INDIAN WATER RESOURCES
Importance : Water is one of the most precious natural resources. Without water it is impossible to sustain life. Human beings need it for drinking, cooking, washing, agriculture, generation of hydro-electricity, industries, navigation, fishing etc. India is endowed with substantial water resources. It has many rivers and gets sufficient rainfall and has extensive surface water resource. It also has vast reserves of ground water. Water resource can be divided into surface water and ground water resources. The surface water resources are rainfall, rivers, lakes, tanks and springs. India has extensive surface water resources. Major Rivers of India India has many river systems. They are the natural resources of the country. The rivers are useful for irrigation, generation of hydel power, inland water ways, fishing etc.
The river systems of India can be divided into two groups: i) The rivers of North India and ii) The rivers of Peninsular India. i) The Rivers of North India : They are also known as ‘the Himalayan rivers’. The important rivers of North India are the Indus, the Ganges and the Brahmaputra. The River Indus or Sindhu rises near Mt. Kailash (Tibet). Initially it flows north-westwards, then it flows towards the south-west and enters Pakistan. Finally it joins the Arabian Sea near Karachi. The total length of the river Indus is 2897 kms of which 709 kms lies in India. But the major part of its course in Pakistan. It receives many tributaries such as Jhelum, Chenab, Beas, Ravi and Sutluj.
The Ganga river is the largest river of India. Its total length is 2525km. It rises in the Gangothri glacier. It flows towards the south and south-east, then enters Bangladesh where it joins the Brahmaputra. After it joins the Brahmaputra it continues as Padma and finally flows into the Bay of Bengal. Its major tributaries are Yamuna, Ghaghara, Gandak, Ramaganga, Gomati, Sarada, Son and kosi. Of these Yamuna is the longest tributary.
The Brahmaputra rises near lake Manasa sarovar (Tibet) and flows towards the east. It enters India through a narrow gorge in Arunachal Pradesh. Then it flows to the west and turns to the south in Bangladesh. Where it joins the Ganga. Its length is 2589kms ii) The Rivers of south India : Many rivers flow across south India. They are also known as ‘Peninsular rivers’. Most of them rises in the Western Ghats. The important rivers of south India are Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna, Kaveri, Narmada, Tapi and their tributaries. These can be grouped into East flowing and West flowing rivers.
a) The East flowing rivers The Mahanadi rises in ‘Sihawa’ range, flows towards the east (851km) and joins the Bay of Bengal. The Godavari is the largest river in South India. It rises in ‘Triambaka’, flows towards the east (1465km) and joins the Bay of Bengal. River Krishna rises near Mahabaleswara then it flows towards the south-east (1400 km) and joins the Bay of Bengal. Its main tributaries are Bhima, Tungabhadra, Koyna, Ghataprabha and Malaprabha. River Kaveri rises at Talakaveri (Kodagu) flows towards the east and joins the Bay of Bengal. The Hemavathi, Simsha, Kapila, Arkavathi, Lakshmanathirtha, Suvarnavathi and Bhavani are the main tributaries of Kaveri. b) The West flowing rivers The Narmada and Tapi are the important west flowing rivers of south India. River Narmada rises in Amarakantak hills and flows westward (1312km) through a narrow gorge called ‘Marble Gorge’ and joins the Arabian sea. The Tapi rises near ‘Multai’, flows westward (724km) and joins the Arabian Sea. Many other west flowing rivers are short and swift. Important among them are Sabarmathi, Mandovi, Zuari, Bedti, Sharavathi, Kali, Netravathi and the Periyar.
IRRIGATION Meaning : ‘The artificial supply of water for the purpose of agriculture is called irrigation. It refers to the supply of water to agricultural land from rivers, reservoirs, tanks or from underground sources. The Need of Irrigation : India is an agricultural country. Therefore it needs a regular and sufficient supply of water. Agriculture in India depends mainly on monsoon rainfall. It is seasonal, uncertain and unevenly distributed. There are certain crops which require a larger and regular water supply, such as Rice, Sugarcane etc., Besides to increase the yield and production of crops required regular supply of water. This can be provided only by irrigation which is very essential in India. Types of Irrigations The important types of irrigations in India are wells, canals and tanks. Recently other types of irrigations such as sprinkler and drip irrigation have been introduced.
1. Well Irrigation : It is the most important type of irrigation in India. Nearly 60.7% of the total irrigated area is from well irrigation. Well irrigation is possible even in areas of low rainfall, it is cheap and easy to dig wells and they do not required superior technology. It is easy even for small farmers to dig wells. Well irrigation is largely practiced in the Ganga plains including Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal. In South India well irrigation is widely practiced in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Odisha. Wells are of two types, namely open wells and tube wells.
Tube well irrigation has become wide spread in India. 2. Canal Irrigation : It has occupies the second place after well irrigation and accounts for about 27% of the total irrigated area. India has one of the world’s largest canal systems. The Government is responsible for the construction and maintenance of canals. There are two types of canals – inundation canals and perennial canals. In inundation canals, water is drawn directly from the river without building dam. In perennial canals, dams are constructed across the rivers and water is stored in the reservoirs and used for agriculture through canals. Canal irrigation is extensive in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Bihar, MadhyaPradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, West Bengal and Karnataka states.
3. Tank Irrigation : A tank is a natural or man-made hollow on the earth’s surface into which rain-water is collected. This water is used for irrigations. Most of the tanks are non-perennial. In recent years the area under tank irrigation has been decreased. Now only 3% of the total irrigated area is under tank irrigation in India. It is mainly found in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. Multipurpose River Valley Projects. The river valley projects which provide multiple benefits are called “Multipurpose river valley projects.” The main aims of these projects are :- i) to provide water for irrigation, ii) to control the floods, iii) to generate hydro-electricity, iv) to pevent soil erosion, v) to develop inland waterways and fishing, vi) to provide recreation facilities. vii) to provide water for domestic puposes and industries, viii) to reclaim land for agriculture, ix) afforestation etc., Major Multipurpose Projects 1) Damodar Valley Project : This is the first multipurpose river valley project of the country. It has been designed on the lines of Tennessee Valley
Authority (TVA) in USA. River Damodar was called ‘Sorrow of Bengal’, because it was causing devastating floods during the rainy seasons and damaged crops and human settlements. So main aims of the project are to control of floods, to provide irrigation, navigation, generation of hydroelectricity, afforestation, control of soil erosion, promotion of mining, industries and inland fishing.
This project has been jointly understaken by the Government of Bihar and West Bengal, across river Damodar and its tributaries.This project comprises of 4 dams at Tilaiya, Konar, Maithon and Panchet hill, a barrage Durgapura and 3 thermal power stations, at Bokaro, Durgapur and Chandrapura.
2. Bhakra-Nangal Project : It is a joint ventune of the states of Punjabs, Haryana and Rajasthan. This project comprises of two dams at Bhakra and Nangal across the river Sutluj (Himachal Pradesh) and four power houses. Flood control, irrigation facilities generation of hydroelectricity, prevention of soil erosion and promotion afforestation are the main objectives of the project. Bhakra dam is 226 meters high and it is a highest gravity dam in India.
The reservoir created by the dam is called “Gobind Sagar”. 3. Hirakud Project : It is the most important multipurpose project of Odisha. This project comprises of the contruction of three dams on river Mahanadi at Hirakud, Tikarapara and Naraj. It also has two hydel power stations. Hirakud is the longest dam in India. The main aims of the project are flood control, provision of irrigation facilities and generation of hydro-electricity. It also provides transport by inland water ways, fishing and afforestation
4. Tungabhadra Project : It is a joint venture of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. The main aims of the project are to provide irrigation, generation of hydel power and inland fisheries. It comprises a dam and three hydel power houses. A dam has been constructed across river Tungabhadra, a tributary of Krishna, at Mallapuram near Hosapete in Ballari district of Karnataka.
The reservoir created by this dam is called “Pampa Sagara”.
5. Upper Krishna Project : It is the biggest multipurpose river valley project in North Karnataka across river Krishna. It comprises of two dams namely Alamatti and Narayanpura and a hydel power house. The main aims of the project are to provide irrigation, drinking water and to generate hydro-electricity. The Almatti dam is constructed near Almatti village in Basavana Bagewadi taluk and the Narayanapura dam is located near Siddapur village in Muddebihal taluk of Vijayapura district. Bagalkot, Vijayapura,
6. The Kosi Project : It is an international project and a joint venture of India and Nepal. A dam is built across river Kosi near Hanuman Nagar in Nepal. The main objectives of this project are irrigation, flood control, hydel power generation and fishing. The project has been executed by India but the benefits are shared both by India and Nepal.
7. The Rihand Valley Project : This is the most important multipurpose river valley project of Uttar Pradesh, built across Rihand river (a tributary of the Son). Flood control, prevention of soil erosion, inland fishing, provides irrigation and power generation are the main aims of the project. The reservoir created by this dam is called “Gobind Ballabh Pant Sagar”.
8. The Nagarjuna Sagar Project : It is built across river Krishna near Nagarjunakonda in Telangana. Irrigation and power generation are the main aims of the project. Do you know? River Kosi was called the ‘Sorrow of Bihar’. River Mahanadi was called the ‘Sorrow of Odisha’. The right bank canal of Nagarjun Sagar project is clalled ‘Jawahar canal’ and left bank canal is called ‘ Lal Bahadur Canal’. EXERCISES I. Fill in the blanks with suitable answers. 1. River Indus rises near . 2. The longest river in South India is . 3. Hirakud project is built across river. 4. Is the longest tributary of the Ganga is . 5. The Kosi project
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