write a short note on indian river system
- The Indian River system is divided into two groups- the Himalayan Rivers and the
- Peninsular Rivers.
- The Himalayan Rivers
- They have water all throughout the year and originate from the mountains in the
- north. They flow through the mountains and form gorges.
- Himalayan rivers cover long routes before falling into the sea.
- Erosion activities in the upper courses. Hence, they bring loads of sand and silt
- on their way down and deposit it in the lower courses.
- In the middle and lower courses, these rivers form meanders, oxbow lakes and deltas.
- The Peninsular Rivers
- Seasonal rivers i.e. they depends on rainfall.
- They have short courses as compared to the Himalayan Rivers.
- They flow through the plateaus and low hills and hence, they are not as fast
- flowing as the Himalayan rivers.
- The Himalayan Rivers
- The Indus River System
- Originates from Lake Mansarovar in Tibet and enters India through Ladakh in
- Jammu and Kashmir.
- The Zaskar, the Nubhra, the Shyok and the Hunza join the Indus in Kashmir.
- The Satluj, the Ravi, the Chenab, the Beas and the Jhelum together join Indus at
- Mithankot in Pakistan. Indus merges with the Arabian Sea near Karachi in
- Pakistan.
- Length is 2900 km. It is one of the longest rivers in the world.
- The Ganga River System
- The Ganga originates from the Gangotri Glacier in Uttarakhand in the form of
- Bhagirathi river.
- The Bhagirathi and the Alaknanda rivers join together at Devprayag and form
- the Ganga river. The Ganga enters the plains at Haridwar in Uttarakhand.
- Major tributaries of the Ganga are the Yamuna, the Ghaghara, the Gandak and
- the Kosi.
- The Yamuna originates from the Yamunotri Glacier in the Himalayas and joins
- Ganga at Allahabad.
- The Kosi, the Ghaghara and the Gandak originate from the Nepal Himalayas.
- They are flood prone rivers and cause heavy damage to life and property during
- floods.
- The Chambal, the Betwa and the Son are the tributaries of the Ganga that
- originate from the peninsular plateau.
- The Northenmost point of the Ganga delta is Farakka in West Bengal. The river
- splits here and Bhagirathi-Hooghly (distributary) flows south into the Bay of
- Bengal; the main stream is joined by the Brahmaputra in Bangladesh and
- eventually falls into the Bay of Bengal forming the Sunderbans delta. Length of
- the Ganga is 2400 km.
- The Brahmaputra River System
- The Brahmaputra originates in Tibet, very close to the origins of the Indus and
- the Satluj.
- It flows from West to East parallel to the Himalayas and enters India through
- Arunachal Pradesh after taking a U-turn at Namcha Barwa.
- It is called Dihang in Arunachal Pradesh and is joined by tributaries such as the
- Lohit and the Dibang.These together form the Brahmaputra in Assam.
- Brahmaputra creates many riverine islands, the largest in the world being Majuli
- (in Assam).
- The Brahmaputra is a flood prone river owing to huge deposits of silt on its bed
- that cause the overflowing of the river during monsoons.
- The Peninsular Rivers
- The Western Ghats form the main water divide in Peninsular India. The rivers that
- originate towards its West flows Westwards and fall into the Arabian Sea and those
- rising towards its East flow Eastwards and join the Bay of Bengal.