Satellite Evidence / Before & After
Before and after
Drag the white line across each picture. The left side shows the river then, the right side shows it now. Landsat pictures are all from the dry season (January to March) so the years compare fairly; the two Dhaka rivers use sharper imagery from 2014 and 2026.
01 / 10
The Jamuna at Kazipur and Sirajganj
River: Jamuna যমুনা
The river is braided: it splits into channels around sand islands (chars) that move every year. Compare where the main channel runs, which chars have vanished, and where the banks have been pushed back.
- From 1990 to 2020 the Jamuna's left bank eroded by an average of 52 m a year, its right bank by 12 m a year. Abdeen et al., 2023
- Since 1973, about 1.6 million people have lost their homes to erosion by the Jamuna, Ganges and Padma (CEGIS, 2015). Akther et al., 2021
Dry-season images (January to March) of both years. Landsat 30 m resolution: houses are not visible, but bank lines and chars are. Colours differ partly because of the satellite (Landsat 4/5 in 1989, Landsat 8 in 2025) and the crops in the field; compare shapes, not shades.
02 / 10
The Padma between Munshiganj, Madaripur and Shariatpur
River: Padma পদ্মা
Land on both banks has been taken by the river and new chars have formed mid-stream. A peer-reviewed study of these three districts found 23,661 ha of arable land eroded from 1988 to 2023.
- In Munshiganj, Madaripur and Shariatpur the Padma ate 23,661 ha of arable land in 35 years (1988-2023). Begum et al., 2023
- Since 1973, about 1.6 million people have lost their homes to erosion by the Jamuna, Ganges and Padma (CEGIS, 2015). Akther et al., 2021
Dry-season images of both years. Colours differ partly because of the satellite (Landsat 4/5 in 1989, Landsat 8 in 2025) and the crops in the field; compare shapes, not shades.
03 / 10
The Teesta at Kaunia, Rangpur
River: Teesta তিস্তা
In the dry season, the water channel inside the wide sandy bed. Kaunia is the gauging station where the Teesta's flow was measured falling to 1.47 m³/s in 2012.
- At Kaunia, the Teesta's peak discharge fell from 8,577 m³/s (2004) to 1,629 m³/s (2013), and its annual minimum dropped to 1.47 m³/s in 2012. The basin supports 11.5 million people and about 14% of Bangladesh's farmland. Rahman et al., 2026
- Teesta erosion displaced more than 20,000 families in a decade, by BWDB data. Dhaka Tribune, 30 Oct 2025
Dry-season images of both years. The river's width on the image is its sand bed; the water is the darker thread inside it. Colours differ partly because of the satellite (Landsat 4/5 in 1989, Landsat 8 in 2025) and the crops in the field; compare shapes, not shades.
04 / 10
The Gorai leaving the Padma at Kushtia
River: Gorai গড়াই
The Gorai is the Padma's main distributary to the southwest and one of the rivers the RDRC lists as dead or drying. Look at how much water enters its mouth in the dry season.
- At least 79 of the 1,156 government-listed rivers have dried up or are drying up (RDRC study 'Dried Up Rivers of Bangladesh', 2025). The Daily Star, 20 Mar 2025
- Most of these rivers are heavily silted and dry up in the lean season, mainly because water is diverted upstream; parts of some have vanished under encroachment. The Daily Star, 20 Mar 2025
Dry-season images of both years. Colours differ partly because of the satellite (Landsat 4/5 in 1989, Landsat 8 in 2025) and the crops in the field; compare shapes, not shades.
05 / 10
Dhaka's eastern wetlands
River: Balu বালু
Low wetland and floodplain east of the city (dark green and water in 1989) filled and built over (grey) by 2025, up to the Balu river.
- Dhaka's water bodies shrank from 2,952 ha in 1960 to 1,991 ha in 2008 (−32.6%); its lowlands shrank by 52.6%. Land filling and encroachment were the main causes. Islam et al., 2010
- About 15,000 hectares of permanent wetlands and floodplains in and around Dhaka have gone under concrete since the 1980s (World Bank estimate). Dhaka Tribune, 25 Jul 2026
- In the 1960s Dhaka had roughly 175 canals, beels and water bodies and about 13,500 ha of low-lying flood-retention land. Dhaka Tribune, 25 Jul 2026
Dry-season images of both years. Colours differ partly because of the satellite (Landsat 4/5 in 1989, Landsat 8 in 2025) and the crops in the field; compare shapes, not shades.
06 / 10
The Turag at Amin Bazar and Gabtoli, Dhaka
River: Turag তুরাগ
The Turag is the river the High Court declared a living entity in 2019. Zoom in along its banks: land filling, new structures and the bridge approaches that narrow the channel.
- In 2019 the High Court declared the Turag, and every river in Bangladesh, a living entity, with the NRCC as its legal guardian. The Appellate Division disposed of the appeal on 17 February 2020 and barred the government from leasing or selling any river land. Appellate Division, Supreme Court of Bangladesh, 17 Feb 2020
- 57,390 individuals and organisations had grabbed 770 rivers; 18,579 were evicted in a year. The Daily Star, 28 Dec 2020
High-resolution imagery from Esri's archive (2014) and its latest release. Imagery dates can differ by a few months across a view.
07 / 10
The Buriganga along Old Dhaka and Keraniganj
River: Buriganga বুড়িগঙ্গা
Water colour and the banks: the Buriganga is one of the rivers The Daily Star lists as under assault from grabbing and pollution.
- An RDRC physical survey of 56 rivers across seven divisions (2022) found every one of them polluted. The Daily Star, 28 Sep 2025
- 490 polluting industries around Dhaka. The Daily Star, 28 Sep 2025
High-resolution imagery from Esri's archive (2014) and its latest release.
08 / 10
The Baral leaving the Padma at Charghat
River: Baral বড়াল
The Baral branches off the Padma near Charghat and is one of the rivers the RDRC names as dead or drying. Look at its mouth and the first stretch of its channel in the dry season.
- At least 79 of the 1,156 government-listed rivers have dried up or are drying up (RDRC study 'Dried Up Rivers of Bangladesh', 2025). The Daily Star, 20 Mar 2025
- Most of these rivers are heavily silted and dry up in the lean season, mainly because water is diverted upstream; parts of some have vanished under encroachment. The Daily Star, 20 Mar 2025
Dry-season images of both years. The Baral is narrow; at 30 m per pixel only its wider stretches show. Colours differ partly because of the satellite (Landsat 4/5 in 1989, Landsat 8 in 2025) and the crops in the field; compare shapes, not shades.
09 / 10
The Atrai at Atrai upazila, Naogaon
River: Atrai আত্রাই
The Atrai is on both the RDRC's dead-or-drying list and The Daily Star's list of rivers under assault. Follow the channel through the dry-season fields.
- At least 79 of the 1,156 government-listed rivers have dried up or are drying up (RDRC study 'Dried Up Rivers of Bangladesh', 2025). The Daily Star, 20 Mar 2025
- Most of these rivers are heavily silted and dry up in the lean season, mainly because water is diverted upstream; parts of some have vanished under encroachment. The Daily Star, 20 Mar 2025
Dry-season images of both years. Colours differ partly because of the satellite (Landsat 4/5 in 1989, Landsat 8 in 2025) and the crops in the field; compare shapes, not shades.
10 / 10
The Kopotakkho at Tala and Kopilmuni
River: Kopotakkho কপোতাক্ষ
The Kopotakkho is on the RDRC's dead-or-drying list. Compare the width of its tidal channel and the land along its banks.
- At least 79 of the 1,156 government-listed rivers have dried up or are drying up (RDRC study 'Dried Up Rivers of Bangladesh', 2025). The Daily Star, 20 Mar 2025
- Most of these rivers are heavily silted and dry up in the lean season, mainly because water is diverted upstream; parts of some have vanished under encroachment. The Daily Star, 20 Mar 2025
Dry-season images of both years. Colours differ partly because of the satellite (Landsat 4/5 in 1989, Landsat 8 in 2025) and the crops in the field; compare shapes, not shades.
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Trace long-term water loss, accretion, and river course migration across all of Bangladesh using European Commission JRC data.