Pariksha SaathiLesson 5 of 10 · Uttar Pradesh General Knowledge
Rivers, Lakes and Irrigation of Uttar Pradesh
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The drainage pattern
Almost all of Uttar Pradesh drains into the Ganga. Rivers from the north, such as the Ramganga, Sharda, Ghaghara, Rapti and Gandak, rise in the Himalaya and its foothills, flow all year (the larger ones are also fed by snow) and bring silt and floods. Rivers from the south, such as the Chambal, Betwa, Ken and Son, rise on the peninsular plateau, depend on rain and run low in summer. The Gomti is different: it rises in the plain itself and is fed by groundwater and rain.
The Ganga and Gomti
The Ganga leaves the hills at Haridwar and enters Uttar Pradesh in Bijnor district. It flows past Bijnor, Narora, Farrukhabad, Kannauj, Kanpur, Prayagraj, Mirzapur, Varanasi and Ghazipur, and forms the border with Bihar near Ballia. At Varanasi it turns to flow northwards, so the city's ghats on its west bank face the rising sun. The Ramganga, rising in Uttarakhand, flows past Moradabad and Bareilly and joins the Ganga near Kannauj. The Tons joins it from the south below Prayagraj. The Gomti rises at Gomat Tal near Madho Tanda in Pilibhit, flows past Lakhimpur Kheri, Sitapur, Lucknow, Sultanpur and Jaunpur, receives the Sai, and joins the Ganga at Kaithi between Varanasi and Ghazipur.
The Yamuna and the southern rivers
The Yamuna rises at Yamunotri, forms the boundary of Uttar Pradesh with Haryana and Delhi, and flows past Mathura, Agra and Etawah. From the Doab it receives the Hindon, which rises in the Shivaliks of Saharanpur and flows past Ghaziabad. Its big southern tributaries come from Madhya Pradesh: the Chambal, famous for its ravines and the National Chambal Sanctuary, joins it near Bhareh, downstream of Etawah, and close to this confluence the Sindh, Pahuj and Kwari also come in, so the meeting of five rivers is called Pachnada; the Betwa joins it at Hamirpur; and the Ken, flowing through Panna, joins it in Banda district. The Yamuna meets the Ganga at the Sangam in Prayagraj, called the Triveni because the hidden Saraswati is believed to join there.
The northern rivers
The Ghaghara, known as the Karnali in Nepal, is the largest tributary of the Ganga by volume of water. It enters Uttar Pradesh in Bahraich district, receives the Sharda (the Kali of the India-Nepal border) at Bahramghat in Barabanki, and below this is known as the Saryu, on whose bank Ayodhya stands. It flows past Ayodhya and along the edge of Ballia and joins the Ganga near Chhapra in Bihar. The Rapti rises in Nepal, flows past Shravasti, Balrampur and Gorakhpur, and joins the Ghaghara near Barhaj in Deoria. The Gandak touches the north-eastern corner near Maharajganj and Kushinagar before entering Bihar. In the south-east the Son crosses Sonbhadra on its way from Amarkantak to the Ganga in Bihar, and its tributary the Rihand is dammed at Pipri. The Karmanasa forms part of the border with Bihar.
Canals
Canals made the Doab one of India's best irrigated regions. The Eastern Yamuna Canal, a restored Mughal channel, was reopened in 1830 for the western districts. The Upper Ganga Canal, designed by Proby Cautley and opened in 1854, takes off at Haridwar (now in Uttarakhand) and waters the upper Doab, and the Lower Ganga Canal starts at Narora in Bulandshahr (1878). The Agra Canal draws water from the Yamuna at Okhla. The Sharda Canal, taking off at Banbasa and completed in 1928, irrigates central districts from Pilibhit and Kheri to Lucknow and beyond; the Sharda Sahayak project feeds it with Ghaghara water, and the Saryu canal project serves the eastern districts. Even so, tube wells irrigate a larger area of the state than canals do.
Dams and projects
The Rihand Dam at Pipri in Sonbhadra, completed in 1962, holds the Govind Ballabh Pant Sagar, one of the largest man-made lakes in India, which stretches into Madhya Pradesh and supplies water to the power stations of the Singrauli area; the Obra dam lies downstream on the same river. On the Betwa are the Matatila Dam, the Rajghat Dam (a joint project of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh) and the Parichha reservoir near Jhansi. The Ken-Betwa link, which joins these two Bundelkhand rivers, is the first project of the national plan for interlinking rivers.
Lakes and wetlands
Most lakes in Uttar Pradesh are natural depressions (tals), oxbow lakes or reservoirs. Well-known ones are Ramgarh Tal at Gorakhpur, Bakhira Tal in Sant Kabir Nagar, Keetham Lake (Sur Sarovar) near Agra, the Chandela lakes of Mahoba such as Madan Sagar and Kirat Sagar, and Moti Jheel at Kanpur. Many wetlands are protected as bird sanctuaries or wetlands, such as Nawabganj (Unnao), Samaspur (Rae Bareli), Sandi (Hardoi), Saman (Mainpuri), Parvati Arga (Gonda) and Sarsai Nawar (Etawah). The stretch of the Upper Ganga from Brijghat to Narora was declared a Ramsar wetland of international importance in 2005, the state's first.
Key facts
- Ganga enters UP in Bijnor district, flows north at Varanasi and forms the Bihar border near Ballia; Ramganga joins it near Kannauj.
- Gomti: rises at Gomat Tal (Pilibhit); flows past Lucknow and Jaunpur; Sai joins it; meets the Ganga at Kaithi between Varanasi and Ghazipur.
- Yamuna's tributaries: Hindon (from Saharanpur), Chambal (below Etawah), Betwa (Hamirpur), Ken (Banda); Yamuna meets Ganga at the Sangam, Prayagraj.
- Ghaghara: largest Ganga tributary by volume; Sharda joins at Bahramghat (Barabanki); called Saryu at Ayodhya; meets Ganga near Chhapra (Bihar).
- Rapti flows from Nepal past Gorakhpur and joins the Ghaghara near Barhaj (Deoria); the Son crosses Sonbhadra.
- Canals: Eastern Yamuna 1830; Upper Ganga 1854 (Proby Cautley, from Haridwar); Lower Ganga 1878 (Narora); Sharda 1928 (Banbasa).
- Rihand Dam (Pipri, Sonbhadra), completed 1962: reservoir Govind Ballabh Pant Sagar.
- Betwa projects: Matatila Dam, Rajghat Dam (joint UP-MP) and Parichha; Ken-Betwa link is the first river-interlinking project.
- Upper Ganga stretch from Brijghat to Narora became UP's first Ramsar site in 2005.
- Tube wells, not canals, are the largest source of irrigation in Uttar Pradesh.
Quick revision
Ganga enters at Bijnor, flows north at Varanasi, Bihar border at Ballia; Gomti from Gomat Tal (Pilibhit) to Kaithi; Chambal joins Yamuna below Etawah, Betwa at Hamirpur, Ken in Banda; Sangam at Prayagraj; Ghaghara largest by volume, Sharda joins at Bahramghat, called Saryu at Ayodhya; Rapti joins at Barhaj; Upper Ganga Canal 1854, Lower 1878, Sharda 1928; Rihand Dam 1962 (G.B. Pant Sagar); Matatila, Rajghat on Betwa; first Ramsar site 2005.