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The Jamuna is one of the three big rivers (Jamuna, Ganges and Padma) whose bank erosion has made about 1.6 million people homeless since 1973 (CEGIS, cited by Akther et al., 2021).

Name
Jamuna · যমুনা
Status
Erosion
Length
230 km (official river list, 2025)
Shared with
India (Joint Rivers Commission)
On the map
Drawn on the map
Map names
Bank River Jamuna · Brahmaputra · Brahmaputra River · Brahmoputro
What the record says (4)
  • 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.

    Source: 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).

    Source: Akther et al., 2021

  • About 6.5 million people, 5% of the population, live on chars (river islands).

    Source: Kabir et al., 2025

  • CEGIS and BWDB forecast that erosion by the Jamuna, Padma and Ganges would leave about 21,750 people landless and homeless in 2009 alone, eating 2,178 ha in 17 districts.

    Source: The Daily Star, 2009

On the official list

From the government's list of 1,415 rivers (Ministry of Water Resources, 14 April 2025). Matched by name, in the districts the river crosses on the map.

RowNameDistrictUpazilaFrom → toLength
971ব্রহ্মপুত্র-যমুনাTangail, Manikganj, Rajbari, Jamalpur, Gaibandha, Kurigram, Pabna, Sirajganj, Boguraকালিহাতি, গোপালপুর, টাঙ্গাইল সদর, নাগরপুর, ভূঞাপুর, দৌলতপুর, শিবালয়, গোয়ালন্দ, ইসলামপুর, দেওয়ানগঞ্জ, মাদারগঞ্জ, সরিষাবাড়ী, উলিপুর, কুড়িগ্রাম সদর, চিলমারী, নাগেশ্বরী, রাজিবপুর, রৌমারী, গাইবান্ধা সদর, ফুলছড়ি, সাঘাটা, সুন্দরগঞ্জ, বেড়া, ধুনট, সারিয়াকান্দি, সোনাতলা, কাজিপুর, চৌহালী, বেলকুচি, শাহজাদপুর, সিরাজগঞ্জ সদরহিমালয় (গাইবান্ধায় প্রবেশমুখ চন্ডিপুর, সুন্দরগঞ্জ, গাইবান্ধা) → পদ্মা230 km

See it in the full official list

A shared river

The Joint Rivers Commission lists this river among the 57 that cross Bangladesh's borders.

Shared with
India (no. 24 in the Commission's table, ব্রহ্মপুত্র)
Rises
দক্ষিণ তিব্বতের কৈলাশ পর্বতমালা
Enters
কুড়িগ্রাম জেলার নাগেশ্বরী উপজেলা
Ends
গঙ্গা নদী গোয়ালন্দ উপজেলা
Length
337 km in Bangladesh, 918 km in India, 1,625 km in China; 2,880 km in all (approximate, as printed)

See it in the table of 57 shared rivers

The Jamuna at Kazipur and Sirajganj: then and now

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.

Left: 16 Mar 1989 · Landsat 5Landsat imagery: USGS, via Microsoft Planetary ComputerRight: 14 Jan 2025 · Landsat 8

Sources for this page

  • Akther et al., 2021: Riverbank erosion trend analysis and its impact on socio-economic condition of the inhabitants of Islampur upazila in Jamalpur district
  • Abdeen et al., 2023: Study of erosion and accretion of Jamuna River using GIS and remote sensing technology
  • Kabir et al., 2025: Livelihood patterns of char people: A study on Madarganj upazila at Jamalpur
  • The Daily Star, 2009: Erosion by three rivers to displace 22,000 this year (reports CEGIS & BWDB, 'Prediction of River Bank Erosion along the Jamuna, the Ganges and the Padma Rivers in 2009')
  • OpenStreetMap contributors, 2026: Waterways of Bangladesh (waterway=river)
  • Ministry of Water Resources, Government of Bangladesh, 14 Apr 2025: বাংলাদেশের নদ-নদীর তালিকা, ১লা বৈশাখ ১৪৩২ (List of the rivers of Bangladesh, 1 Baishakh 1432)
  • Joint Rivers Commission, 2022: বাংলাদেশ - ভারত এবং বাংলাদেশ - মিয়ানমারের মধ্যে প্রবাহিত ৫৭টি আন্তঃসীমান্ত নদীর উৎপত্তিস্থল, মোট দৈর্ঘ্য, সীমান্ত বরাবর দৈর্ঘ্য, প্রস্থ, প্রবেশমুখ ও পতিতমুখ সম্বলিত প্রতিবেদন (Report on the 57 transboundary rivers between Bangladesh and India and Bangladesh and Myanmar: origin, length, border length, width, entry point and mouth)