Rajasthan is one of the main mineral potential state of India. During the last 30 years it has witnessed enormous expansion of mining industries, but mining of most of the minor minerals coupled with changing climate has posed serious problems to the environmental fabric in the state, apart from base metal beneficiation plants. Groundwater is also being polluted day-by-day by effluents generated from mineral wastes and beneficiation processes in the vicinity of mining sites such as Khetri. Pollutant concentrations were measured in groundwater at the vicinity of Khetri copper mining project, Rajasthan to investigate the influence of copper mining on environment. Pollutant concentrations in groundwater were investigated. Copper metal concentration in water samples were found above the maximum desirable limit in two sources: G4 and G5, due to washing away of mineral with water. Mining industry has deteriorated quality of groundwater resources in the state of Rajasthan, and these industries are becoming centers of pollution sources which need timely actions at government level so that natural resources such as groundwater can be protected.

The development of a surface water evaluation index is a critical factor in the assessment, restoration and protection of stream water quality. Quantifying water pollution in specific grade using dominant parameters is important, as this can explain the current state of water pollution with accuracy. As a result, an integrated multi-parameter water quality index has been developed. It is based on the 10 most prevailing parameters (pH, conductivity, nitrate ions, phosphate ions, Escherichia coli number, cadmium, chromium, lead, copper and manganese) with a scale of 1 to 4, wherein the grades are classified into 1: good; 1.1-1.5: slightly polluted; 1.6-2.0: moderately polluted; 2.1-2.9: heavily polluted and 3.0-4.0: gravely polluted. The measuring stick used was according to the 2011 background values of the World Health Organization (WHO) in which a value of 0.1 was attributed for each, so that the final grade can be calculated. Water quality data were successfully fitted in an integrated multi-parameter water quality index to measure the river water level of pollution, and effectively represented every water bodies. This innovative index is able to quantify pollution with respect to seasons, geography and geomorphology of the respective rivers. Although operative, this index still lacks scientific integrity and as such, more synoptic experiments in the rivers of developing countries are recommended to attain a pragmatic feature.