## 1 Introduction  
Eligible construction sites are becoming scarcer as a result of the infrastructural development that is rapidly taking place. As a result, it has become necessary to build civil structures at marginal locations with weak soils [1; 2]. Among the many techniques used to improve the ground, stone columns are frequently employed to increase the extremely soft/soft ground-bearing capacity and to lessen the overall and unequal settlement of superstructures. Stone columns are effectively used in order to support clay embankments, LPG containers, raft foundations, and bridge approach fills, and to improve the stability of the slope and decrease the risk of liquefaction of loose, cohesionless soil [3]. Due to these three main factors, stone columns are an excellent ground remediation approach. Because they have a larger frictional value than the neighbouring soils, they serve as a stronger medium and improve the ground's ability to bear weight and rigidity. Additionally, they accelerate consolidation and decrease the post-construction settlement [4; 5]. Third, the placement of stone columns leads to radial displacement and an increase in the nearby soft clay's lateral earth pressure coefficient [1; 6; 7]. In particular, stone columns applied in ground development approaches work very effectively in cohesive soils when the in situ soil's undrained shear capacity varies from 15 to 35 kPa. In extremely soft soils that do not provide the columns with enough lateral confinement, stone columns might not be the best choice. In recent years, the encapsulation of the columns with various forms of geosynthetics has become increasingly feasible to enhance the column's lateral strength,thereby also increasing its vertical capability [8; 9; 10]. However, there has been limited use of the horizontal layering of geotextiles as a reinforcing material [14; 21; 22]. [PERSON] [23] determined the ultimate load-carrying capability of a stone column based on its collapse mechanism of bulging and the passive resistance provided by adjacent softer soils. As an effect of the frictional angle of the material of the column, the area replacement ratio, and the constrained modulus of the neighbouring soil as well as the stone column, [PERSON] [24] calculated a factor for settlement improvement, described as the ratio of unaltered ground settlement to the upgraded ground settlement for a stiff foundation reinforced by numerous stone columns. Among numerous columns made of stone, a single column was isolated using the \"unit cell\" idea developed by [PERSON] and [PERSON] [25]. Using model tests and numerical studies based on finite elements and the unit cell idea, [PERSON] and [PERSON] [26] produced a design chart for the calculation of the settlement of an area that is reinforced by columns of stone. On 20 documented case studies on softer cohesive types of soil, [PERSON] et al. [27] conducted an evaluation of the settlement enhancement factors of the ground that had been improved by stone columns under the influence of both footing and embankment stress. The dry method of bottom feeding is a more desirable method for the erection of columns in soft cohesive types of soil, according to a comparison of the projected and measured settlement improvement factors among several stone column construction procedures. [PERSON] and [PERSON] [28] used small-scale laboratory and numerical investigations to explore the functioning of stone columns arranged in groups. The results suggest that multiple aspects, including the slenderness ratio, area replacement ratio, relative stiffness between the soil and column, and stress conditions of the nearby soil, are significant in comprehending the behaviour of stone floating columns in groups. [PERSON] et al. [29] conducted experiments to study the performance of geosynthetics-encased steel slag columns where steel slag was mixed with 10% and 20% fines to simulate the clogging effect.