This study assesses the environmental status and water quality of the Saraswati River, an ancient and endangered waterway in Bengal, using an integrated approach. By combining traditional knowledge, advanced geospatial tools, and field analysis, it examines natural and human-induced factors driving the river’s degradation and proposes sustainable restoration strategies. Tools such as the Garmin Global Positioning System (GPS) eTrex10, Google Earth Pro, Landsat imagery, ArcGIS 10.8, and Google Earth Engine (GEE) were used to map the river’s trajectory and estimate its water quality. Remote sensing-derived indices, including the Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI), Modified Normalized Difference Water Index (MNDWI), Normalized Difference Salinity Index (NDSI), Normalized Difference Turbidity Index (NDTI), Floating Algae Index (FAI), and Normalized Difference Chlorophyll Index (NDCI), Total Dissolved Solids (TDS), were computed to evaluate parameters such as the salinity, turbidity, chlorophyll content, and water extent. Additionally, field data from 27 sampling locations were analyzed for 11 critical water quality parameters, such as the pH, Total Dissolved Solids (TDS), Electrical Conductivity (EC), Dissolved Oxygen (DO), Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD), and microbial content, using an arithmetic weighted water quality index (WQI). The results highlight significant spatial variation in water quality, with WQI values ranging from 86.427 at Jatrasudhi (indicating relatively better conditions) to 358.918 at Gobra Station Road (signaling severe contamination). The pollution is primarily driven by urban solid waste, industrial effluents, agricultural runoff, and untreated sewage. A microbial analysis revealed the presence of harmful species, including Escherichia coli (E. coli), Bacillus, and Entamoeba, with elevated concentrations in regions like Bajra, Chinsurah, and Chandannagar. The study detected heavy metals, fertilizers, and pesticides, highlighting significant anthropogenic impacts. The recommended mitigation measures include debris removal, silt extraction, riverbank stabilization, modern hydraulic structures, improved waste management, systematic removal of water hyacinth and decomposed materials, and spoil bank design in spilling zones to restore the river’s natural flow.

Water quality plays a crucial role in safeguarding public health and ensuring the availability of water resources. This research assesses the water quality within the Ranibundh CD Block, situated on the western edge of the Khatra Subdivision in the Bankura district of India. The research utilises Water Quality Index (WQI) using various physico-chemical parameters, such as pH, Total Iron (Fe), Total Dissolved Solids (TDS), Magnesium (Mg), Fluoride, Turbidity, and Total Hardness (TH). Water samples were collected from field sources and the West Bengal Public Health Engineering Department (WBPHED) throughout the pre-monsoon season of 2020, with 65 stations sampled across the study area. A total of 28 significant sites exhibiting the highest physicochemical values were chosen for a comprehensive assessment aimed at evaluating the overall status of water quality. The evaluation process involved classifying the water quality as either safe or unsafe through the application of the traditional weighted arithmetic index and the multi-attribute VIKOR methods. The VIKOR method was adopted as an alternative strategy for analysing water quality. To achieve the study’s primary objective of water quality-based spatial prioritisation, the Voronoi approach was employed, allowing for the delineation of areas influenced by each sample site about contaminants. The final spatial prioritization was based on Gram Panchayat-wise occurrences of safe water status. The results of this study aim to assist planners, managers, and specialists in formulating effective management strategies to ensure a sustainable supply of safe drinking water, thereby enhancing long-term community health and water security.