River Reflections: Impermanence, erosion, migration on the Brahmaputra

When the floods come, people fend for themselves in relief camps, or in temporary shelters. Once the floods recede, they return to find, at times, that 'their' home island has shifted downstream

THE BRAHMAPUTRA, one of the most sediment-laden rivers in the world, is home to a geographical phenomenon--a unique network of an estimated 2,300-plus islands that result from the vast quantities of sand, silt and rock that the river carries along its course, down from the mountains and onto the plain.

The silt and sand accumulate along its flow to form temporary islands. The rocks that tumble along in its course, and the sediment the river carries, give these islands body. Most of these islands are impermanent--literally shifting sands, except for a few very large ones. The biggest of them, Majuli, is