River Dynamics Uncovered: Erosion, Deposition, and Implications for India's Flood Management UPSC NOTE

River Dynamics Uncovered: Erosion, Deposition, and Implications for India's Flood Management

Prelims: Geography (Geomorphology, Fluvial Landforms - Meanders, Braided Channels, Rivers of India - Ganga, Brahmaputra); Environment (Nature-based Solutions, Flood Management).
Mains:

General Studies Paper 1 (Geography): Salient features of world’s physical geography; Changes in critical geographical features (including water-bodies) and the effects of such changes.
General Studies Paper 3 (Disaster Management & Environment): Disaster and disaster management (Floods); Conservation.

Researchers at the University of California made crucial discoveries through a new study on why rivers flow in a single channel (single-thread or meandering) or split into multiple channels (multi-thread or braided).
Single-thread rivers: Here, there is a balance (equilibrium) between river bank erosion and sediment deposition.
Multi-thread rivers (e.g., Brahmaputra): Here, the rate of bank erosion is much higher than deposition. This imbalance causes the river to widen and split.
This study also discusses Indian rivers like the Ganga and Brahmaputra. The study found that the Brahmaputra's channels are fundamentally unstable.
In India, confining rivers like the Brahmaputra into a single channel by built embankments may increase the risk of flooding.

As a solution, the article suggests Nature-based solutions such as removing embankments and restoring the river's natural floodplains.

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