Rivers of India

Where

Rises in Tibet near Lake Mansarovar; flows through Ladakh, then Pakistan, to the Arabian Sea

The westernmost of the big Himalayan rivers, about 2,880 km long. In India it flows through Ladakh, where the Zanskar joins it near Nimmu (pictured). It gave India its name: the Greeks heard Sindhu as "Indos". Its five big eastern tributaries are the Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas and Sutlej, the rivers that give Punjab, "the land of five waters", its name.

Where

Devprayag, Uttarakhand

The Ganga is born here, where the Bhagirathi meets the Alaknanda (pictured). It enters the plains at Haridwar and flows across Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal to the Bay of Bengal, about 2,525 km in all, the longest river in India. Near the sea it splits: the Hooghly flows past Kolkata, and the Padma flows into Bangladesh, where it joins the Brahmaputra to form the Sundarbans delta. It was declared India's National River in 2008.

Where

Rises at the Yamunotri Glacier, Uttarakhand; joins the Ganga at Prayagraj

The longest tributary of the Ganga and the one farthest west. It flows past Delhi, Mathura and Agra, where it runs beside the Taj Mahal (pictured, from the Taj). The Chambal, Betwa and Ken flow into it from the south, from the plateau of central India.

Where

Prayagraj (formerly Allahabad), Uttar Pradesh

The meeting point of the Ganga and the Yamuna. Hindu tradition holds that a third river, the unseen Saraswati, joins them here, which is why it is called the meeting of three (triveni). It is the site of the Kumbh Mela, the largest gathering of people on Earth; the last Maha Kumbh was held here in 2025.

Where

Rises near Mansarovar in Tibet; flows through Arunachal Pradesh and Assam into Bangladesh

One of the largest rivers in the world, and a river of many names. It flows east across Tibet as the Tsangpo, swings round the end of the Himalaya and enters India in Arunachal Pradesh as the Siang (pictured near Pasighat, where it reaches the plains). Joined by the Dibang and Lohit, it becomes the Brahmaputra and flows west through Assam past Guwahati. It is known for its floods and for constantly shifting its channels.

Where

In the Brahmaputra, Assam, reached by ferry from Jorhat

A huge island in the Brahmaputra, often called the largest river island in the world. In 2016 it became India's first district that is an island. It is the centre of the Vaishnava monasteries called satras, famous for their masks and dance-dramas. The river is slowly eating away its banks, so the island has shrunk over the years.

Where

Rises at Trimbakeshwar near Nashik, Maharashtra; flows east to the Bay of Bengal in Andhra Pradesh

The longest river of the peninsula, about 1,465 km, with the largest basin. Its size and holiness earned it the name Dakshin Ganga. It flows across Maharashtra, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, widening into a great river at Rajahmundry (pictured), before splitting into a delta.

Where

Rises at Talakaveri in the Brahmagiri hills, Kodagu, Karnataka; flows east through Tamil Nadu to the Bay of Bengal

About 800 km long. Its upper basin gets the south-west monsoon in summer and its lower basin the north-east monsoon in winter, so it flows more steadily through the year than most peninsular rivers. It tumbles over the Shivanasamudra Falls in Karnataka (pictured) and forms river islands at Srirangapatna and Srirangam.

Where

Rises at Amarkantak, Madhya Pradesh; flows west to the Arabian Sea in Gujarat

The largest river that flows west. It runs through a rift valley, a long trough where the land sank between two faults, with the Vindhya to its north and the Satpura to its south. Near Jabalpur it cuts a gorge through the Marble Rocks at Bhedaghat (pictured) and drops over the Dhuandhar Falls. In Gujarat it is held back by the Sardar Sarovar Dam, and the Statue of Unity stands on its bank facing the dam.

Where

On the Bhagirathi, Tehri Garhwal, Uttarakhand

When

Built 1978 to 2006

At 260.5 m, the tallest dam in India. It is built of rock and earth rather than concrete, and holds a long reservoir that supplies water to Delhi and western Uttar Pradesh and makes hydroelectric power. The old town of Tehri was drowned under its lake, and a new town was built above it.

Where

On the Sutlej, Bilaspur district, Himachal Pradesh

When

Completed 1963

A 226 m concrete dam in a gorge of the Sutlej, one of the first great projects of independent India. Its reservoir is called the Gobind Sagar. With the Nangal Dam downstream in Punjab, it is often called Bhakra-Nangal, and its canals water the farms of Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan.

Where

On the Mahanadi, near Sambalpur, Odisha

When

Begun 1946; working from the late 1950s

Usually called the longest earthen dam in the world, counting its long earth walls (dykes) on either side of the concrete section. It was built to stop the floods that used to hit the Mahanadi delta, and to water farms and make electricity. Its reservoir stretches about 55 km.

Where

On the Narmada, near Kevadia, Narmada district, Gujarat

When

Foundation stone 1961; finished 2017

The biggest dam on the Narmada, carrying water by canal across Gujarat and into Rajasthan. Its reservoir drowned many villages, and the Narmada Bachao Andolan protested for decades for the people who lost their homes. The 182 m Statue of Unity, of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, stands nearby facing the dam.

Where

On the Sharavathi river, Shivamogga district, Karnataka

The Sharavathi drops about 253 m in one leap here, splitting into four falls named Raja, Rani, Roarer and Rocket. It is one of the highest plunge waterfalls in India, and at its fullest just after the monsoon.

Where

On the Chalakudy river, Thrissur district, Keralam (Kerala until 2026)

Keralam's largest waterfall, about 25 m high but very wide, set in the forests of the Western Ghats. It is nicknamed the Niagara of India for its broad curtain of water.

Where

On the Mandovi (Mahadayi) river, Goa, on the border with Karnataka

A four-tiered fall about 310 m high, among the tallest in India. Its name means "sea of milk", from the white foam of the water. A railway line crosses the face of the falls on a stone bridge, so trains pass right in front of it.