There are more than 400 rivers in the Indian subcontinent.[1] As per the classification of Food and Agriculture Organization, the Indian rivers are combined into 20 river units, which includes 14 major river systems and 99 smaller river basins grouped into six river units. They are grouped into four groups: Himalayan, Deccan, Coastal, and Inland drainage, based on their origin and drainage.[2][3]
Most of the rivers in India originate from the four major watersheds in India. The Himalayan watershed is the source of the majority of the major river systems in India, including the three longest rivers: the Ganges, the Brahmaputra and the Indus.[3][4] These three river systems are fed by more than 5000 glaciers.[5]
The Aravalli range running along the north-western part of India is the origin of a few of the smaller rivers. In Central India, rivers including the Narmada and Tapti rivers originate from the Vindhya and Satpura.[4] In the peninsular India, the majority of the rivers originate from the Western Ghats in the west and flow towards the Bay of Bengal in the east, while a few rivers flow from east to west from the Eastern Ghats to the Arabian Sea. This is because of the difference in elevation of the Deccan Plateau, which slopes gently from the west to the east.[6] The major peninsular rivers include the Godavari, the Krishna, the Mahanadi and the Kaveri.[3][4]
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See also
- Dissolved load
- Indian Rivers Inter-link
- Interstate River Water Disputes Act
- Irrigation in India
- List of dams and reservoirs in India
- List of drainage basins by area
- List of major rivers of India
- List of rivers by discharge
- National Water Policy
- Water scarcity in India
- Water supply and sanitation in India
- Water pollution in India
Notes
References
- ↑ India's misunderstood rivers(25 May 2015). Retrieved 22 August 2015.
- ↑ Template:Cite report
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Rivers of India. Government of India. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Major River basins of India. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
- ↑ Comparison and Monitoring of Glacier Retreat using Satellite and Ground Methods(March 2013). Retrieved 3 September 2015.
- ↑ Formation of Western Ghats. Indian Institute of Science. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
- ↑ Chemical weathering in the river basins of the Himalaya, India. Current Science({Template:Date).