River System of India – Ganga River System

There is 3 prime Watershed of River Origin in India namely:

• Himalayas and Karakoram ranges
• Vindhya, Satpura ranges, and Chota Nagpur Plateau
• Western Ghats

The rivers of India can be categorized into 4 categories on the basis of their origin which are:

• Himalayan Rivers
• Deccan Rivers
• Coastal Rivers
• Rivers of the inland Drainage basin

Ganga is the largest river in India followed by the Godavari. The top 5 largest rivers of India are: Ganga > Godavari > Krishna > Yamuna > Brahmaputra.

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Ganga River System

The Ganga river system consists of many rivers. The tributaries of the river Ganga have their own tributaries. For example -

• Ganga Tributaries - Yamuna, Gomti, Ghaghara, Gandak, Kosi, Son, Tons & Punpun
• Ghaghara Tributaries- Sarda & Rakti
• Kosi Tributaries - Arun, Tamur & Sun Koshi
• Yamuna Tributaries - Chambal, Sind, Betwa & Ken
• Chambal Tributaries - Kali Sindh, Parvati & Banas

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• River Ganga Tributaries

The river Ganga originates as Bhagirathi from Gangotri Glacier, Uttarkashi, Uttarakhand. It then unites with Alakananda at Devprayag, Uttarakhand, and henceforth known as Ganga.



• It then passes through Rishikesh and Haridwar
• After Haridwar, it flows Southward to get to Allahabad where it meets the Yamuna

Near Rajmahal Hills, it turns southeast and gets divided into two parts at Farraka which are: Hoogly (Kolkata) & Padma (Bangladesh).

In Bangladesh, Ganga merges with Brahmputra which is known as Jamuna in Bangladesh. The mixture becomes Padma River.

• It finally merges with Meghna and falls in the Bay of Bengal
• Meghna is known as the Barack river in India

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Major Tributaries of Ganga River System

1 Ghaghara

It originates from Bharchachungar Glacier (Rakas lake) near Mansarovar. It joins Ganga at Chhapra.

• It is known as Manchu or Karnali in Nepal
• It is known as Saryu or Ghaghra in UP
• It is a Perennial river

Its tributaries are - Sarda & Rakti.

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2 Son

It originates from the Amarkantak Plateau (Near the north of the origin of Narmada). It flows through Kaimur Range to meet Ganga at Patna.

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3 Gandak

It originates from Sino – Nepal Boundary (Dhaulagiri range) and it is known as Kalyani in Nepal.

• It is a major river of Nepal
• It joins Ganga at Sonpur, Bihar

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4 Kosi

It originates from Gosainath peak (Tibet). It consists of 7 streams and is known as Saptakoshi in Nepal.

• Main stream - Arun, Tamur & Sun Koshi
• It joins Ganga at Bhagalpur (Bihar)
• It was formerly known as Sorrow of Bihar

A major project over this river is - Kusha Dam

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5 Gomti

It originates from Gomat Taal / Fulhaar jheel – Pilibhit.

• It is a tributary of Ganga

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6 Yamuna

It originates from Yamunotri Glacier (Uttarkashi – Uttarakhand). It cuts deep gorge across Shivalik and then enters into plains near Tajewala.

• It is the largest tributary of Ganga
• It flows southward up to Agra & then turns southeast to meet Ganga at Allahabad

Its Famous tributaries are - Chambal, Sind, Betwa & Ken

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7 Betwa

It is a tributary of Yamuna and it rises from the Vindhya range, MP.

Its major projects are: Matatila dam & Rajghat dam

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8 Ken

It is a tributary of Yamuna and it rises from Kaimur hills in Satna (Madhya Pradesh).

• It is famous for its Shajar stone & Raneh waterfalls

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9 Chambal

It originates from Vindhya Range (Mhow, MP). It passes through Kota & Dhaulpur (Rajasthan).

• It merges with Yamuna at Etawah (UP)
• It forms the boundary between Rajasthan & MP

Its major tributaries are - Kali Sindh, Parvati & Banas

Its major power projects are: Gandhisagar, Rana Pratap Sagar & Jawahar Sagar

10 Banas

It originates from the eastern slopes of Aravali and is a tributary of Chambal.

11 Damodar

It originates from the eastern part of Chhota Nagpur Plateau and meets Hoogli at Falta.

Its power projects are - Talaiya, Maithan, Barakar & Panchet