inferred that the majority of the samples were suitable for irrigation use, whereas a few samples were found unsuitable, as reflected in Permeability Index (PI), Magnesium Absorption Ratio (MAR), and Residual Sodium Carbonate (RSC) indices. An investigation of the Langelier Saturation Index (LSI) showed that 90% of the samples scored less than zero, suggesting that the majority showed a corrosive tendency, while the remaining samples indicated a supersaturated condition relative to CaCO3, leading to scale formation. A similar result was observed in Aggressive Index (AI), in which 91% of the samples were characterized by moderately corrosive, whereas around 8% of the same were found to have scaling tendency. Ryznar Stability Index (RSI) also implied a similar result as the majority of the sample (88%) were in corrosive-aggressive class, while the remaining belonged to the rigorous corrosive class. Similar results were also manifested in Puckorius Index (PI), in which 80% of the sample showed significant corrosive while the rest showed less scaling and corrosive tendency. However, in a few samples, the Larson-Skold Index (LS) result showed that most samples (98%) have significant scaling tendency, and the remaining have corrosive tendency. These findings underscore the urgent necessity for regular monitoring, the implementation of corrosion-resistant piping, and effective water treatment methods such as lime softening or pH adjustment prior to distribution. Moreover, future research should prioritize isotopic tracing of corrosion-related metal sources and advanced modeling with PHREEQC, as these strategies could greatly enhance our understanding of the issues at hand in the study area.
Singh et al. (2026) studied this question.