1. Purpose and Perspectives

Floods, once the basis for hydraulic civilizations, are now seen mostly as sources of hazard due to negative interaction between human systems and environmental conditions at particular historical junctures within specific economic and social conditions. The same phenomenon acquires a different dimension if seen rationally as an event with both possibilities as well as perils that one can plan for and guard against. In this study on the Damodar River, physical and human environmental research has been integrated, focusing on river morphology and ecology, human use of river and sandbars or char lands as a resource, and policies that shape a river. This leads us to a more holistic understanding of how the forms and ecological status of a river are shaped by the interplay of environmental and anthropological processes. In other words, this research reviews the impacts of control structures in the downstream environment and also provides a detailed study of human role in changing fluvial regime through descriptions of the way in which people, ranging from refugees to local settlers, driven by diverse cultural, economic, religious, and political forces, have transformed the fluvial landscape.