Meteorological Drought Assessment Analysis for Balkhab Sub–River Basin, Afghanistan
Journal of Sustainable Development of Natural Resources Management
Volume 2, Issue 2, 1010746
DOI: https://doi.org/10.13044/j.sdnarema.d1.0746
, Azim Jan Zahid2, Naqibullah Rahmani3, Hasibullah Rahimi42 Sungkyunkwan University, Seoul, South Korea
3 National Institute of Technology Warangal, Hanamkonda, Telangana, India
4 Kabul University, Kabul, Afghanistan
Abstract
This study investigates meteorological drought patterns in the Balkhab Sub River Basin (BSRB) from Oct-1981 to Sep-2024 using satellite-based Climate Hazards Group InfraRed Precipitation with Stations (CHIRPS) precipitation data and four drought indices: Normal-SPI, Log-SPI, SPI-12, and PNPI. Data from eight selected points across the basin were analyzed to evaluate drought severity, identify critical drought years, and assess spatial-temporal drought distribution. The CHIRPS data showed strong correlation with ground observations (R² ≈ 0.91), confirming its reliability. The SPI-12 index effectively captured long-term droughts, while PNPI was sensitive to short-term variability. All indices identified 2001 as an extreme drought year across all points. Other significant drought years included 1985, 1986, 2022, and 2023. Spatial analysis indicated higher drought frequency in points R1, R2, R3, and R8. The study concludes that CHIRPS data, combined with multiple indices, offer a robust approach for drought monitoring in data-scarce regions, supporting future water resource planning and climate resilience strategies in BSRB.
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