Analyzing Historical Evolution and Decay of Jamuna River (West Bengal) Using Multi-temporal Satellite Images and GIS

Abstract

Moribund River is the river that is being in a state of dying or inactive. Jamuna River which was active in probably fourteenth and fifteenth centuries now is in the dying stage with multiple bends and meandering courses. The main objectives of this study are to provide an overview of basin geology and soil of Jamuna basin, to describe the origin of River Jamuna through details study of present evidence, to provide details of channel morphology and hydraulics, and to detect channel shifting, degradation, and present condition of Jamuna River. Mid-channel bar and paleochannel maps of the Bhagirathi-Hooghly River have been prepared using satellite images, Google Earth Image, and QGIS software to describe the origin of River Jamuna. Morphometric and hydraulic data of Jamuna River were also collected using Google Earth and QGIS software and from River Gauge data of River Research Institute. The maximum slope and average slope of Jamuna River are respectively 1.7% and 0.2%. The average Sinuosity Index of Jamuna River is 2.78 which indicates a meandering course. Oxbow lakes named Jalkar Magra (length—5.80 km, average width—0.22 km, average slope—0.7%), Bhomra Beel (length—6.25 km, average width—0.2 km, average slope—1.1%), Kankana Boar (length—4.66 km, average width—0.25 km, average slope—0.4%) and other beels all are situated at the left side and the multiple meander bed cutoffs at Chawberia provide evidence that River Jamuna gradually shifted towards the southern direction. August is recorded as the peak month for River Gauge at Gaighata station. Satellite images of different years have been collected to detect spatio-temporal changes of River Jamuna. Siltation in the river bed and increasing activity of human cause’s serious problem in river regime leads thread like narrow channel with an average width of 36 m.