Assessing the decadal watershed health of the Kangsabati river basin in West Bengal, India: A multi-approach study using PSR model, AHP, remote sensing, GIS, and field data analysis

Watershed health is an increasingly important concern for sustainable management and governance, and the PSR framework provides a simple and effective means of analyzing human-environment interactions. The watershed health of the Kangsabati River basin in West Bengal, India, has been the subject of a comprehensive study that used a multi-approach method to assess its condition over four decades. The study analyzed various physiographic, climatic, hydrological, and anthropogenic parameters using the PSR (Pressure-State-Response) model, AHP (Analytic Hierarchy Process), Remote Sensing (RS), GIS (Geographic Information System), and field-based approaches to assess the watershed's health in the years 1990, 2000, 2010, and 2022. The results revealed that the watershed has undergone significant changes over the four decades, with its overall health declining. The PSR model highlighted the increasing pressure from anthropogenic activities, leading to a decline in the quality of natural resources. The AHP analysis identified water bodies as the most critical aspect of the watershed's health, followed by forest cover and land use. The RS and GIS analysis provided spatial information on land use and forest cover changes, further highlighting the need for proper land use planning and management. The study showed that the watershed's health was affected by various factors such as topography, rainfall, soil, land use, forest cover, and population growth. The study underscores the importance of adopting an integrated approach to address the complex and interconnected issues affecting watershed health. Overall, this unique study provides insights into the current state of the Kangsabati River basin and the urgent need for appropriate measures to protect and restore its ecological integrity. The Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve showed a high prediction accuracy of (AUC = 0.751) 75.13%, (AUC = 0.757) 75.74%, (AUC = 0.765) 76.52%, and (AUC = 0.774) 77.46% of different years 1990, 2000, 2010, and 2022 after cross-validation.

Assessing the decadal watershed health of the Kangsabati river basin in West Bengal, India: A multi-approach study using PSR model, AHP, remote sensing, GIS, and field data analysis Keywords:

Kangsabati Watershed , Decadal Watershed Health Assessment , Pressure-State-Response (PSR) , Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) , Watershed Health Index (WHI) , AUC-ROC curve