Rivers in India

Kaveri River – One of the 7 Holy Rivers of India

Kaveri or Cauvery River is a lifeline river for the Indian states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Rising from Talakaveri on the Brahmagiri range in the Western Ghats which is located in Kodagu district in the state of Karnataka, Kaveri is the third largest river in South India after Godavari and Krishna rivers respectively.

River Kaveri is one of the important sources of the river to the Indian States of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, a lifeline of many farmers who depend on the river has a religious touch to it. Kaveri is worshipped as Goddess Kaveriamma. It is one of the 7 holy rivers of India.

Kaveri river catchment area is estimated to be around 81555sqkm and the river basin covers 3 states of Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu and UT of Puducherry. The distance that Cauvery flows is around 800kms where it rises at Talakaveri and drains into the Bay of Bengal. The river is a major source of irrigation, hydro-electric power, and agriculture. It has irrigated agriculture for centuries.

Kaveri River Information

Name of the riverKaveri
LocationKarnataka, Tamilnadu, Kerala, and Puducherry
OriginTalakaveri in Kodagu, Karnataka
Length800 km
Discharge677 m³/s
DamsKrishna Raja Sagara Dam (Mandhya)

Kavery River is one of the major source of irrigation to the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.

Origin of the River


River Kaveri originates at Talakaveri, Kodagu District in the Western Ghats, Karnataka at an elevation of 1341m above sea level. And the river flows through the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu and drains into the Bay of Bengal. The basin of the Kaveri River extends to around 87,900 sq km which is around 2.7% of the total geography of the country.

Talakaveri, Kaveri River, Rivers in Karnataka
Talakaveri

The basin of Kaveri is divided into 3 parts the Western Ghats, the Plateau of Mysore, and the Delta. The Delta is one of the fertile tracts of the basin. The principal soil types found in the basin are black soils, red soils, laterites, alluvial soils, forest soils, and mixed soils. Red soils occupy large areas in the basin. Alluvial soils are found in the delta areas.

The Course of Kaveri River


The river Kaveri has 7 tributaries namely the Harangi River, Hemavati River, Lakshmana Tirtha, Amaravathi River, Bhavani River, Kabini River, and Noyyal River. The river Kaveri flows down to the Deccan plateau and forms 2 islands namely Srirangapatnam and Shivanasamudra.

In the town of Srirangapatna, the river forms Sangam and is considered a holy place and then comes Shivanasamudra which is famous for Shivanasamudra falls. At Shivanasamudra the falls are divided into Gagana Chukki and Bhara Chukki and Asia’s first Hydro-electric plant was set up here which provided electricity to the city of Bangalore.

The river flows from Srirangapatnam and the Kabini river tributaries join at T. Narsipura which is where 3 rivers join namely Kaveri, Kabini, and the mythological river Spatika. The river enters Tamil Nadu through Dharmapuri district where it has another falls called Hogenekkal Falls and after the falls, 3 other tributaries Palar, Chinnar, and Thoppar river enter the Kaveri River.

It passes through Erode town and it enters Tiruchirappalli district where it splits into two the northern branch of the river is called the Kollidam while the southern branch retains the name Kaveri and then goes directly eastwards into Thanjavur District. From Thanjavur, the river splits and goes to few places in the Delta Kaveri.

Places Located Near to River Kaveri


The course of Kaveri is interrupted by 12 dams for irrigation. It passes through towns of Srirangapatnam, T. Narsipura, Dharmapuri district, Hogenekkal, Mettur, Erode district, Bhavani, and Tiruchirappalli district before splitting into two. The two river joins again at an Island named Srirangam which is where Sri Ranganathaswamy temple is present and the river forms a reservoir at an oldest dam Grand Anicut or Kallanai.

Ranganthittu Bird Sanctuary, Kaveri River, Rivers of India, Karnataka River
Ranganthittu Bird Sanctuary

Kaveri river is also a part of Ranganthittu Bird Sanctuary located 3kms from Srirangapatnam and is home to rich flora and fauna where roughly 170 species of birds are present.

Of these, the painted stork, Asian openbill stork, common spoonbill, woolly-necked stork, black-headed ibis, lesser whistling duck, Indian shag, stork-billed kingfisher, egret, cormorant, Oriental darter, spot-billed pelican, and heron breed at Ranganathittu regularly.  The other fauna located here includes small mammals such as bonnet macaque, smooth-coated otter, colonies of flying fox, Civet cat, Indian gray mongoose, etc.

Dams located in the flow of the Kaveri River includes


Krishna Raja Sagar Dam, Kaveri River, Rivers of India
KRS Dam
  1. Krishna Raja Sagar Dam
  2. Mettur Dam
  3. Mayanur Dam
  4. Grand Anicut

[ Also Checkout: List of Rivers Flown in Karnataka ]

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