Page 20 - Sugam Sarita

those that are mutually advantageous. However, most of the

methods for figuring out environmental fluxes continue to be based
on the biophysical sciences. River flows are connected to livelihood,
identity, sense of place, religious beliefs and rites, linguistic systems,
and educational activities for many people and cultures around

the world. Although these ingrained, reciprocal, and fundamental
connections between people and rivers are still little understood, they
can be extremely significant for the evaluation and implementation
of environmental flows.

Environmental flow enthusiasts are also becoming more and more
aware of the significance and complexity of interactions between
people and freshwater ecosystems. The phrase “environmental flows’’
refers to the amount, timing, and grade of freshwater flows and

levels required to sustain marine ecosystems, which support human
cultures, economies, sustainable livelihoods, and well-being. A crucial
first step in establishing a socially acceptable threshold between water
available for off-channel allocations and water to be retained within

or returned to a waterbody to sustain ecosystems is environmental
flow assessment, also known as environmental water allocation or
environmental water management. Although all aquatic ecosystems
are included in the study of environmental flows, the focus of this

research is on rivers and their social interactions.

The rivers in India are revered by countless individuals. According to
sacred Hindu writings, they are “turbulent, sportive, flowing, quick,
leaping, and booming,”. People in India have created traditions, beliefs,

and practices throughout the millennia that reflect and complement
the natural rhythms of the river. They rely on the rivers for their daily
needs of drinking and washing water. Cultural identities must be

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