Earth Observations Based Assessment of Impact of COVID-19 Lockdown on Surface Water Quality of Buddha Nala, Punjab, India

The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) halted almost all the industrial scale anthropogenic activities across globe, resulting in improvements water and air quality of megacities. Here, using Sentinel-2A data, we quantified impact COVID-19 lockdown on parameters one largest perennial creeks i.e., Buddha Nala located District Ludhiana India. This creek has long been considered as a dumping ground for wastes resulted surface pollution entire lower Indus Basin. Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Water (NDWI), Chlorophyll (NDCI), Nitrogen Content (NI), Turbidity (NDTI), Total Suspended Matter (TSM) were compared prior (2019) during (2020) creek. There was significant enhancement NDVI, NDWI, NDCI, NI values, reduction NDTI TSM values period. When with year (2019), indices suggested an improvement indicative change aquatic ecology more evident upstream downstream sections than middle section. is intriguing since section continually impacted by domestic household effluents. earth observation inspired methodology employed findings are testament to discriminatory power employ remote sensing data develop protocols monitor regions where routine surveillance remains cost prohibitive.