Question

Where do the rivers Indus and Ganga have their origin?

Answer 1

The Indus river and Ganga river have their origins in the Himalayas. Ganga originates from Gangotri glacier and Indus originates from Tibet, near Lake Mansarovar.

Ganga River

• Gangotri glacier feeds the Bhagirathi river. At Devprayag in Uttarakhand, Alaknanda river joins the Bhagirathi river.
• The largest river basin in India is the Ganga river basin. The length of the river Ganga is over 2500 km.
• The Ganga river emerges on the plains from the mountains at Haridwar.
• Many tributary rivers which emerge from the Himalayas join the river Ganga.
• Some of the major tributaries are Yamuna, Kosi, Gandak, Ghaghara river.
• Yamunotri glacier in the Himalayas is the source of Yamuna river, a major tributary of the Ganga river.
• Initially both Ganga and Yamuna flow parallel to each other and they meet at Allahabad.
• Nepal Himalayas are the source of Kosi, Gandak and Ghaghara rivers, the other major tributaries of Ganga river.
• Rivers Son, Betwa and Chambal are the major tributaries of river Ganga, which emerge from the peninsular uplands.
• With large tributaries joining the Ganga river from its left and right banks, it causes enlargement of the river, which flows in the Eastward direction towards West Bengal.
• At a place named Farakka, the river bifurcates. This is the northernmost point of Ganga delta.

Indus River

• The Indus river is one of the longest rivers in India, with a length of 2900 Km.
• The Indus river flows in a westward direction from Tibet and enters India through the Union Territory of Ladakh.
• In India, the Indus river is joined by its other tributaries such as Hunza, Shyok, Nubra, and Zaskar.
• It emerges from the mountains at Attock after flowing through Gilgit Baltistan province.
• Near Mithankot in Pakistan, other rivers such as Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas and Satluj join and enter Indus.
• The Indus river continues flowing in the southward direction and enters the Arabian Sea.
• Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab constitutes around a third of the Indus river basin.