Assessment of meteorological drought in Balod district, India through GIScience and Remote sensing

The present study was conducted in Balod district to assess meteorological drought events for prevention and future water resource management planning. The study area has a deficit in rainfall with a higher rainfall variation. From 1990 to 2020, the rainfall anomaly index (RAI) was used to calculate meteorological drought and monitor dry and wet periods in the area. Rainfall datasets from IMD daily gridded data of 0.25º × 0.25º spatial resolution were combined with the Geographic information system (GIS) environment. The results from the index revealed that the highest negative values were observed in the years 2000, 2002, 2008 and 2009 which have faced severe drought events. The findings from the study can assist in making a drought preparedness plan to mitigate the risk with effective water resources management.