The Rivers of Himachal Pradesh

The Geography of Himachal Pradesh , always will have a big place for the rivers of the state. Rivers are the lifelines of the state which provide irrigation , drinking water , Electricity and other countless resources to Himachal.

There are five major rivers that flow in Himachal Pradesh , lets discuss them one by one going from East to West.

1. Yamuna : The river Yamuna rises from a place called Yamunotri in Gharwal Himalayas and for a major part form the boundary of Himachal Pradesh with the eastern neigbour , Uttarakhand. Its important tributaries are Pabbar which originates from the Chander-Nahan lake near Chanshak Peak , Giri river or Giri Ganga which rises from Kupar peak near Jubbal and Tons river.
2. Satluj : The Satluj is by far the most important and also the largest river of the the state and hold a great part in fashioning the geography of Himachal. It originates in tibet near the Kailash Mansarovar lake and enters India at Shipki-La in Kinnaur district after traveling about 320 Kms. It has a large number of tributaries the first of which is Baspa which joins it in Kinnaur.It also helps in a major electricity production project ie. Nathpa-Jhakri power project producing 1500 MW of electricity in Kinnaur and Upeer Shimla. Nogli stream joins in near Rampur Bushahr. It flows through Kinnaur , Shimla and Bilaspur district till Bhakra where one of the largest dams of India the Bhakra Nangal dam has been constructed on it.This results in the formation of Govind Sagar lake in Bilaspur dist. which is becoming a popular adventure sport and fishing destination.
3. Beas : The river Beas originates in the 4000 mt high pass 'Rohtang-La' and flows down creating the mesmerizing valleys of Manali and Kullu. It has a lot of tributaries among which the important ones are , Parbati Malana Nala and Solang Nala in Kullu , Uhl , Lunoi , Pandoi and Suketi in Mandi and Neogal , Banganga and Kunah in Kangra districts. The Norther and Eastern of these tributaries are snow-fed whereas those from South or West are seasonal in nature. In Mandi at the Pandoh barage the watersof satluj are diverted to the Satluj through a tunnel.
4. Ravi : Ravi rises from Bara-Banghal in the Dauladhar mountain ranges. It flows between the Pir Panjals and Dauldhars and enters Chamba district after cutting a deep gorge through the Dauladhars. It flows for 133 Kms in Himachal Pradesh till Kheri and then enters Punjab. Its tribuatries are Chirchind , Budhil , Saho and Siul. Chamba town , the capital of the ancient state of Chamba State lies on the right bank of Ravi.
5. Chenab : Chenab , also know as ChandraBhaga rises at Bara lacha la pass at an elevation of 4900 meters. Two tributaries the Chandra and the Bhaga are formed which run into opposite directions but reunite in Tandi to form ChandraBhaga or the Chenab. Thereafter it enters the Pangi valley of Chamba district at Bhujind after which it flows on to the Padar valley of Kashmir.

It is notable that the rivers of Himachal Pradesh have a major hand in the Geography of the state and notably are both a boon and a bane. These mighty torrents are known to have the maximum flow in summers or rainy seasons due to melting snow and rainfall and can cause havoc at those times but in winters they usually shrink to smaller sizes and remain a shadow of their self till the next summers.

Geographical Divisions of Himachal Pradesh

In the last post we saw the three geographical divisions of Himachal Pradesh , now let us evaluate each of them briefly.

Poanta Valley

The Lower Hills or Outer Himalayas : These are the parts of Himachal which typically come under the Shivalik hills and its valleys. The districts of Hamirpur , Una , Bilaspur and the valleys of Solan , Kangra and Sirmaur come under this region. This is also the region of the highest rainfalls in the state which can be between 1500 to 1800 mm annually . The rich and fertile valleys of Kangra, Poanta and Blah are located in this zone. This zone is suitable for the cultivation of rice, wheat, sugarcane, citrus fruits and potatoes.

Pir Panjal near Rohtang La

Inner Himalayas or Mid-Mountain Zone : This zone consits of the intermediatery altitude areas of Himachal Pradesh such as Renuka and Pachaad tehsils of Siramaur , Upper parts of Kangra and Palampur tehsil , Karsog tehsil of Mandi. This zone has an annual rainfall range of 700 - 1100 mm and the region is famous for its rich Deodar forests. This zone is helpful in the growth of Poatatoes , Stone fruits , Soft fruits and temprate fruits . Two of the most famous mountain ranges of Dauladhars and Pir Panjal run through this zone.

An Introduction to the Geography of Himachal

Himachal , Literal translation " The land of snow " is a hill state in Northern India .

Also known as 'Dev Bhoomi' , Himachal pradesh stretches from the lowlands of Una to the Great Himalayas in Kinnaur.

It is situated in the Western Himalayas , with Jammu and Kashmir to the North , Uttarakhand in the South East , Haryana on the South , Punjab to the West and Tibet Autonomous Region of China to the East.

Himachal is situates between the latitudes of 30° 22 ' to 33° 12' North and longitudes of 75° 47' to 79° 4' East.

Himachal Pradesh Political

The altitude in the state ranges from 350 to 7000 meters above sea level. The topography of Himachal Pradesh can be divided into three regions :

• The Lower hills (350 -1050 meters )
• The Mid Mountain range or Inner Himalayas (1050 -4500 ) meters
• The Greater Himalayas or the Alpine Range (4500 meters and above)

Roughly speaking these geographical features can be observerd moving from South West of the State to the North East. The details of these geographical divisions will be addressed in the next blog post.