Rivers of Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir has many lakes, rivers, and glaciers. Significant rivers that flow through Jammu & Kashmir from the Himalayas are Jhelum, Chenab, Sutlej, Ravi and Indus. These river basins are located at a higher elevation facilitating huge hydro power potential. Major lakes include Manasbal Lake, Dal Lake, Wular Lake, Nageen Lake. There are around 1230 water bodies in Jammu & Kashmir.
Following are some of the major Rivers of Jammu and Kashmir:
Jhelum
The river Jhelum is commonly known as ‘The Veth’
The river flows throughout the length of the valley.
This river flows as a muddy stream and is a famous tourist attraction, especially the nine old brides that have been made over it all along in the Srinagar city.
The source of this famous river is Verinag spring in district Anantnag.
In the Valley of Kashmir this river has a length of about 203 kms.
After passing through Srinagar it flows into the Wular Lake, which is regarded as its delta and then passing through Baramulla and Uri, it flows to Pakistan.
Srinagar, Anantnag and Baramulla cities are situated on both sides of this river.
Most of the electricity generated in Kashmir Valley is generated by the Hydel projects constructed on this river.
Indus
The Indus River originates at the confluence of the Sind River & the Gar River, which is Mansaror Lake in Tibet.
This river takes a lengthy and tortuous course and passes through the Kashmir region.
It is the longest river in the subcontinent. While it is about 3500 kms long, 1500 km of it flows through Jammu and Kashmir.
The river is excellent for those interested in water rafting.
The river banks are flanked by steep hills that have pine and deodar vegetation.
The Indus River flows in between the Ladakh range and the Zanskar range.
Indus has numerous tributaries, principal among them are Gilgit River, Gumal River and Kabul River.
The branches or tributaries of the Indus River are as follows:
Astor River
Nagar River
Dras River
Balram River
Ghizar River
Gar River
Gumal River
Gilgit River
Kurram River
Kabul River
Shigar River
Panjnad River
Sohan RiverChenab
Shyok River
Zanskar River
Tanubal River
Shyok River
This river runs across the northern areas of Ladakh and some parts of Pakistan (Ghanghche district) for approximately 340 miles or 550 km.
It is a major branch of the Indus River.
The source of the Shyok River is the Rimo glacier.
Major tributaries of the Shyok River are as follows:
The Galwan River
The Chang Chen Mo River
The Saltoro River
The Nubra River
Chenab
The merging of two Himalayan rivers forms the river Chenab.
These are the Chandra River & the Bhaga River.
Thus, the river Chenab is popularly known as the Chandrabhaga.
Chenab river is also well known for its historical importance.
This river enters J&K near Paddar at Kishtwar.
The river Wadwan joins it near Akhnoor.
It enters the plains of Jammu and then enters into Pakistan.
Rambir and Partap canal takes off from Chenab near Akhnoor as a result of which thousands of Kanals of agricultural land in Jammu are irrigated.
Salal, Dulhasiti, Sawalkot and Baghilar Hydel power projects are located on this river.
Kishan Ganga
This river is famous for its ice-cold water and trout Fish.
Kishan Ganga River is in Drass (Kargil) in inner Himalayas.
After passing through the mountain tracks of Gurez, Keran and Karnah, Kishan Ganga joins the Jhelum at Doemel. Kishan Ganga hydro-electric Project is situated on this river.
Tawi
The source of Tawi is the Kailash Kund Spring at Soej hills in Bhaderwah.
After flowing through the Chennani and Udhampur, Tawi passes through Jammu and joins the Chenab in Ranbir Singh Pora and then enters Pakistan.
Chennani hydro electric power project constructed on River Tawi has a capacity to generate 23 MW of power.
Tsarap River
The Tsarap River is a major river in the state of Jammu and Kashmir.
Also known as Tsarap Chu, it runs across the Zanskar area in Ladakh.
Yapola River
The Yapola River is also named the Wanla River.
It is a river in the Ladakh region of the state & pours into the Indus River at Lamayuru.
Zanskar River
The Zanskar River is a tributary of the Indus River.
It runs to the north of the Indus and it has two principal branches.
The first branch is known as the Doda River and the second branch is created by the Kargyag River and Tsarap River.
The river is an ideal location for river rafting tours.
Ravi
Ravi is a Trans boundary river flowing through northwestern India and Northeastern Pakistan.
After the partition of India in 1947, the waters of River Ravi alongwith five other rivers of the Indus system (Beas, Sutlej, Chenab, Jhelum and Indus) keep India and Pakistan under the Indus Water Treaty and form the headquarters of Indus Basin.
The river drains a total catchment area of 14442 sq kms in India after flowing for a length of 720 kms.
A major tributary that joins Ravi is Siawa near Basholi in the State.
Ujh River is another major tributary of Ravi and its source is located in the Kailash Mountains at an elevation of 14,100 ft close to Bhaderwah Mountains of the State. After flowing for 100 kms stretch, it joins Ravi at Nainkot in Pakistan.
It flows along the Indo-Pak border for about 80 kms, before entering Pakistan and joining the Chenab.
The major multipurpose project built on this river is Ranjit Sagar Dam at Thein village.
The left bank of Ravi is in Punjab and the right bank is in J&K State.