Abstract: Water is a crucial component of the environment; but surface water and groundwater quality have long been deteriorating due to both natural and human-related activities. Natural factors that influence water quality are hydrological, atmospheric, climatic, topographical and lithological factors such as anthropogenic activities that adversely affect water quality are mining, livestock farming, production and disposal of waste (industrial, municipal and agricultural), increased sediment run-off or soil erosion due to land-use change and heavy metal pollution. Many of the water bodies of the Jabalpur town have been completely vanished due to change of land use pattern, encroachment, urbanization and anthropocentric activities. Water resources management is a critical issue facing global concern. Water pollution occurs when harmful substances—often chemicals or microorganisms—contaminate a stream, river, lake, ocean, aquifer, or other body of water, degrading water quality and rendering it toxic to humans or the environment. Water bodies can be polluted by a wide variety of substances, including pathogenic microorganisms, putrescible organic waste, fertilizers and plant nutrients, toxic chemicals, sediments, heat, petroleum (oil), and radioactive substances. To some extent a river is a self-renewing resource. If polluting discharges to a river are intermittent, the river is often able to return to a clean and unpolluted condition as the pollutants are flushed out and carried down to the sea. Water quality monitoring is an essential part of keeping the planet healthy and sustainable. As we continue to build cities, clear land for farming and make other man-made changes to the natural environment, water quality monitoring becomes increasingly important. Land based activities can have a huge impact on water systems and it’s critical that we realize how these affect waterbodies, both above and below ground.