Government of Bihar

Shri Samrat Choudhary Hon'ble Chief Minister

Government of Bihar | Official Website

River

Ganga

Ganga – The Ganges also known as Ganga is a trans-boundary river of Asia which flows through the nations of India and Bangladesh. The 2,525 km (1,569 mi) river rises in the western Himalayas in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, and flows south and east through the Gangetic Plain of North India. After entering West Bengal, it divides into two rivers: the Hooghly River and the Padma River. The Hooghly, or Adi Ganga, flows through several districts of West Bengal and into the Bay of Bengal near Sagar Island. The other, the Padma, also flows into and through Bangladesh, and also empties into the Bay of Bengal. The Ganges is the third largest river in the world by discharge.

The Ganga is the most sacred river to Hindus. It is also a lifeline to millions of Indians who live along its course and depend on it for their daily needs. It is worshipped as the goddess Ganga in Hinduism. It has also been important historically, with many former provincial or imperial capitals (such as Pataliputra, Kannauj, Kara, Kashi, Patna, Hajipur, Munger, Bhagalpur, Murshidabad, Baharampur, Kampilya, and Kolkata) located on its banks.

There are few small rivers that meet river Ganga directly such as River Karmnasha near Chausa, river Kao-Thora near Bukar, river Dharmawati and Gangi between Buxar and Ara and river Gerua near Ghogha (Bhagalpur) from right side and river Mahi near Sonepur and river Baya near Bachhwara from left side in Bihar known as Ganga stem Basin.

Bagmati

Bagmati is a perennial river of North Bihar. It originates from the Shivpuri range of hills in Nepal at latitude 27° 47’ N and longitude 85° 17’E., 16 Km North-East of Kathmandu at an elevation of 1500 m above MSL. It enters Indian territory in Bihar in the village Shorwatia in Sitamarhi district, nearly 2.5 Km north of Dheng railway station. The total length of this river is about 589 Km. It traverses nearly 195 Km in Nepal and rest 394 Km in Bihar. It outfalls in the Kosi at Badlaghat.

Gandak

The river Gandak originates at an altitude of 7620 m above MSL in the north of Dhaulagiri in Tibet near Nepal border at Latitude 29°18' N and Longitude 83°58'E, in the snowy peaks of the Himalayas. The river enters the Indian territory near Tribeni town in Nepal. Thereafter the river flows in a southerly direction and forms boundary between Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. It flows through the West Champaran, East Champaran, Muzaffarpur, Gopalganj, Siwan, Saran and Vaishali districts of Bihar and Gorakhpur and Deoria district of Uttar Pradesh before joining Ganga at Hajipur.

Source: FMIS Bihar

Burhi Gandak

The river Burhi Gandak originates from Chautarwa chaur near Bisambharpur in the district of West Champaran in Bihar and flows through the districts of East Champaran, Muzaffarpur, Samastipur and Begusarai. It outfalls into the Ganga near Khagaria. The total catchment area is 12021 sq.Km, out of which 9601 sq.Km lies in Bihar and rest in Nepal. There is no major or medium project over the Burhi Gandak river system.

Source: FMIS Bihar

Adhwara Group

Adhwara group of rivers originates from foot hills of Nepal. Nearly 70% of discharge of this river passes through the Khiroi. The rest 30 percent goes to meet the river Dhaus near Karharaghat. Then the river crosses north of Kamtaul railway station and finally falls into the Darbhanga - Bagmati at Ekmighat.

Source: FMIS Bihar

Ghaghra

Originates in Tibet near Manas Sarovar and the main tributary river Sarayu.

Phalgu River

Revered as a holy river by the Hindus this river flows by the Gaya district of Bihar and draws lot of Hindu pilgrims to the sacred spot at Gaya. In the ancient texts this river is mentioned as Niranjana River. The water flows below the ground level and only the stretch of sandy surface is visible from the top of the riverbed. Thus there are lot of mythical tales regarding the river.

Karmanasha River

Originates from Bihar’s Kaimur district and is a tributary to Ganga.

Koshi River

The river Kosi originates at an altitude of over 7000 m above MSL in the Himalayas. The upper catchment of the river system lies in Nepal and Tibet. The highest peak in the world, the Mount Everest and the Kanchenjunga are in the Kosi catchment. It is known as Sapta Kosi in Nepal. It enters the Indian territory near Hanuman Nagar in Nepal. It joins the Ganga river near Kursela in Katihar district. The river Kosi drains a total catchment area of 74030 Sq.Km in India and other countries. Out of the total catchment area of the Kosi, only 11410 Sq.Km lies in India and the rest 62620 Sq.Km lies in Tibet and Nepal.

Source: FMIS Bihar

Mahananda River

Mahananda River is one of the prime tributaries of the Ganga River in the eastern part of India. The origin of this mighty Mahananda River is from the extreme north of West Bengal from the stunning hills of Darjeeling at an elevation of 2100 m. Originating from this beautiful hill station the Mahananda River, then flows southwards through the fertile agricultural area of Bihar and enters West Bengal flowing past English Bazaar. From Darjeeling to Bihar and after entering through Uttar Dinajpur district in West Bengal, Mahananda River, then flows in the southeast direction into Bangladesh, near Tentulia in Panchagarh District.

The journey of the Mahananda River is still not complete and the river merges into Ganges, at Godagari Ghat after flowing for 225 miles (360 kilometers). The major tributaries of the Mahananda are Balason, Mechi, Ratwa and Kankai. It has three tributaries in the Siliguri area called the Trinai, Ranochondi and the pair of Chokor and Dauk taken as a single tributary. The total drainage area of the river is 20,600 sq. km. of which 11,530 sq.km. lies in India. The river finally enters Bangladesh and joins Ganga at Godagiri.
One of the most interesting facts about the Mahananda forms in its upper course an important linguistic boundary between the Bengali and the Hindi speaking areas and communities. The Mahananda River is mainly fed by the monsoons and floods occur in this river as well. It has a low water level during the summers or winters.

Source: NIH Roorkee

Punpun River

The Punpun river is an important river bank tributary of the Ganga river in lower reaches. It originates from the Chottanagpur hills of Palamau district at an elevation of 300 m in Bihar and lies between east longitudes of 84°10' to 85°20' east and north latitudes of 24°11' to 25°25'. The river mostly flows in a northeast direction and finally joins the Ganga river at Fatuha, about 25 km downstream of Patna. The river is 200 km long and is mostly rainfed and carries little discharge during non-monsoon period. It meets a number of tributaries namely the Butane, the Madar and the Morhar while flowing through the Chottanagpur plateau. The Punpun often causes heavy flood damages on the eastern side of Patna city.

The shape of the Punpun basin is roughly trapezoidal. The catchment area of the Punpun catchment is about 8,530 sq. km. which is about 1% of the total area of the Ganga basin in the country. The agriculture area under the Punpun basin is about 5,000 sq. km. The average annual rainfall for the basin is 1,181 mm. The total gross recharge in the Punpun river system is 1.6 lakh ha-m. However, only 75% of the gross recharge can be utilised.

Son River

Son River, Son also spelled Sone, principal southern tributary of the Ganges (Ganga) River, rising in Madhya Pradesh state, central India. It flows north past Manpur and then turns northeast. The river cuts through the Kaimur Range and joins the Ganges above Patna, after a 487-mile (784-km) course. The Son valley is largely forested and sparsely populated. The valley is bordered by the Kaimur Range to the north and the Chota Nagpur plateau to the south. The river’s flow is seasonal, and the Son is unimportant for navigation. Dams have been constructed on some of its tributaries. At Dehri, in Bihar state, are the headworks of the Son canal system.

Some more rivers are:
Sapt Koshi, Bhutahi Balan