The Adan River ( mr, अडाण नदी) is a river in Washim District, Maharashtra,

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

and a principal

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drai ...

of the

Painganga River The Painganga River (also known as the Penganga River) is the chief river of the Buldhana district, Hingoli district, Nanded district, Yavatmal district, Chandrapur district and Washim district in the Maharashtra state in India. It flows along the ...

Geography

The source of the Adan River is in the Washim district of Maharashtra. The Arunavati River meets the Adan River about 13 kilometres before it joins the Painganga River. The river dries up in the summer, leaving only pools towards the end of its course. Two dams have been built on the Adan; one at its origin near Sonala village and the other near Karanja Lad city, both in Washim District. The river then flows shrubland. Adan Dam was built in 1977 near Karanja Lad, Washim district around 13 km from where the Adan River meets the Painanga.

Environmental Impact of the Adan Dam

In two separate reports on the

environmental impact Environmental issues are effects of human activity on the biophysical environment, most often of which are harmful effects that cause environmental degradation. Environmental protection is the practice of protecting the natural environment on t ...

of the Adan Dam on the aquatic

biodiversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...

of the river and the surrounding fishing communities in 2008 and 2012, Dr Nilesh K. Heda reported the following effects: * Effect on

Fishing Communities Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

: The new reservoir has led to large areas of the river becoming inaccessible to local anglers who cannot fish for most of the year due to the low water level. The construction of the dam has led to high levels of

siltation Siltation, is water pollution caused by particulate Terrestrial ecoregion, terrestrial Clastic rock, clastic material, with a particle size dominated by silt or clay. It refers both to the increased concentration of suspended sediments and to the ...

and

hydrophyte Aquatic plants are plants that have adapted to living in aquatic environments (saltwater or freshwater). They are also referred to as hydrophytes or macrophytes to distinguish them from algae and other microphytes. A macrophyte is a plant that g ...

growth. These changes have led to the local Bhoi people having to rely less on their more sustainable, traditional fishing techniques. * Effect on

Aquatic Ecosystem An aquatic ecosystem is an ecosystem formed by surrounding a body of water, in contrast to land-based terrestrial ecosystems. Aquatic ecosystems contain communities of organisms that are dependent on each other and on their environment. The t ...

: The diversity and abundance of

fish Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% of ...

has declined since the construction of the dam. Some species of fish have been completely wiped out from the area of the river about the dam (namely eutropiichthys vacha, anguilla bengalensis bengalensis, barilius species, tor khudree, tor mussullah, and gonoproktopterus kolus). Heda reports that local elders noticed that, as well as fish species, otters and

tortoise Tortoises () are reptiles of the family Testudinidae of the order Testudines (Latin: ''tortoise''). Like other turtles, tortoises have a shell to protect from predation and other threats. The shell in tortoises is generally hard, and like oth ...

s had also been wiped out.

Fish of Adan River

The following species were found to be present in the Adan river by Dr Nilesh Heda: * Acanthocobitis moreh * Amblypharyngodon mola * Anguilla bengalensis bengalensis * Barilius bendelisis * Other barilius species * Chanda nama *

Channa orientalis The Ceylon snakehead (''Channa orientalis'') is a species of snakehead found in freshwater habitats, typically shaded streams, in southwestern Sri Lanka (although occasionally claimed to occur in other countries, this is misidentifications of r ...

* Channa punctatus * Channa striatus *

Cirrhinus fulungee The Deccan white carp (''Cirrhinus fulungee'') is a species of freshwater cyprinid fish native to Karnataka and Maharashtra in India initially but later to other states after the construction of dams. It is currently widely distributed across t ...

* Danio aequipinnatus * Other danio species * Garra mullya *

Glossogobius giuris ''Glossogobius giuris'', the tank goby, is a species of goby native to fresh, marine and brackish waters from the Red Sea and East Africa through South Asia and the Indian Ocean to China, Australia and the islands of the Pacific Ocean. This spe ...

* Gonoproktopterus kolus *

Labeo rohita The rohu, rui, ruhi or roho labeo (''Labeo rohita'') is a species of fish of the Cyprinidae, carp family, found in rivers in South Asia. It is a large omnivore and extensively used in aquaculture. Description The rohu is a large, silver-col ...

* Lepidocephalus thermalis * Macrognathus aral * Mastacembelus armatus * Mystus bleekeri * Mystus cavasius * Other mystus species * Nemacheilus species * Notopterus notopterus *

Ompok bimaculatus ''Ompok bimaculatus'', known as butter catfish, is a species of sheatfishes native to Asian countries such as Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, but recently identified in Myanmar. Known in Thailand Thailand ( ), historical ...

* Oreochromis mossambica * Oreonectes evezardi * Osteobrama cotio peninsularis * Osteobrama vigorsii * Parambassis ranga *

Puntius amphibius The scarlet-banded barb (''Puntius amphibius'') is a species of ray-finned fish in the genus ''Puntius''. It is found in streams in India and Sri Lanka. It can reach a length of . References

Puntius, amphibius Taxa named by Achille Vale ...

* Puntius sarana sarana *

Puntius sophore The pool barb, spotfin swamp barb, or stigma barb (''Puntius sophore'') is a tropical freshwater and brackish fish belonging to the Puntius genus in the family Cyprinidae. It is native to inland waters in Asia and is found in India, Nepal, Bangla ...

* Other puntius species * Puntius ticto * Rasbora daniconius * Rita species * Salmostoma horai * Salmostoma novacula * Schistura denisoni denisoni * Thynnichthys sandkhol * Tor khudree * Tor mussulah *

Tor tor Tor, TOR or ToR may refer to: Places * Tor, Pallars, a village in Spain * Tor, former name of Sloviansk, Ukraine, a city * Mount Tor, Tasmania, Australia, an extinct volcano * Tor Bay, Devon, England * Tor River, Western New Guinea, Indonesia Sc ...

Wallago attu ''Wallago attu'' is a freshwater catfish of the family Siluridae, native to South and Southeast Asia. It is commonly known as helicopter catfish or wallago catfish. It has known by various names in different regions and languages, such as Borali(� ...

Xenentodon cancila ''Xenentodon cancila'', the freshwater garfish, is a species of needlefish found in freshwater and brackish habitats in South and Southeast Asia. Common names As a reasonably popular aquarium fish, ''Xenentodon cancila'' has been traded under a ...

Local People

The local Bhoi people live in fishing communities on the banks of the river. The Bhoi are traditionally dependent upon the Adan for food and so their traditional way of life is at risk due to depleting fish resources. Bhoi

References

{{fishing history, expanded=villages Fishing communities in India Rivers of Maharashtra Tributaries of the Godavari River Rivers of India

Geography

Environmental Impact of the Adan Dam

Fish of Adan River

Local People

See also

References