The Ganga rises in the Gangotri glacier in the Himalayas at an elevation of about 7, m in the Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand. At its source, the river is called as the Bhagirathi. It descends down the valley upto Devprayag where after joining another hill stream Alaknanda, it is called Ganga. The total length of river Ganga measured along the Bhagirathi and the Hooghly up to its outfall into Bay of Bengal is 2, km.
The principal tributaries joining the river from right are the Yamuna and the Son. The Chambal and the Betwa are the two other important sub- tributaries. The major part of basin in Indian territory is covered with agricultural land accounting to The composite Ganga — Brahmaputra —Meghna basin covers nearly one-third of the land area of Indian Union. This basin is composed of the Ganga, the Brahmaputra and the Barak sub-basins. It finally joins the Meghna river which outfalls into the Bay of Bengal.
The Ganga sub-basin extends over an area of sq. The drainage area lying in India is sq. The sub-basin is bounded on the north by the Himalayas, on the west by the Aravalis and the ridge separating it from Indus basin, on the south by the Vindhas and Chhotanagpur plateaus and on the east by the Brahmaputra ridge. The State-wise distribution of the drainage area is given below:. Northern Mountains comprises the Himalayan ranges including their foot hills.
The Gangetic plains, situated between the Himalayas and the Deccan plateau, constitute the most of the sub-basin ideally suited for intensive cultivation. The Central highlands lying to the south of the Great plains consists of mountains, hills and plateaus intersected by valleys ad river plains. They are largely covered by forests. Aravali uplands, Bundelkhand upland, Malwa plateau, Vindhyan ranges and Narmada valley lies in this region.
Predominant soil types found in the sub-basin are sandy, loamy, clay and their combination's such as sandy loam, salty clay loam and loamy sand soils. The culturable area of Ganga sub-basin is about The Ganga originates as Bhagirathi from the Gangotri glaciers in the Himalayas at an elevation of about m in Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand and flows for a total length of about km up to its outfall into the Bay of Bengal through the former main course of Bhagirathi-Hooghly.
Chambal and Betwa are also the two other important sub-tributaries. The Ganga and Yamuna canal systems irrigate vast areas utilizing the perennial flow of the river. As per the latest assessment, the hydroelectric power potential of the basin is MW. These schemes together account for only Therefore, a large part of the hydropower potential remains to be exploited. There are number of industrial centres located in the sub-basin such as Faridabad, Ghaziabad, Kanpur, Dhanbad, Durgapur etc.
Radio and Electronics, machine and machine tools, textiles, paper, jute, cement, fertilizers, iron and steel, coal mining are some of the important industries.
In addition, a number of other agro-based industries are also located in the sub-basin. Hydrological observation in the sub-basin are carried out by the Central and State Governments. The Central Water Commission maintains gauge-discharge sites in the sub-basin. The Central Water Commission operates 87 flood forecasting stations in the sub-basin. Ganga, being a major interstate sub —basin, various Central and interstate bodies are involved in its planning, development and management.
The Damodar Valley Corporation DVC , established in , for the promotion and operation of schemes in the Damodar Valley for its alround development, is the earliest such organization.
The Sone River Commission was set up in and operated upto August, , as a sub-ordinate office of the Ministry of Water Resources of Sone river sub-basin. With a view to study the deteriorating water quality in Ganga below Rishikesh and suggest remedial measures, the Govt.
The water related issues of the sub-basin are both due to high and low flows. Many of the flood problems are caused by the northern tributaries of Ganga such Kosi and Mahananda though there are flood problems caused by Southern tributaries also. GFCC was set up, specifically to look into this problem. The flow during non-monsoon season is insufficient to meet the various requirements particularly drinking water supply, agriculture and industrial uses and other past committed uses. Simultaneously, there has been an increasing affluent discharge from industries and urban centres.
This has caused water quality problems in many reaches of Ganga and Yamuna upstream of Allahabad. Central Ganga Authority under the Ministry of Environment and Forests is looking into the problem of pollution of Ganga.
The Himalayas are comparatively young mountain ranges and are subject to many land slides. Also heavy soil erosion occurs due to various reason. The navigability of Hooghly river and the functioning of Calcutta port depends on adequate discharge of Ganga through the Bhagirathi. A river basin is a region that is drained by a river, such as the Ganges, and any of its tributaries. This means that surface water and rainwater in the basin area flow into the nearby rivers.
When the ice of this glacier melts, it forms the clear waters of the Bhagirathi River. The Ganges River Basin is sometimes considered part of a larger river basin consisting of the nearby Brahmaputra and Meghna rivers.
The melting water from the Himalayas, as well as water from tributaries and rainfall, all feed the sacred river. The Ganges flows south and east from the Himalayas, forming a canyon as it leaves the mountain. It winds its way through northern India, eventually emptying into the Bay of Bengal. The Ganges River carries nutrient rich sediment as it flows, depositing fertile soil along its shores.
This has allowed civilizations to develop and thrive along the waterway for centuries. Today, the river flows through well-populated regions of India, providing freshwater to the millions of people living in these regions. The river is also used for fishing, irrigation, and bathing, and it is worshiped in the Hindu religion as the Mother Ganga.
As the river empties into the Bay of Bengal, the mouth forms the Ganges River Delta , the largest river delta in the world. The Ganges River is a vital resource to Asia, but it faces many threats.
Human and industrial pollutants fill the river in some areas, making it unsafe even for swimming. As the population in regions surrounding the river swells, water demands for agriculture increases, straining water levels.
Adding further stress to the situation, scientists have concluded that climate change has led to a decrease in glacial ice in the Himalayas, the source of the Ganges, and theorize this will result in further decreased water levels in the river over time. Also called the Ganga. The audio, illustrations, photos, and videos are credited beneath the media asset, except for promotional images, which generally link to another page that contains the media credit. The Rights Holder for media is the person or group credited.
Tyson Brown, National Geographic Society. National Geographic Society. For information on user permissions, please read our Terms of Service. If you have questions about how to cite anything on our website in your project or classroom presentation, please contact your teacher. They will best know the preferred format. When you reach out to them, you will need the page title, URL, and the date you accessed the resource.
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