MODELING HYDROLOGICAL PROCESSES IN HILLSLOPE WATERSHED OF HUMID TROPICS

Hydrological studies were conducted in a lateritic hillslope watershed of Kerala, a humid tropical region in India. The watershed characteristics, soil moisture properties, and hydrological processes were evaluated. The prominent mechanisms of runoff generation were identified as saturated through flow and saturated source areas. A 2D lateral saturated flow model linked with a vertical column model was developed to simulate these hydrological processes. The model with calibrated effective values of hydraulic conductivity and specific yield was found to be capable of predicting the hillslope hydrological processes.