Rivers of India

The Brahmaputra originates from the Chemayungdung glacier near Mansarovar lake in Tibet. It enters India through Arunachal Pradesh and is known as Tsangpo in Tibet.

The Godavari is called 'Dakshin Ganga' because of its religious significance and large size among peninsular rivers. It originates in Nashik, Maharashtra and flows into the Bay of Bengal.

The Indus river originates near Mansarovar lake in Tibet. Most of the Indus river flows through Pakistan, with only a small portion in India (Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh).

The Bhakra Nangal Dam is built on the Sutlej river in Himachal Pradesh. It is one of the highest gravity dams in the world and is a major source of irrigation and hydropower.

The Yamuna meets the Ganga at Prayagraj (formerly Allahabad) at a confluence known as the Triveni Sangam. The invisible Saraswati river is also believed to join here.

The Narmada flows westward through a rift valley and drains into the Arabian Sea near Bharuch, Gujarat. It is unique among peninsular rivers for flowing west rather than east.

Chilika Lake is located near the delta of the Mahanadi river in Odisha. It is the largest brackish water lagoon in Asia and an important Ramsar wetland site.

The Indira Gandhi Canal, fed by the Sutlej and Beas rivers, is called the 'Life Line of Rajasthan' as it brings water to the arid Thar Desert region, transforming it into agricultural land.

The Damodar river is a tributary of the Hooghly river (distributary of Ganga) in West Bengal. It is called the 'Sorrow of Bengal' due to its history of devastating floods.

The Narmada river flows through a rift valley separating the Vindhya Range to the north and Satpura Range to the south. It is considered sacred and one of the seven holy rivers of India.

The Cauvery river originates at Talakaveri in the Brahmagiri Hills of Kodagu (Coorg) district, Karnataka. It flows through Karnataka and Tamil Nadu before draining into the Bay of Bengal.

The Tehri Dam is built on the Bhagirathi river in Uttarakhand. At 260.5 metres, it is the highest dam in India and one of the highest in the world.

The Ganga Action Plan was launched in 1985 by Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi to reduce pollution in the Ganga river. It was the first river conservation mission of its kind in India.

The Teesta river passes through the Siliguri Corridor, the narrow stretch of land connecting North-East India to the rest of India. The Teesta originates in Sikkim and merges with the Brahmaputra in Bangladesh.

The Son river is a major right-bank tributary of the Ganga. It originates near Amarkantak in Madhya Pradesh and joins the Ganga near Patna, Bihar.

The Kosi river is called the 'Sorrow of Bihar' because of its frequent course changes and devastating floods. It originates in Nepal and is known for shifting its course over time.

Panchganga, Dudhganga, Tulabhandra and Bhogawati are among the tributaries of the Krishna river in Maharashtra and Karnataka. The Krishna is one of the major rivers of peninsular India.

National Waterway 1 (NW-1) runs along the Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly river system from Allahabad to Haldia, covering 1,620 km. It is the longest national waterway in India.

The Ganga river drains the largest basin area in India, covering about 8.6 lakh sq km across 11 states. The Ganga basin is the most densely populated river basin in the world.

The Godavari is known as Dakshin Ganga due to its size and length, being the longest river in Peninsular India.

Jog Falls (also known as Gerosoppa Falls) is created by the Sharavathi River in Karnataka.

The Narmada River drops over the Marble Rocks in Bhedaghat near Jabalpur to form the Dhuandhar Falls.

The Son is a major right-bank tributary of the Ganga that originates near Amarkantak.

The Indus Waters Treaty was signed in 1960 in Karachi, brokered by the World Bank.

The Narmada flows through a rift valley between the Vindhya and Satpura ranges.

Rivers flowing into the Arabian Sea (like Tapti and Narmada) typically form estuaries instead of deltas.

The Teesta River originates from the Pahunri Glacier in Sikkim.

While the Ganga is the longest river overall, the Godavari is the longest river that originates and flows entirely within India.

The Hirakud Dam is built across the Mahanadi River in the state of Odisha.

The Krishna River originates near Mahabaleshwar in the Western Ghats of Maharashtra.

The Kosi River is known as the 'Sorrow of Bihar' because of its tendency to change course and cause devastating floods.

The Luni River is an endorheic river that originates in the Pushkar valley and disappears into the marshlands of the Rann of Kutch.

The Sarda River, also known as the Kali River, forms the international boundary between India and Nepal.

The Brahmaputra enters India from Tibet through the Yangyang Pass in Arunachal Pradesh.

The Bhavani River is a major tributary of the Cauvery River in southern India.

The Ganga river basin has the largest drainage area and highest density in India.

The Chambal is the principal tributary of the Yamuna River.

Majuli is the world's largest river island, located in the Brahmaputra River in Assam.

The Alaknanda and Bhagirathi rivers meet at Devprayag to form the mainstream Ganga.

The Alaknanda river originates from the Satopanth glacier located in the Garhwal Himalayas.

The Shivanasamudra Falls is situated on the river Cauvery in the state of Karnataka.

The Godavari is often called Vridha Ganga or Dakshin Ganga because of its large size and extent.

Purna, Wardha, and Wainganga are major tributaries that join the Godavari river system.

The Sardar Sarovar Dam is a major multi-purpose project constructed on the Narmada river.

The Damodar river was historically called the 'Sorrow of Bengal' due to the catastrophic floods it caused in the lower plains.

The Luni river originates in the Pushkar valley and disappears into the Rann of Kutch marshland.

The Chenab is the largest tributary of the Indus, formed by the confluence of the Chandra and Bhaga rivers.

The Tungabhadra is the principal tributary of the Krishna river, originating in the Western Ghats.

The Son river originates from the Amarkantak plateau and flows north to join the Ganga near Patna.

The Indravati river is a major tributary of the Godavari, flowing through Odisha and Chhattisgarh.

Dudhsagar Falls is situated on the Mandovi river in the Western Ghats.

The Barak river originates from the hills of Manipur and is a significant river of the Northeast.

The Krishna river delta is noted for its bird's-foot morphology due to its distributary patterns.

The seasonal Ghaggar river is widely believed by geologists to follow the course of the ancient, legendary Saraswati river.

The Indira Gandhi Canal gets its water from the Harike Barrage, which is located at the confluence of the Sutlej and Beas rivers.

Along with the Narmada, the Tapi river also flows through a rift valley between the Satpura and Ajanta ranges.

The Shyok river, known as the 'river of death', is a major tributary of the Indus river in the Ladakh region.

The Chambal river, flowing northwards, serves as a significant drainage feature separating parts of the Central Highlands from the plains.

The Pamba river is the third longest river in the state of Kerala and is considered the 'Dakshina Ganga' of Kerala.

The Beas river joins the Sutlej river at Harike in Punjab, which is also the headworks of the Indira Gandhi Canal.

Rivers flowing through rift valleys like Narmada and Tapti do not form deltas but form estuaries.

The five rivers forming the Panjnad are the Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej. The Shyok is a tributary of the Indus.

The Damodar river flows through a rift valley between the Hazaribagh and Ranchi plateaus in the Chota Nagpur region.

The Ghaghara is the largest left-bank tributary of the Ganga in terms of discharge and length.

These rivers are significant tributaries of the Cauvery, originating from the Western Ghats and joining the main course in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.

The Narmada river cuts through the famous white marble rocks at Bhedaghat near Jabalpur before descending as the Dhuandhar Falls.

Devprayag is the point where the Alaknanda and Bhagirathi rivers meet to officially form the River Ganga.

The Ponnaiyar river, which flows through Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, is historically known as the Dakshina Pinakini.

The Musi river is a major tributary of the Krishna, passing through the city of Hyderabad.