Topography of the Godavari River and its Trib...

Topography of the Godavari River and its Tributaries

Author Name : Dr. Gururaj Prabhu K.

Godavari River, as a sacred river of central and southeastern India is also one of the longest rivers in India, its total length is about 910 miles (1,465 km), and it has a drainage basin of some 121,000 square miles (313,000 square km). The Godavari River rises in northwestern Maharashtra state in the Western Ghats range, only about 50 miles (80 km) from the Arabian Sea, and flows for most of its course generally eastward across the broad plateau of the Deccan (peninsular India). After traversing central Maharashtra it enters northern Telangana state northwest of Nizamabad and continues through a broad valley and forms a short stretch of Telangana’s northeastern border with Maharashtra. The river then turns southeastward for the last 200 miles (320 km) of its course, flowing through a gap in the Eastern Ghats ranges and then across Andhra Pradesh state before reaching the Bay of Bengal. There it empties via its two mouths: the Gautami Godavari to the north and the Vasishta Godavari to the south. The Godavari is India's second longest river after the Ganga river and drains into the third largest basin in India, covering about 10% of India's total geographical area. Its source is in Trimbakeshwar, Nashik, Maharashtra. It flows east for 1,465 kilometers (910 mi), draining the states of Maharashtra (48.6%), Telangana (18.8%), Andhra Pradesh (4.5%), Chhattisgarh (10.9%) and Odisha (5.7%). The river ultimately empties into the Bay of Bengal through an extensive network of tributaries. Measuring up to 312,812 km2 (120,777 sq mi), it forms one of the largest river basins in the Indian subcontinent, with only the Ganga and Indus rivers having a larger drainage basin. In terms of length, catchment area and discharge, the Godavari is the largest in peninsular India, and had been dubbed as the Dakshin Ganga (Ganges of the South).