Rivers are important for the development of the country. The Indian River System is classified into two parts ie Himalayan Rivers and Peninsular Rivers. Most of the Indian rivers flow eastwards and drain into the Bay of Bengal, but some rivers in India run from east to west. Narmada, Mahi and Tapti are major west flowing rivers in India. Based on origin, the Indian River Systems are divided into two types of river systems namely the Himalayan River Systems and the Peninsular River Systems.
Table of Contents
1. Himalayan Rivers
- The Indus River
- The Ganga Rivers
- The Brahmaputra Rivers
2. Peninsular Rivers
- Godavari
- Krishna
- Kaveri
- Damodar
- Narmada
- Tapti
Himalayan River Systems. The Himalayan Rivers originated from the Himalayas and flow all along the Northern Plains, which are joined by various tributaries to form these river systems. They are also called perennial rivers as they are fed by both rainfall and the melting of snow and flow continuously through its riverbed for the whole year. These river systems are long and geographically cover a vast area of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and important portion of China. The three main Himalayan River Systems are :
- The Indus River Systems.
- The Ganga River Systems.
- The Brahmaputra River Systems.
Peninsular Rivers. The Peninsular Rivers originated from the Western Ghats. The Peninsular River Systems is older than the Himalayan River Systems. These rivers have shorter and shallower courses as compared to the Himalayan Rivers. These Peninsular Rivers are mostly rain-fed and both east and west-flowing. The main Peninsular Rivers Narmada and Tapti flow from east to west and drain into the Arabian Sea, where Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna and Cauvery flow from west to east and finally drain into the Bay of Bengal.
- The main west flowing rivers are Narmada, Tapti, Sabarmati, Mahi, Luni Bharathpuzha and Periyar.
- The main east flowing rivers are Godavari, Krishna, Brahmani, Baitarni, Damodar, Vamsadhara, penner, paler, Vaigai and Subarnrekha.
Frequently Asked Questions on Indian Drainage Systems
Q1. The Indian Drainage Systems are mostly divided into how many parts?
Answer. Based on the origin the Indian Drainage System divided into two parts ie the Himalayan Rivers System and The Peninsular River Systems.
Q2. Which one of the following is a Himalayan River?
(a) Tapti
(b) Narmada
(c) Indus
(d) Krishna
Answer. Indus
Q3. The River Brahmaputra finally drained into?
Answer. The River Brahmaputra finally drained in to the ‘Bay of Bengal’.
Q4. Which one of the following is a west-flowing river?
(a) Carvery
(b) Krishna
(c) Damodar
(d) Tapti
Answer. Tapti
Q5. Which of the following rivers is known as ‘Ganga of South India’?
(a) Krishana
(b) Damodar
(c) Godavari
(d) Narmada
Answer. Godavari