Abstract
The present study was carried out to assess the drinking water quality and aquifer characteristics of the Valliyar river basin in Kanyakumari district. 71 groundwater samples were collected and analyzed to understand the quality of water based on the index parameters. 23 vertical electrical soundings (VES) were conducted to understand the subsurface characteristics and their impact on the quality of water. The VES data suggested that the subsurface lithology consist of three distinct layers. The water quality index (WQI) showed that 25% of the samples falling under excellent water and 51% of the samples were classified as good water and another 24% belong in the poor water category.