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Preparatory School

India
Physical
Environment

Drainage System

Important chapter

even for exams like upsc

Shivansh
Gupta
SRM University
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10CGPA Class 10 (Social Science)
Social Science Content Creator at Padhle
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Content
Where the rivers originate from

What are the shapes of river

How did they get that shape

Where do they drain

Why are rivers draining into western

and eastern side
 What u
think after
listening
the word
drainage
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Preparatory School

What is Drainage ?

The flow of water through well-defined channels is

known as ‘drainage’ and the network of such channels
is called a ‘drainage system’.
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The drainage pattern of an area is the outcome of

the geological time period, nature and structure of
rocks, topography, slope, amount of water flowing
and the periodicity of the flow.
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Drainage

Drainage system
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Nali me paani
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Nadi me paani
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Can you, then, explain the reason for water flowing

from one direction to the other?

Why do the rivers originating from the Himalayas in

the northern India and the Western Ghat in the
southern India flow towards the east and discharge
their waters in the Bay of Bengal?
 Some Terminologies
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Perennial - always with water

Ephemeral - water during rainy season, and dry, otherwise

Catchment area - A river drains the water collected from a

specific area.

Drainage basin - An area drained by a river and its tributaries.

River Basin and Watershed - The boundary line separating one drainage basin
drainage basin are from the other.
same things
River basins - The catchments of large rivers

Watersheds - The catchments of small rivulets and rills

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Catchment area
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Catchment area of Ganga

Drainage basin of Ganga

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River Basin and

drainage basin are
same things

watershed
There is, however, a slight difference between a
river basin and a watershed.

Watersheds are small in area while the basins

cover larger areas.
Important Drainage
Patterns
 Dendritic Pattern
........................

The drainage pattern resembling the branches

of a tree is known as “dendritic” the examples
of which are the rivers of northern plain.
........................
........................
 Radial Pattern
........................

When the rivers originate from a hill and flow in

all directions, the drainage pattern is known as
‘radial’.

The rivers originating from the Amarkantak

range present a good example of it.
........................
 Trellis Pattern
........................

When the primary tributaries of rivers flow

parallel to each other and secondary tributaries
join them at right angles, the pattern is known
as ‘trellis’.
........................
 Centripetal Pattern
........................

When the rivers discharge their waters from all

directions in a lake or depression, the pattern is
know as ‘centripetal’.
........................
 INDIAN DRAINAGE SYSTEM MAY
BE DIVIDED ON VARIOUS BASES.

(orientations
to the sea)

They are separated from each other through the Delhi ridge,
the Aravalis and the Sahyadris.
Nearly 77 per cent of the drainage area consisting of the
Ganga, the Brahmaputra, the Mahanadi, the Krishna, etc. is
oriented towards the Bay of Bengal while 23 per cent
comprising the Indus, the Narmada, the Tapi, the Mahi and the
Periyar systems discharge their waters in the Arabian Sea.
Major river basins with more than 20,000 sq. km of catchment
area.
It includes 14 drainage basins such as the Ganga, the
Brahmaputra, the Krishna, the Tapi, the Narmada, the Mahi,
the Pennar, the Sabarmati, the Barak, etc.
Medium river basins with catchment area between 2,000-
20,000 sq. km incorporating 44 river basins such as the
Kalindi, the Periyar, the Meghna, etc.
Minor river basins with catchment area of less than 2,000 sq.
km include fairly good number of rivers flowing in the area of
low rainfall.
 If you look at the map, you can see
that many rivers have their sources in the
Himalayas and discharge their waters either in
the Bay of Bengal or in the Arabian Sea.

Large rivers flowing on the Peninsular

plateau have their origin in the
Western Ghats and discharge their
waters in the Bay of Bengal.

The Narmada and Tapi are two large

rivers which are exceptions. They along
with many small rivers discharge their
waters in the Arabian Sea.
 Although it has the problem of including the
Chambal, themBetwa, the Son, etc. which are
much older in age and origin than other rivers
that have their origin in the Himalayas, it is the
most accepted basis of classification.
DRAINAGE SYSTEMS OF INDIA
Mountains
Plains
Plateau Indian drainage system consists of a large
number of small and big rivers. It is the outcome
of the evolutionary process of the three major
physiographic units and the nature and
characteristics of precipitation.
THE HIMALAYAN DRAINAGE
The Himalayan drainage system has evolved
through a long geological history. It mainly
includes the Ganga, the Indus and the
Brahmaputra river basins.
Since these are fed both by melting of snow and
precipitation, rivers of this system are perennial.
These rivers pass through the giant gorges
carved out by the erosional activity carried on
simultaneously with the uplift of the Himalayas.
Besides deep gorges, these rivers also form V-
shaped valleys, rapids and waterfalls in their
mountainous course.
While entering the plains, they form depositional
features like flat valleys, ox-bow lakes, flood
plains, braided channels, and deltas near the
river mouth.

In the Himalayan reaches, the course of these

rivers is highly tortous, but over the plains they
display a strong meandering tendency and shift
their courses frequently.
River Kosi, also know as the ‘sorrow of Bihar’, has been
notorious for frequently changing its course.
The Kosi brings huge quantity of sediments from its upper
reaches and deposits it in the plains.
The course gets blocked, and consequently, the river
changes its course.
What are the positive and negative effects of flooding?

H.W.
EVOLUTION OF THE HIMALAYAN DRAINAGE

There are difference of opinion about the evolution of the

Himalayan rivers.

However, geologists believe that a mighty river called

Shiwalik or Indo-Brahma traversed the entire longitudinal
extent of the Himalaya from Assam to Punjab and onwards to
Sind, and finally discharged into the Gulf of Sind near lower
Punjab during the Miocene period some 5-24 million years ago.
 Why should we believe on above statement ?

The remarkable continuity of the Shiwalik and its lacustrine

origin and alluvial deposits consisting of sands, silt, clay,
boulders and conglomerates support this viewpoint.

Jobs
It is opined that in due course of time Indo–
Brahma river was dismembered into three main
drainage systems:
(i) the Indus and its five tributaries in the western part

(ii) the Ganga and its Himalayan tributaries in the central part

(iii) the stretch of the Brahmaputra in Assam and its

Himalayan tributaries in the eastern part.
 The dismemberment was probably due to the Pleistocene
upheaval in the western Himalayas, including the uplift of the
Potwar Plateau (Delhi Ridge), which acted as the water
divide between the Indus and Ganga drainage systems.

Likewise, the down- thrusting of the Malda gap area

between the Rajmahal hills and the Meghalaya plateau
during the mid-pleistocene period, diverted the Ganga and
the Brahmaputra systems to flow towards the Bay of Bengal.
THE RIVER SYSTEMS OF THE
HIMALAYAN DRAINAGE
 The Himalayan drainage consists of several river
systems but the following are the major river systems:

The Indus system

The Ganga System
The Brahmaputra System
 The Indus System

It is one of the largest river basins of the world

covering an area of 11,65,000 sq. km (in India it is 321,
289 sq. km
Total length of 2,880 km (in India 1,114 km).
Also known as the Sindhu
It is the westernmost of the Himalayan rivers in India.
It originates from a glacier near Bokhar Chu (31°15' N
latitude and 81°40' E longitude) in the Tibetan region at
an altitude of 4,164 m in the Kailash Mountain range.

In Tibet, it is known as ‘Singi Khamban; or Lion’s

mouth.

After flowing in the northwest direction between the

Ladakh and Zaskar ranges, it passes through Ladakh
and Baltistan.

It cuts across the Ladakh range, forming a spectacular

gorge near Gilgit in Jammu and Kashmir.

It enters into Pakistan near Chillar in the Dardistan

region.
 BALTISTAN

DARDISTAN

LADAKH AND
ZASKAR RANGES
The Indus receives a number of Himalayan tributaries
such as the Shyok, the Gilgit, the Zaskar, the Hunza, the
Nubra, the Shigar, the Gasting and the Dras.

It finally emerges out of the hills near Attock where it

receives the Kabul river on its right bank.

The other important tributaries joining the right bank of

the Indus are the Khurram, the Tochi, the Gomal, the
Viboa and the Sangar.

They all originate in the Sulaiman ranges.

The river flows southward and receives ‘Panjnad’ a little

above Mithankot.
 The Panjnad is the name given to the five rivers of
Punjab, namely the Satluj, the Beas, the Ravi, the
Chenab and the Jhelum.

See karachi on map It finally discharges into the Arabian Sea, east of
Karachi.

The Indus flows in India only through the Leh district in

Jammu and Kashmir.
 The Jhelum
The Jhelum, an important tributary of the Indus, rises from
a spring at Verinag situated at the foot of the Pir Panjal in
the south-eastern part of the valley of Kashmir.

It flows through Srinagar and the Wular lake before

entering Pakistan through a deep narrow gorge.

It joins the Chenab near Jhang in Pakistan.

 The Chenab
The Chenab is the largest tributary of the Indus. It is
formed by two streams, the Chandra and the Bhaga,
which join at Tandi near Keylong in Himachal Pradesh.

Hence, it is also known as Chandrabhaga. The river flows

for 1,180 km before entering into Pakistan.
 The Ravi
The Ravi is another important tributary of the Indus.

It rises west of the Rohtang pass in the Kullu hills of

Himachal Pradesh and flows through the Chamba valley of
the state.

Before entering Pakistan and joining the Chenab near

Sarai Sidhu, it drains the area lying between the
southeastern part of the Pir Panjal and the Dhauladhar
ranges.
 The Beas

The Beas is another important tributary of the Indus,

originating from the Beas Kund near the Rohtang Pass at
an elevation of 4,000 m above the mean sea level.

The river flows through the Kullu valley and forms gorges
at Kati and Largi in the Dhaoladhar range.

It enters the Punjab plains where it meets the Satluj near

Harike.
 The Satluj

The Satluj originates in the Rakas lake near Mansarovar at

an altitude of 4,555 m in Tibet where it is known as
Langchen Khambab.

It flows almost parallel to the Indus for about 400 km

before entering India, and comes out of a gorge at Rupar.

It passes through the Shipki La on the Himalayan ranges

and enters the Punjab plains.

It is an antecedent river.

It is a very important tributary as it feeds the canal

system of the Bhakra Nangal project.