He also said dredging would damage the river's environmental health and provide little economic benefit.
A massive cultural festival has opened on the banks of the Yamuna river in Delhi despite concerns that the sprawling construction of roads, ramps and pontoon bridges will irreparably damage the river floodplain.
But the commoditization of power in the early 21st century, coupled with drought that reduced the generation capacity of the river, damaged the industry.
At the moment the bus ends its journey at the Town Hall (1); when the main bridge, damaged when the river broke its banks in February, is repaired, it will continue as far as the railway station (2).
"It's been amazing how everyone's come together," said Suzanne Paugh, an art teacher whose home a quarter-mile from the Shakuns' was not damaged, though the river came within 10 feet of it.
In 1996, flash floods in the Pho Chu river damaged the large stupa and caused several deaths.
Major concessions to logging and gold-mining companies starting in the late 20th century have damaged the lands and polluted the rivers of many Indian groups, forcing some to leave and seek work in Venezuela and Brazil.
She worked with rural communities to increase their access to land, firewood and clean water outside the forest regions, and launched the "Enough is enough" campaign, which showed the Kenyan authorities how agriculture and tourism around Kenya's lakes and valleys would be damaged if the rivers from the Mau forest continued drying up.
The Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has begun reviewing licences that it fears are damaging the ecology of rivers, amid warnings that climate change and population growth could leave many up to 80 per cent lower in summer over the next 40 years.
