Paper Title
River Assessment and Water Management Strategy for South-Westcoastal Region of Bangladesh

Abstract
The upstream-downstream water sharing between transboundary riversis challenging and growing conflicts among neighboring countries. The Ganges, one of the largest river systems in the world, rises south of the main Himalayan and divides near Gangotri (elevation 4500 m) in Uttar Pradesh, India. The river divides into two channels below Farakka. The left main river enters Bangladesh and joins the Brahmaputra River at Goalundo. Shyamnagar, Satkhira is located at the south-western coastal region of Bangladesh and most of the rivers in this region receive flow mainly from the Ganges river system. After the construction of Farakka Dam, distributary rivers of the Ganges inside Bangladesh are slowly facing death for not receiving their winter flow. As a result freshwater source is decreasing and the salinity situation has been aggravated in the southwestern coastal region of Bangladesh. The major portion of the floodplain is low-lying, barely one meter above mean sea level and below high tide level. Moreover, people’s interest in shrimp culture has aggravated salinity in the region along with the climate change impacts. So, it is necessary to prepare a distinct and realistic water management plan for the south-western coastal region of Bangladesh. To understand the changes in the region, major rivers are assessed by trend analysis and Satellite map overlays. In co-operation with the local community and based on the river assessment findings, major five problems have been ranked and a 5year phase water management strategy has been proposed for the south-western coastal region of Bangladesh. Keywords - Transboundary, Water Management Strategy, South-West, Shyamnagar, Salinity, River Assessment