Q1.
Give the names of three rivers that start from the Western Ghats.
Answer
The Godavari, the Krishna and the Kaveri. All three begin in the Western Ghats and flow east, right across the country, into the Bay of Bengal.
| River | Where it begins | Where it goes |
|---|---|---|
| Godavari | Trimbakeshwar, near Nashik, Maharashtra | East across the Deccan into the Bay of Bengal. The longest river of peninsular India |
| Krishna | Mahabaleshwar, Maharashtra | East through Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh into the Bay of Bengal |
| Kaveri (Cauvery) | Talakaveri in the Brahmagiri hills, Kodagu, Karnataka | East through Karnataka and Tamil Nadu into the Bay of Bengal |
| Tungabhadra | The Ghats in Karnataka | Joins the Krishna |
| Periyar | The Ghats in Kerala | West, a short way, into the Arabian Sea |
| Sharavathi | The Ghats in Karnataka | West to the Arabian Sea; it makes the Jog Falls |
Any three, for example — Godavari, Krishna, Kaveri
Why so many rivers begin in one line of hills: The Ghats catch the monsoon rain first, and huge amounts of it. That water has to run off somewhere. Because the ridge is close to the west coast and the land slopes gently away to the east, the big rivers run east, right across India, and only short, fast rivers run west. That is why a raindrop that falls on a hill in Karnataka can end up in the sea near Andhra Pradesh, hundreds of kilometres away on the other side of the country.
Why people call the Ghats a water tower: The drinking water of Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru and Chennai, and the water in the fields of five states, starts as rain on these hills. Cut the forest and the rain runs off at once, taking the soil with it, instead of soaking in and feeding the rivers all year.