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Quick Revision Module
(UPSC Prelims 2024) Geography
Drainage Pattern
and Types
A geometric arrangement of streams in a region determined by slope, differing rock resistance to weathering and
erosion, climate, hydrologic variability, and structural controls of the landscape is known as drainage pattern.
Rivers on basis
of Drainage
Antecedent Consequent
The rivers that existed The rivers which Godavari and krishna
Indus, Sutlej, etc. rivers descending
before the upheaval of follow general
Ganga are from the Western Ghats
the Himalayas and cut direction of slope
few examples are known as the are some consequent
their courses by making
gorges in the mountains consequent rivers rivers.
Types of Drainage Patterns:
Mains Stream Ridges of
Tributary Resistant Rocks
(a) Dendritic Drainage (c) Trellis Drainage
Central Uplift
(a) Rectangular Drainage (d) Radial Drainage
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Himalayan River System Vs Peninsular
River System
98°E 72° 76° 80° 84° 88° 92° 96°E
36°N
36°N
INDIA
INDUS RIVER BASINS
32° BASIN
PAKISTAN 32°
West Flowing River:
Rivers in Kuchchh,
Saurastra and
river Luni CHINA
28°
(TIBET)
NE
PA
L
BHUTAN
Ganga
Ganga Brahma Putra
Basin
Basin
Basin
BANGLADESH Barak 24°
Basin
i
sin at
Ba arm
Mehar
Su
b
Tropic of
Sa
Bhasin
ba Ba
Ba
rn sin
Narmada Basin ita Cancer
ar
ek
R ra
Ba ive ni a
ha
Mahanadi si r nd
Tapi Basin n MYANMAR
20° Basin
20°
Godawari Basin
ARABIAN BAY OF
SEA BENGAL
Krishna Basin East Flowing Rivers:
16° Rivers between
Mahandi and Pennar
West Flowing
Pennar
Rivers: Rivers
south of Tapi Basin
East Flowing
Rivers: Rivers
between
12° Kaveri Pennar and
Basin Kanyakumari
12°
ANDAMAN & NICOBAR ISLANDS
LAKSHADWEEP (INDIA)
(INDIA)
8°N SRI OCEAN
LANKA 0 200 400 60 km 8°N
INDIA
72°E 76° 84° 88° 92°E
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Himalayan River System Vs Peninsular
River System
Aspects Himalayan River Peninsular River
Place of Origin Himalayan mountain covered with Peninsular plateau and central highland
glaciers
Nature of flow Perennial Ephemeral
Type of Antecedent and Consequent leading Super imposed, rejuvenated resulting in
drainage to dendritic pattern trellis, radial and rectangular patterns
Nature of Long course, flowing through rugged Smaller, fixed course with well adjusted
river mountains experiencing headward valleys
erosion and river capturing;
In plains meandering and shifting of
course
Catchment age Very large basins Relatively smaller basin
Age of the Young, active and deepening of valley Old rivers with graded profile and
river lateral erosion
Irrigation Flow through plains and canal system Flow over uneven plateau; canals only in
deltaic region
Hydroelectricity Eastern region has very high potential Natural waterfalls for generating
and large dams are building up electricity
AFGHANISTAN
Ka
bu
Sh
y
The Himalayan
l ok
Wular Lake Ind
Dal Lake us
River System
b
l u m Chena
e
Jh
C H I N A
as
j
Ra vi Satlu
Be
PAKISTAN lu j
Sat
l
na
TIBET
Sard
Ca
r
hi gh a Tsangpo
us an
d
G hag N
Ind
a
G G E
ra an
Ind Sambhar Salt Ya
ga P
m G A
Lake un o m Gh a L BHUTAN put
ra
u n i a at ghar ahm
a
L Br
l
i a
ba
Ga
s
m
na
Kosi
nd
a
Ch
Ba
i
a
at
ak
Parbali
tw
rm
Kali Sing
Be
Rann Son BANGLADESH
ba
Kachchh
Sa
Damodar
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Ganga River System
The river has a length of 2,525 km and is the largest river basin in India with about one-fourth area
of the country under it.
It rises in the Gangotri glacier near Gaumukh (3,900 m) in the Uttarakhand where it is known as the
Bhagirathi. At Devprayag, the Bhagirathi meets the Alakananda and both makes Ganga.
Along with Brahmaputra, it makes largest delta of the world.
It flows through major cities of India – Kanpur, Allahabad, Patna, and Kolkata.
Western most and the longest tributary of the Ganga, has its source in the
Yamunotri glacier on the western slopes of Bander punch range (6,316 km).
Meets Ganga at Allahabad (Prayag).
Yamuna The right bank tributaries involve the Chambal, the Sind, the Betwa and the Ken
which originates in the Peninsular plateau.
Hindan, the Rind, the Sengar, the Varuna join it on its left bank.
It flows through cities such as Karnal, Delhi, and Agra.
The Gandak river comprises two streams, namely Kaligandak and Trishulganga.
Gandak
It rises in the Nepal Himalayas between Dhaulagiri and Mt. Everest.
It enters the Ganga Plains of India in Champaran, Bihar and joins Ganga at
Sonpur near Patna.
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The Ghaghara originates in the glaciers of Mapchachungo. It comes out of the
mountain, cutting a deep gorge at Shishapani.
Ghaghara
The river Sarda joins it in the plain before it finally meets the Ganga at Chhapra.
It flows through famous Ayodhya town.
The Ramganga is the first major tributary to join the Ganga from its left near
Kannauj.
Ramaganga
It rises in the Garhwal hills near Gairsain. A large dam has been built on this river
near Kalagarh.
The Damodar drains the eastern parts of the Chotanagpur Plateau where it flows
through a rift valley and finally joins the Hugli at Falta.
Damodar The Barakar is its main tributary. Once known as the ‘Sorrow of Bengal’ the
Damodar has been now tamed by the Damodar Valley Corporation, a
multipurpose project.
The Chambal rises near Mhow in the Malwa plateau from Vindhyan. From Kota,
it traverses down to Bundi, Sawai Madhopur and Dholpur, and finally joins the
Yamuna at Etawah.
Chambal The Chambal is famous for its badland topography called the Chambal
ravines. Ravines are being reclaimed for agricultural and pastoral activities.
Banas river is its main tributary. The main dams across the river are Gandhi Sagar
(Kota), Rana Pratap Sagar and Jawahar Sagar.
The Son originates from the Amarkantak plateau. It has length of 780km.
Son After forming a series of waterfall at the edge of plateau, it reaches Arrah, west
of Patna to join the Ganga. It is known for its frequent river shifting.
The Sarda or Saryu river rises in the Milan glacier in the Nepal Himalayas where
Sharda it is known as the Goriganga. Along the Indo-Nepal border, it is called Kali or
Chauk, where it joins the Ghaghara.
The Mahananda is another important tributary of the Ganga rising in the Darjiling
Mahananda
hills. It joins the Ganga as its last left bank tributary in West Bengal.
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PRELIMS SAMPOORN
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Contents
1. Indus and Its Tributaries ..........................................................................2
2. Ganga and Its Tributaries .........................................................................4
3. Mahanadi and Its tributaries .....................................................................6
4. Brahmaputra & Its Tributaries ..................................................................8
5. Narmada & Its Tributaries ......................................................................10
6. Godavari & Its Tributaries.......................................................................12
7. Krishna & Its Tributaries ........................................................................14
8. Cauvery & Its Tributaries........................................................................16
1
Indus and Its Tributaries
The Indus is one of the most important drainage systems of the subcontinent of India.
The Indus is the western most River system in the subcontinent.
Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas and Satluj are its main tributaries.
The Indus originates from the Bokhar Chu (glacier) in northern slopes of Mt. Kailash (6714m).
It drains the largest number of glaciers and mountain slopes of the Karakorum, Ladakh,
Zaskarand Himalayan Ranges.
Originating from the Kailash Mountain, it flows in a constricted valley north-westward through
Tibet, where it is called as Singi Khamban or Lion’s mouth.
In ladakh it follows a long nearly straight course between the Ladakh range and the Zaskar
range.
In the first 480 km, it flows along the northern flank of the Zaskar range over a flat country at
heights over 3200 m where it receives River Zaskar below Leh.
Suruand Dras are the other left bank tributaries which join the Indus near Kargil.
Moving north-westward, the Indus is joined by the Shyok-Nubra tributaries.
These tributaries arise from the Siachin Glacier (Karakoram Range).
At Skardu, at a little distance below the Shyok, the Shigar River meets River Indus.
Gilgit is another important tributary which comes from the west to join Indus.
Downward; the Indus crosses the central Himalayan range through a huge synclinal gorge.
The River passes by the Nanga-Parvat and turns south-west to enter Pakistan.
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2
Ganga and Its Tributaries
The Ganga basin is one of the largest river basins.
It lies in China, Nepal, India and Bangladesh and drains an area of about 10,00,000 sq. kms.
In India, its catchment lies in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh,
Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Jharkhand Rajasthan, West Bengal, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Delhi.
The Ganga originates as Bhagirathi from the Gangotri Glaciers in the Himalayas at an elevation
of about 7,000 m above mean sea level, in the Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand.
The Bhagirathi is joined by the Alaknanda at Deoprayag and the combined stream under the
name Ganga flowing through the mountain region debouches into the plains at Rishikesh.
It is joined by a large number of tributaries on both the banks in the course of its total run of
about 2,500 km before its outfall into the Bay of Bengal.
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3
Mahanadi and Its tributaries
The Mahanadi is one of the major east flowing peninsular rivers draining into Bay of Bengal.
The Mahanadi River ranks second to the Godavari River among the peninsular rivers in respect
of water potential.
The Mahanadi rises in a pool, 6 km from Pharsiya village near Nagri Town in Raipur district of
Chhattisgarh state at an elevation of 457 m.
The total length of the river form origin to its outfall into Bay of Bengal is 851 km of which 357
km lies in Chhattisgarh and 494 km in Orissa.
The principal tributaries of the Mahanadi river are; Sheonath, Jonk, Hasdeo, Mand, Ib, Ong and
Tel.
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4
Brahmaputra & Its Tributaries
The Brahmaputra Valley has an average width of about 80 Km.
The main river of the valley, Brahmaputra is one of the largest rivers in the world and rank fifth
with respect to its average discharge.
The river originates from the Kailash ranges of Himalayas at an elevation of 5300 M.
After flowing through Tibet it enters India through Arunachal Pradesh and flows through Assam
and Bangladesh before it joins Bay of Bengal.
Brahmaputra sub-basin extends over an area of 580,000 sq.km lying in Tibet (China), Bhutan,
India and Bangladesh.
The drainage area lying in India is 194413 sq.km which is nearly 5.9% of the total geographical
area of the country
It is bounded on the north by the Himalayas, on the east by the Patkari range of hills running
along the Assam-Burma border, on the south by the Assam range of hills and on the west by
the Himalayas and the ridge separating it from Ganga sub-basin.
The sub-basin lies in the States of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Nagaland, Meghalaya, West
Bengal and Sikkim.
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5
Narmada & Its Tributaries
Narmada river is the largest west flowing river of the peninsula India. It rises from Narmada
Kund, located at Amarkantak, in the Anuppur district of Madhya Pradesh, at an elevation of
about 1057 m in the Maikala range. It forms the traditional boundary between North and
South India.
The river flows through Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat between Vindhya and
Satpura hill ranges before falling into the Gulf of Cambay in the Arabian Sea about 10 km north
of Bharuch, Gujarat. The total length of the river from the head to its outfall into the Arabian
Sea is 1,333 km.
For the first 1085 km, it runs in Madhya Pradesh and thereaer forms the common boundary
between Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra for 39 km, and Maharashtra and Gujarat for 43 km.
It has the longest stretch in Gujarat of 166 km.
There are total 41 tributaries of Narmada river. Out of these, 8 important tributaries join the
river from right bank and 11 important tributaries join from the le bank.
The first major tributary, the Burhner, joins Narmada from left. Further downstream, it receives
the Banjar from the left. As Narmada enters the upper fertile plains, it receives the Hiran on
the right bank. In continuation, the river receives several tributaries - the Sher, the Shakkar,the
Dudhi, the Tawa, the Ganjal from the le and the Tendoni, the Barna, the Kolarfrom the right.
During its journey through the middle plains, it receives tributaries - the Chhota Tawa,
the Kundi from the left and the Man from the right. In the lower hilly regions, Narmada
receives the Goi from the left and the Uri, the Hatni from the right.The Karjan from the left and
the Orsang from the right are important tributaries joining the river in the lower plains. Finally,
the river drains into the Gulf of Khambhat (Arabian Sea).
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6
Godavari & Its Tributaries
The river Godavari, the largest of the peninsular rivers, and third largest in India, drains about
10% of India’s total geographical area.
The catchment area of the river is 3,12,812 sq.km and is spread in the states of Maharashtra
(48.6%), Andhra Pradesh (23.4%), Madhya Pradesh (10.0%), Chhattisgarh (10.9%), Orissa (5.7%)
and Karnataka (1.4%).
The river Godavari rises at an elevation of 1,067 m in the Western Ghats near Thriambak Hills in
the Nasik district of Maharashtra.
The largest tributary of the Godavari is the Pranhita with about 34.87% coverage of drainage
area. The Pravara, Manjira and Maner are right bank tributaries covering about 16.14%, the
Purna, Pranhita, Indravathi and Sabari are important left bank tributaries, covering nearly 59.7%
of the total catchment area of the basin.
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7
Krishna & Its Tributaries
The Krishna Basin extends over Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka having a total area
of 2,58,948 Sq.km which is nearly 8% of the total geographical area of the country.
It is bounded by Balaghat range on the north, by the Eastern Ghats on the south and the east
and by the Western Ghats on the west.
The Krishna River rises from the Western Ghats near Jor village of Satara district of Maharashtra
at an altitude of 1,337 m just north of Mahabaleshwar.
The total length of river from origin to its outfall into the Bay of Bengal is 1,400 km.
Its principal tributaries joining from right are the Ghatprabha, the Malprabha and the
Tungabhadra whereas those joining from left are the Bhima, the Musi and the Munneru are
joining the river from left.
The major part of basin is covered with agricultural land accounting to 75.86% of the total area
and 4.07% of the basin is covered by water bodies.
The basin spreads over Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Maharashtra.
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8
Cauvery & Its Tributaries
The Cauvery basin extends over states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Union Territory of
Puducherry draining an area of 81,155 Sq.km which is nearly 2.7% of the total geographical
area of the country with a maximum length and width of about 560 km and 245 km.
It is bounded by the Western Ghats on the west, by the Eastern Ghats on the east and the south
and by the ridges separating it from Krishna basin and Pennar basin on the north. The Cauvery
River is one of the major rivers of the peninsula.
Its important tributaries joining from left are the Harangi, the Hemavati, the Shimsha and the
Arkavati whereas the Lakshmantirtha, the Kabbani, the Suvarnavati, the Bhavani, the Noyil and
the Amaravati joins from right.
The river drains into the Bay of Bengal.
The major part of basin is covered with agricultural land accounting to 66.21% of the total area
and 4.09% of the basin is covered by water bodies.
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