Which is the longest river of Rajasthan?

The name Rajasthan means ” Land of the Kings “and this State surely lives up to its name due to its rich cultural heritage. It is the largest state in India on the basis of area and the seventh-largest according to population. It mostly consists of a wide and hostile desert called the Thar Desert. The temperature of this area is very hard to live with as there is extreme heat during the day and extreme cold during the night. The State was formed on 30 March 1949. Many rivers flow in the state but the longest river that flows through the state is the Chambal River. Chambal is almost 1,024 kilometers long. It is a stream of the Yamuna River that originated in Yamunotri and thus it is a part of the Gangetic drainage system, of which the Chambal river is a tributary. 

Chambal River

Longest River of Rajasthan

Chambal River has even been mentioned in ancient scriptures of Hindu Literature and was called Charmanvati in ancient times. Chambal was mentioned as the southern boundary of the Panchala Kingdom ruled by the infamous King Drupada. It originates from the Singar Chouri Peak on the northern slopes of the Vindhyan escarpment near Madav. It flows first from Madhya Pradesh and is continuous for almost 376 KM through many states but mostly Rajasthan.

The Chambal passes through nearly 11 districts namely Chittorgarh, Bhilwara, Tonk, Dholpur, Sawai, and Baran districts, and some more.  Among all the places the Chambal River flows, Rajasthan has the largest catchment area of 79,401 square KM which is almost 59 percent of the total catchment of the river. The least catchment area is in the Tonk district and the largest is in Baran District.

Chambal River

The river Chambal is considered to be pollution-free and it is home to some amazing riverine plants and animals like 2 species of crocodile, 8 species of freshwater turtles, and many more rare plants and animals found nowhere except in the Chambal River. There are in total 4 main dams on the Chambal River Gandhi Sagar Dam, Rana Pratap Sagar Dam, Jawahar Sagar Dam, and Kota Barrage listed based on their location on the Chambal River.

• Gandhi Sagar Dam is situated 168 kilometers from the district headquarter. This is located in the Mandsaur district of Madhya Pradesh. The dam sports a 115 MW hydroelectricity. It attracts many migratory and non-migratory birds due to its position and the rich flora and fauna of the Chambal River. 
• The Rana Pratap Sagar dam is positioned on the Chambal River in Rawatbhata district in Rajasthan. It is the part of integration scheme of cascade development. The Dam can generate 172 Mw of electricity. The power station was started on 9 Feb 1970 by Indira Gandhi.
•  The Jawahar Sagar Dam is the third dam in the series of the Chambal Valley Project located 29 kilometers above Kota city and 16 kilometers below the Rana Pratap Sagar dam.
• The fourth dam in the series was Kota Barrage which is located 0.8 kilometers above Kota city. 

There are multiple tributaries of the Chambal River but a few are very prominent like  Shipra, Choti Kali Sindh, Ansar, Retam, Sivanna, Banas, Parbati, Kuwari, Seep, and many more. 

1. The river Kali Sindh originates in Bagli District and continuously flows for 278 kilometers and passes through Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. 
2. Mej River originates near Mandalgarh and flows through Rajasthan. 
3. The river Chakan River is formed by the combination of many locally formed nallahs. This catchment is situated in Sawai, tonk, and Bundi. 
4. The river Kunu originates in the north of Guna town of Madhya Pradesh.

The Chambal River is home to many plants and animals. Chambal River is the home of more than 15 species of turtles and 2 species of crocodiles. Gharial and Magarmach are mostly found only in the Chambal River. Black-necked storks, saree cranes, Gangetic river dolphins, and Indian skimmers are a few examples of the fauna of the Chambal River. the Chambal River is home to more than 100 different plants including flowering plants like the Alkaline Babul tree, Deck, Indian Ash tree, Kaim, Alma tree, and many more plants.

FAQs on The Longest River in the State of Rajasthan

Q 1. What is the longest river in the state of Rajasthan?

Answer-

The longest river that flows through Rajasthan is Chambal which is a tributary of Yamuna river .

Q 2. How many dams are present on the Chambal River?

Answer-

 There is in total 4 main dams on the chambal river Gandhi Sagar Dam, Rana Pratap Sagar Dam, Jawahar Sagar Dam, Kota Barrage.

Q 3. Name some tributaries of the Chambal River.

Answer-

There are multiple tributaries of the Chambal river namely Shipra, Choti Kali sindh, Ansar, Retam, Sivanna, Banas, Parbati, Kuwari, Seep and many more. 

Q 4. What is the quality of the water of the Chambal River?

Answer-

The river Chambal is considered to be pollution free and it is home to some amazing riverine faunal including 2 species of crocodile, 8 species of freshwater turtles and many more rare plants and animals .

Q 5. Where does the Chambal river Originate?

Answer-

It originates from the Singar Chouri Peak on the northern slopes of the Vindhyan escarpment near Madav. It flows first from Madhya Pradesh for almost 376 kilometer.