For Internal Circulation Only - Major River Systems of India 2022-23

MAJOR RIVER SYSTEMS OF INDIA

1. HIMALYAN RIVER SYSTEM
 Indus River System
 Brahmaputra River System
 Ganga River System
2. PENINSULAR RIVER SYSTEM
East flowing
 Godavari River System
 Krishna River System
 Cauvery River System
 Mahanadi River System
West flowing
 Narmada River System
 Tapti River System

1. INDUS RIVER SYSTEM

INDUS
 Ancient name → Sindhu.
 Origin → Bokhar chu glacier, near
Mansarovar lake in Kailash Range.
 It is called Sengge Khabab or Singi
Khamban it means ‘Lions
Mouth’ in Tibet.
 It flows between Zaskar and Ladakh
range.
 Enters In India through Ladakh, flows
only in J &K.
 Its tributaries include Zaskar, Shoyk,
Kurram, Gilgit, Jhelum , Ravi, Sutlej,
Chenab and Beas
 It is joined by Dhar River near Indo-China
border, by Zaskar River at Leh and Kabul river at Attock.
 It takes a sharp southerly bend at Chillar in Dardistan region, near Nanga
parvat and enters into Pakistan.
 The river forms ‘Panjnad’ (Panchnad), a little above Mithankot. Panjnad is the
name given to five comulgugence of five rivers of Punjab namely Sutlej, Ravi,
Chenab, Beas and Jhelum.
 Finally discharges in Arabian Sea, near Karachi.
 Flows approx. (709/2880) km in India.

JHELUM
 Ancient name → Vitasta
 Originates from Verinag Spring (Kashmir), at the foot of Pirpanjal ranges and
then meets Wular lake
 Flows Northward to Wular Lake. From Wular Lake, it changes its course
southwards.
 Srinagar lies at bank of this river
 At Muzaffarabad, the river takes a sharp hair pin bend southward.
 it forms the India-Pakistan boundary for 170 km between Muzaffarabad and
Mangla.

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 Kishanganga is its major tributary.

 It joins the Chenab near Jhang.
 Famous Project→ Tulbul

CHENAB
 Ancient name → Akshani / Iskmati
 Originates near the Bara Lachla Pass in the Lahul-Spiti part of the Zaskar
Range
 It is the largest tributary of Indus
 It is formed by merger of two streams (Chandra and Bhaga), which
merge at Tandi in Himachal Pradesh.
 Famous Projects → Duhasti, Baglihar & Salal hydroelectric project

RAVI
 Ancient name → Purushni
 Origin → Kullu hills near Rohtang Pass (Himachal)
 Tributary of Chenab
 Smallest of 5 rivers
 It drains the area between Pirpanjal and Dhauadhar range

BEAS
 Ancient name → Vipasha
 Origin → Beas kund near Rohtang Pass, Himachal.
 Meets Sutlej near Harike.
 Only river of Indus system flowing entirely in India
 Runs southward, cuts a deep gorge in Dhauladhar & turns west to meet
Satluj near Harike (Punjab)
 Famous Project → Pong Dam

SATLUJ
 Ancient name → Shatadru
 Origin → Rakas lake, Tibet, near Mansarovar.
 In Tibet it is known as Langchen Khambab.
 Enters Himachal at Shipki La Pass.
 It forms the boundary between India and Pakistan for nearly 120 km
between Ferozepur to Fazilka.
 It meets river Beas near Kapoorthala and river indus near Mithankot (Pak).
 Famous Projects → Naptha Jhakri Project & Bhakra Nagal Dam in Govind
Sagar Reservoir.

INDUS WATER TREATY

 IWT is a water-distribution treaty between India and Pakistan which was

brokered by the World Bank
 It was signed by then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and President of
Pakistan Ayub Khan in Karachi on September 19, 1960.
 As per treaty, control over three eastern rivers Ravi, Beas and Sutlej was given
to India. While control over three western rivers Indus, Jhelum and Chenab
was given to Pakistan.
 It allows India to use only 20% of the water of Indus river, which flows through
it first, for irrigation, power generation and transport.

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GANGA RIVER SYSTEM

 The Ganga river system is the largest in
India having a number of perennial and non-
perennial rivers originating in the Himalayas
in the north and the Peninsula in the south,
respectively.
 Ambala is located on the water divide
between Indus and Ganga
GANGA
 It rises in the Gangotri glacier near
Gaumukh in the Uttarkashi district of Uttaranchal. Here, it is known as the
Bhagirathi.
 Alaknanda which have its source in Satopanth glacier in Badrinath, meets its
tributary, Mandakini (Kali Ganga) at Rudra prayag.
 At Devprayag, the Bhagirathi meets the Alaknanda, hereafter, it is known as
the Ganga.
 The Ganga enters the plains at Haridwar.
 Passing through Rishikesh, it debounches in plains of Haridwar
 From Haridwar, it flows Southward to reach Allahabad where it joins Yamuna
 Near Rajmahal Hills, it turns southeast & bifurcate at Farraka into Hoogly
(Kolkata) & Padma (Bangladesh)
 At Bangladesh, Ganga(Padma) merges with Brahmputra (Known as Jamuna in
Bangladesh) at Goalundo Ghats
 Mixture is known as Padma River
 Then it merges with Meghna & finally falls in Bay of Bengal.
 Before entering the Bay of Bengal, the Ganga, along with the Brahmaputra,
forms the largest delta of the world between the Hugli and
the Padma/Meghna.

Left bank tributaries Right bank tributaries

Ramganga Son
Gomati Yamuna
Ghaghara
Gandak
Kosi
Mahananda

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MAJOR TRIBUTARIES OF RIVER GANGA

S.NO. TRIBUTARY ORIGIN SIGNIFICANCE

1. Yamuna Its originates from  It is the western most and the

Yamnotri glaceir on the longest tributary of the Ganga.
Banderpunch peak in  It joins the Ganga at Prayag
Garhwal region of (Allahabad).
Uttaranchal.  The Saraswati River of ancient past
is supposed to have been captured
by the present day Yamuna River.
2. Chambal It rises near Mhow in the The Chambal ravines: Recent
Malwa plateu of Madhya geological uplift, poor rainfall and
Pradesh. resulting severe erosion have given rise
to numerous deep ravines and badland
topography in the Chambal basin.

3. Gandak It rises in the Nepal  It comprises two streams, namely

Himalayas between the Kaligandak and Trishulganga.
Dhaulagiri and Mt.  It enters the Ganga plain in
Everest. Champaran district of Bihar and
joins the Ganga at Sonpur near
Patna.
4. Ghaghara It originates in the It meets the Ganga at Chhapra.
glaciers of
Mapchachungo.

5. Kosi In the north of Mount  The Kosi is an antecedent river.

Everest in Tibet.  It consists of seven streams and is
popularly called as Suptakosh in
Nepal.
6. Ramganga Garwal hills near  It joins the Ganga near Kannauj.
Gairsain

7. Damodar It occupies the eastern  River Barakar is its largest feeder.

margins of the  Once known as the ‘sorrow of
Chotanagpur Plateau Bengal’, the Damodar has been now
where it flows through a transformed into a life-line for
industrial production by Damodar

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rift valley and finally Valley Corporation’s multipurpose

joins the Hugli. projects.

8. Sarda or It rises in the Milan  It forms the boundary between

Saryu river glaceir in the Nepal Nepal and Kumaon.
or Kali Himalays.  In the Nepal Himalayas, it is known
as the Goriganga. Along the Indo-
Nepal border, it is called Kali or
Chauk, where it joins the Ghaghara.
9. Mahananda It rises in the Darjiling  It joins the Ganga as its last left
hills. bank tributary in West Bengal.

10. Son It originates in the  After forming a series of waterfalls

Amarkantak plateau. at the edge of the Amarkantak
plateau, it reaches Arrah, west of
Patna, to join the Ganga.

BRAHMPUTRA
 Originates in Chemayungdung glacier of the Kailash range near the
Mansarovar lake in Tibet.
 Popularly known as Tsangpo in Tibet and Yarlung Zangbo Jiangin in China.
 It takes a “U” turn at Namcha Barwa in Arunachal Pradesh and enters India.
Here initially it is called as Siang and then as Dihang.
 It is joined by Dibang, Lohit, Kenula, Subansiri, Kameng, Dhansiri, Raidak,
and many other tributaries and finally forms the Brahmaputra in Assam.
 In Bangladesh, it joins Tista and is known as Jamuna.
 The Jamuna and Ganga confluence at Goalundo and afterwards are called
as the Padma. There onwards it is known as Meghna to finally merge in the
Bay of Bengal.
 The river is nearly 16 km wide at Dibrugarh and forms many islands, the
most important of which is Majuli.
 Majuli is the world’s largest riverine island and India’s first island district.

PENINSULAR RIVER SYSTEM

 The Peninsular drainage system is older than the Himalayas.
 They are non-perennial rivers with a maximum discharge in the rainy
season.
 The Jog on the Sharvati (289 m), Yenna of Mahabaleshwar (183
m), Sivasamundram on the Cauvery (101m), Gokak falls in Gokak (55
m), Kapildhara (23 m) and Dhuandar (15 m) on the Narmada are the major
waterfalls in the Peninsular India.
 Peninsular river system is divided into east and west flowing rivers.

EAST FLOWING RIVERS:

The Mahanadi, the Godavari, the Krishna and the Cauvery flow eastwards and
drain into the Bay of Bengal. These rivers make deltas at their mouths.
WEST FLOWING RIVERS:
Narmada and Tapi along with other small rivers originate from the Western
Ghats and while falling in the Arabian Sea form estuaries in place of deltas.
This is due to the fact that these rivers, especially Narmada and Tapi, flows
through hard rocks of rift valley, formed by block mountains and are not able
to form distributaries before they enter the sea.

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DELTA ESTUARY

1. The triangular deposits made by the 1. The sharp edged mouth og river,
rivers at their mouth from Delta. devoid of any deposits is known as
Estuary.

2. Deltas are formed in the regions of low 2. Regions of high tides and rift valleys
tides and coastal plains. witness Estuaries.

3. Deltas are fertile lands. 3. Estuary does not have fertile lands.

4. Ganga, Brahmaputra, Krishna, Kaveri 4. Narmada and Tapi rivers form

and Mahanadi form delta. Estuaries.

S.No. ORIGIN CHARACTERISTIC FEATURES

RIVERS

East Flowing Rivers

 It is 851 km long.
 Some navigation is carried on the lower
course of this river.
 Its drainage basin encompasses Madhya
Northern hills of Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Orissa.
Dandakaranya in  Major tributaries are Seonath, Mand, Ib &
1. Mahanadi Raipur district of Hasdeo
Chhattisgarh.

 It is 1465 km long.
 It is the largest peninsular river system.
 It is also called the Dakshim Ganga.
 Its drainage basin encompasses
It rises in the Nasik Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh,
district of Chhattisgarh, Orissa and Andhra
2. Godavari Maharashtra and Pradesh.
discharges its water  Major tributaries are Wainganga,
into the Bay of Painganga, Pranhita, Indravti, Manjira &
Wardha.
Bengal

 It is the second largest eastflowing

Peninsular river
 Total length-1401 km.
 Major Tributaries-Koyna, Tungabhadra,
Mahabaleshwar in Ghataprabha
Sahyadris Malprabha, Bhima, Musi & Muneru.
3. Krishna
 Its drainage basin encompasses
Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra
Pradesh.
 The large delta of Krishna appears to
merge with that formed by Godavari.
 Length: 800 km
 Important tributaries

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o Kabini
o Bhavani
o Amravati
 Its drainage basin encompasses Kerala,
4. Kaveri It rises in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu & Puducherry.
Brahmagiri hills in
Karnataka.

WEST FLOWING RIVERS

It originates in the  It is the largest of all the west flowing

western flank of the rivers of Peninsula.
5. Narmada Amarkantak plateau  It flows in a rift valley between the
(Maikal Range) in Satpura in the south and the Vindhyan
range in the north.
Madhya Pradesh.
 It forms Dhuandhar falls near Jabalpur.
 The Narmada basin covers parts of
Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat.
 The Sardar Sarovar Project has been
constructed on this river.
 Since the river flows through a narrow
valley confined by preciptous hills, it does
not have major tributaries with the
exception of Hiran River on its right bank.
 All the tributaries of the Narmada are
very short. Most of the tributaries of the
Narmada meet at right angles.
 It meets the Arabian sea south of
Bharuch, forming a broad 27 km long
estuary. There are several small islands
in the estuary of Narmada, of which
Aliabet is the largest.
 Length: 724 km
 Its drainage basin encompasses
Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and
Gujarat.
The Tapi rises in the  The river flows towards the west through
Satpura ranges, in rift valleys parallel to river Narmada.
6. Tapi Betul district of  The Ukai dam on Tapi river provides
Madhya Pradesh. water for urban and agricultural uses to
area around Surat.
 It is the largest river system of Rajasthan,
west of Aravali.
 The entire river system is ephemeral.
 It originates near Pushkar in two
7. Luni Pushkar branches, i.e. the Saraswati and the
Sabarmati, which join with each other at
Govindgarh. From here, the river comes
out of Aravali and is known as Luni.

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Peninsular River System

SOME IMPORTANT RIVERS
 Sharavati is an important river in Karnataka flowing towards the west. The
Sharavati originates in Shimoga district of Karnataka and drains a catchment
area of 2,209 sq. km. The famous Jog or Gersoppa Falls (289m) made by
Sharavati river are the highest waterfalls in India.
 Mandovi river in Goa.
 Bharathapuzha – It is the largest river of Kerala. It is also known as Ponnani. It
originates from Annamalai hills and flows into the Arabian Sea at a place called
Ponnani.
 Periyar – It is the longest and the second largest river of Kerala.
 The Ghaggar is the most important river of inland drainage. It gets lost in the
dry sands of Rajasthan near Hanumangarh. It forms boundary between Haryana
and Punjab.

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HIMALAYAN & PENINSULAR RIVERS

Criterion Himalayan Rivers Peninsular Rivers

1. Place of Himalayan mountain covered Peninsular plateau and central highland

origin with glaciers

2. Basin Size These rivers have very large Small basins and catchment areas.
basins and catchment areas.

3.Type of Antecedent and consequent Super imposed, rejuvenated resulting in

drainage leading to dendritic pattern in trellis, radial and rectangular patterns
plains

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4. Valleys The Himalayan rivers flow These flow in comparitively shallow

through steep sided V-shaped valleys. These are more or less graded
valleys. valleys i.e. the rivers have little erosional
activities to perform.

5.Water flow Perennial; receive water from Seasonal; dependent on monsoon

glacier and rainfall rainfall

6. Stage These rivers flow across the These rivers have been flowing in one of
young fold mountains and are the oldest plateaus/shields and have
still at a youthful stage. almost reached their base levels of
erosion.

7. Delta These rivers make only deltas. These rivers make deltas (Krishna,
formation The Sundarbans delta is the Kaveri and Godavari) and estuaries like
and Estuaries largest in the world. Narmada and Tapi.

LAKES
A lake is an area of variable size filled with water, localized in a basin, that is
surrounded by land, apart from
any river or other outlet that serves to
feed or drain the lake.

LAGOONS
Lagoons are shallow body of water
separated from a larger body of water
by barrier islands or reefs.

List of Famous Lakes in

India
1. Kolleru Lake - Andhra Pradesh
Located between Krishna and
Godavari delta Atapaka Bird
Sanctuary is a located on the Kolleru
Lake. Lagoons
2. Sambhar Lake - Rajasthan
India's largest inland salt lake
3. Pushkar Lake - Rajasthan

4. Wular Lake - Jammu Kashmir

Largest Freshwater lake in India.

5. Pulicat Lake- Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu

Second largest brackish – water lake or lagoon in India
The large spindle-shaped barrier island named Sriharikota separates the lake from
the Bay of Bengal. The island is home to the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, the
launch site of India's successful first lunar space mission, the Chandrayaan-1.

6. Loktak Lake -Manipur

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Largest freshwater lake in North -East India Keibul Lamjao the only floating
national park in the world floats over it, which is the last natural refuge of the
endangered sangai or Manipur brow-antlered deer.
7. Sasthamcotta Lake - Kerala
Largest fresh water lake in kerala. The purity of the lake water for drinking use is
attributed to the presence of large population of larva called cavaborus that
consumes bacteria in the lake water.
8. Vembanad Lake -Kerala
Vembanad (Vembanad Kayal or Vembanad Kol) is the longest lake in India, and the
largest lake in the state of Kerala. The Nehru Trophy Boat Race is conducted in a
portion of the lake.

9. Chilka Lake -Odisha

Chilika Lake is a brackish water lagoon, spread over
the Puri, Khurda and Ganjam districts of Odisha state on the east coast of India. It
is the largest coastal lagoon in India and the second largest lagoon in the world.
Chilika Lake is the largest wintering ground for migratory birds, on the Indian sub-
continent.

10. Dal Lake - Jammu Kashmir

Dal Lake is a lake in Srinagar and is integral to tourism known as the "Jewel in
the crown of Kashmir" Asia's largest Tulip garden is on the banks of Dal Lake.
Mughal gardens, Shalimar Bagh and the Nishat Bagh are on the banks of Dal Lake.

11. Nalsarover Lake- Gujarat

The Nalsarovar Lake in Gujarat is probably the largest water bird sanctuary in the
country. The Nalsarovar Lake is mainly inhabited by migratory birds in winter and
spring. It is the largest wetland bird sanctuary in Gujarat, and one of the largest
in India.
12. Tsomgo Lake - Sikkim
13. Bhimtal Lake - Uttarakhand
It is the largest lake in Kumaon region, known as the "lake district of India". "C"
shaped lake.

15. Nainital Lake - Uttarakhand

Kidney shaped or crescent shaped.

16. Periyar Lake -Kerala

Periyar Lake is formed by the construction of the dam across the Mullaperiyar
River in 1895. The notable elephant reserve and a tiger reserve, Periyar Wildlife
Sanctuary is located on the banks of Periyar lake.
17. Hussain Sagar Lake - Telangana
Built by Hazrat Hussain Shah Wali in 1562, during the rule of Ibrahim Quli Qutub
Shah. Connects the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad.
20. Nakki Lake - Rajasthan
It is a very ancient sacred Lake, according to the Hindu legend. It is called by this
name because it was dug out from Nails (Nakh). 'Nakki Lake is situated in the
Indian hill station of Mount Abu in Aravalli range. Mahatma Gandhi's ashes were
immersed in this Holy Lake on 12 February 1948 and Gandhi Ghat was
constructed.

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21. Bhojtal Lake- Madhya Pradesh

Also known as Upper Lake lies on the western side of the capital city of Madhya
Pradesh, Bhopal. Bada talaab, along with the nearby Chhota Talaab, meaning
small lake in Hindi, constitute Bhoj Wetland, which is now a Ramsar site. Largest
artificial lake in Asia.
22. Surajkund- Haryana
23. Ulsoor lake- Bangalore, Karnataka
24. Sambhar lake-Rajasthan(largest salt lake of India)
25. Pichola lake-Udaipur, Rajasthan
26. Pangong lake-Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir
27. Lonar lake - Maharashtra
28. Maharashtra has the highest number of lakes.
29. Kokonoor is the largest lake of Tibet.
30. Lagoon lakes in kerala where boat races are organised are called as Kayals.

RIVER PROJECTS IN INDIA

RIVER PROJECT RIVER STATE
Bhakra Nangal Multipurpose Project.
Bhakra dam: One of the highest
Satluj Joint venture of Punjab,
gravity in the world.
(A tributary of Indus). Haryana and Rajasthan.
Govind Sagar Lake (H.P.) is a
reservoir.
Ravi (A tributary of
Thein Dam project Punjab
Indus).
Chenab (A tributary of
Dulhasti project Jammu and Kashmir
Indus).
Chenab (A tributary of
Salal project Jammu and Kashmir
Indus).
Chenab (A tributary of
Joint venture of Punjab,
Beas Project Indus).
Haryana and Rajasthan.
Chuisot stream near
Sharda Sahayak Project
Kalabagh Uttar Pradesh
Banasagar project Son M.P., Bihar and U.p.
Rihand Scheme Reservoir: Godind
Rihand Uttar Pradesh
Ballabh Sagar (U.P.)
Damodar valley multipurpose project
Four dams: Tilaiya and
West Bengal (also
Maithon (on the Barakar Damodar
shared by Jharkhand).
River), Konar (Konar River)
and Panchet (Damodar River).
Mayurakshi project Mayurakshi West Bengal
Hirakud, multipurpose project
Mahanadi Orissa
(world’s longest mainstream dam).
Poochampad Project Godavari Andhra Pradesh
Jayakwadi Project Godavari Maharashtra
Nagarjuna Sagar Krishna Andhra Pradesh
Upper Krishna Project Krishna Karnataka
Tungbhadra (A tributary Joint venture of Andhra
Tungabhadra multipurpose
of Krishna). Pradesh and Karnataka.
Ghatprabha (A tributary Andhra Pradesh and
Ghatprabha project
of Krishna). Karnataka.
Malprabha (A tributary
Malprabha project Karnataka
of Krishna).

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Bima project Bhima Maharashtra

Mettur project Cauvery Tamil Nadu
Shivasamudram Scheme On Cauvery Falls. Karnataka
Kundah project Kundah Tamil Nadu
Sharavati (near Jog
Sharavati Project falls) Karnataka

Chambal project (Gandhi Sagar Dam

(M.P.),
Rajasthan, Madhya
Rana Pratap Sagar and Chambal (A tributary of
Pradesh
Jawahar Sagar Dam or
Kota Dam)
Kakrapara Project Tapi Gujarat
Ukai Project Tapi Gujarat
Gujarat, M.P.,
Sardar Sarovar Project Narmada
Rajasthan Maharashtra
Tawa (A tributary of
Tawa project Madhya Pradesh
Narmada.
Mahi Project (Jamnalal Bajaj Sagar) Mahi Gujarat
Uttar Pradesh, Madhya
Matatila project Betwa
Pradesh

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