Indian Rivers are divided into two major groups.
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The Himalayan rivers; and
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The Peninsular rivers
The major Himalayan Rivers are the Indus, the Ganga and the
Brahmaputra.
The Indus river system: the river Indus rises in
Tibet, near Mansarowar Lake. Flowing west, it enters Indian in Ladakh district
of Jammu & Kashmir. The tributaries of Indus River are the Zaskar, the Nubra,
the Shyok and the Hunza, join it in Kashmir region. The Satluj, the Ravi, the Beas,
the Chenab and the Jhelum join together to flow into the Indus near Mithankot
in Pakistan. With a total length of 2900 Km, the Indus flows into Arabian Sea,
east of Karachi.
ü
According to the regulations of the Indus Water
Treaty (1960), India can use only 20% of the total water carried by Indus river
system.
The Ganga river system: The headwater of the Ganga,
called the ‘Bhagirathi’ is fed by the ‘Gangotri’ glacier and joined by Alkanda
at Dev Prayag in Utrakhand. The major tributaries of Ganga River are the
Yamuna, the Ghagra, the Gandak and the Kosi. The River Yamuna rises from
Yamunotri glacier in the Himalayas and meets the Ganga at Allahabad. The Ghagra,
the Gandak and the Kosi rise in Nepal Himalayas. The Peninsular tributaries of
Ganga are the Chambal, the Betwa and the Son. The Ganga flows eastwards till
Farakka in West Bengal. This is the northernmost point of the Ganga delta. Then
the river flows southward into Bangladesh and is joined by Brahmaputra. Further
downstream, it is known as the ‘Meghna’ and finally flows into the Bay of
Bengal. The total length of River Ganga is 2525 Km.
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The Delta formed by River Ganga is known as ‘Sunderban
delta’. It is world’s largest and fastest growing delta. It is also known as
the ‘Home of Royal Bengal Tigers’.
The Brahmaputra river
system: The Brahmaputra River rises in Tibet, east of Mansarowar Lake very
close to the source of the Indus and the Satluj. It flows eastwards parallel to
the Himalayas. On reaching the Namcha Barwa (7757 m), it takes a ‘U’
turn and enters India in Arunachal Pradesh through a gorge. Here it is called ‘Dihang’
and it is joined by the Dibang, the Lohit and many other tributaries to form
Brahmaputra in Assam. It drains into the Bay of Bengal.
ü Brahmaputra
is known as the ‘Tsang Po’ in Tibet and ‘Jamuna’ in Bangladesh.
The Peninsular Rivers: The
main water divide in Peninsular India is formed by Western Ghats, which runs
from North to South close to western coast.
Most of the major rivers of the Peninsula such as the Mahanadi, the Godavari,
the Krishna and the Kaveri flow eastward and drain into the Bay of Bengal. The Narmada
and the Tapi are the only rivers, which flow west and make estuaries.
The Narmada Basin: The
Narmada rises in Amarkantak hills in Madhya Pradesh. On its way to the Bay of
Bengal, the Narmada creates many picturesque locations. The ‘Marble rocks’ near
Jabalpur where the Narmada flows through a deep gorge and the ‘Dhuadhar falls’
where the river plunges over steep rocks, are some of the notables ones. Its length
is about 1312 Km. The Narmada basin covers parts of Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat.
It drains into Arabian Sea.
The Tapi Basin: The Tapi
rises in the Satpura ranges, in the Betul district of Madhya Pradesh. Its basin
covers parts of Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra. It drains into Arabian
Sea. The other west flowing rivers are the Sabarmati, the Mahi, the Periyar and
the Bharathpuzha.
The Godavari Basin: The
Godavari is the largest Peninsular River with a length of about 1465 Km. it
rises from Western Ghats in Nasik district of Maharashtra. It drains into the
Bay of Bengal; its drainage basin is also the largest among the peninsular
rivers. The main tributaries of Godavari are the Purna, the Wardha, the
Pranhita, the Manjra, the Waingangā and the Penganga. Because of its length and
the area it covers, it is called as ‘Dakshin Ganga’.
The Mahanadi Basin: The
Mahanadi rises in the highlands of Chhattisgarh and flows through Orissa to
reach the Bay of Bengal. The length of River Mahanadi is 860 Km and its drainage
basin is shared by Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand.
The Krishna Basin: Krishna
River rises from a spring near Mahabaleshwar in Maharashtra and flows for about
1400 Km to reach the Bay of Bengal. The main tributaries of Krishna River are
the Tungabhadra, the Koyana, the Ghatprahaba, the Musi and the Bhima. Its
drainage basin is shared by Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
The Kaveri Basin: The
Kaveri rises in Brahmagri range of the Western Ghats and flows for about 760 Km
to reach the Bay of Bengal. Its main tributaries are the Amravati, the Bhawani,
the Henvati and the Kabini. Its basin drains parts of Karnataka, Kerala and
Tamil Nadu.
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