Context of Riverbank Erosion

This chapter depicts the nature of riverbank erosion research across the world with special emphasis on the Bengal Delta (Indo-Bangladesh region). On the global scale, the severity of riverbank erosion is maximum for the Bengal Delta because of its huge reservoir of population with intensive land use. Moreover, this chapter also aims to show the spatial and temporal variation of bank erosion along the major rivers of the world, especially the rivers of the Bengal Delta such as the Ganga, Brahmaputra, and Padma. The change in the pace of bank erosion in the Bengal Delta in the era of the Anthropocene differs from the rest of the world. Hence, it occupies special attention for two rivers by the researchers – (1) Ganga River in West Bengal and (2) Jamuna River in Bangladesh. However, a systematic treatment of the subject especially in the context of the Bengal Delta is unknown. This will be outlined in this chapter thereby the context of making this volume clear.