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Kaveri Cauvery
Kaveri near Ranganathittu
Kaveri River basin
Location
Country	India
Region	South India
States	Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Puducherry
Physical characteristics
Source	Western Ghats
• location	Talakaveri, Kodagu district, Karnataka
• coordinates	12°23′N 75°29′E / 12.383°N 75.483°E / 12.383; 75.483
• elevation	1,341 m (4,400 ft)
Mouth	Bay of Bengal
• location	Poompuhar, Mayiladuthurai district, Tamil Nadu
• elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Length	800 km (500 mi)
Basin size	81,155 km (31,334 sq mi)
Discharge
• location	Lower Anaicut (58.5 km upstream of mouth)
• average	919 m/s (32,500 cu ft/s) (1998-2024)
• minimum	144 m/s (5,100 cu ft/s)
• maximum	4,075 m/s (143,900 cu ft/s)
Discharge
• location	Grand Anicut (140 km upstream of mouth)
• average	400.716 m/s (14,151.2 cu ft/s) (1976-1979) 1,131 m/s (39,900 cu ft/s) (1998-2024)
• minimum	78 m/s (2,800 cu ft/s)
• maximum	4,916 m/s (173,600 cu ft/s)
Basin features
Tributaries
• left	Harangi, Hemavati, Shimsha, Arkavati, Sarabanga, Thirumanimutharu
• right	Lakshmana Tirtha, Kabini, Bhavani, Noyyal, Amaravati, Moyar

The Kaveri (also known as Cauvery) is a major river flowing across Southern India. It is the third largest river in the region after Godavari and Krishna. The catchment area of the Kaveri basin is estimated to be 81,155 km (31,334 sq mi) and the states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala, and the union territory of Puducherry.

The river rises at Talakaveri in the Brahmagiri range in the Western Ghats. The source is located at an elevation of 1,341 m (4,400 ft) in the Kodagu district of Karnataka. The river flows for about 320 km (200 mi) through the Deccan plateau in Karnataka before entering Tamil Nadu. It flows further eastward in Tamil Nadu for 416 km (258 mi) before flowing into the Bay of Bengal near Poompuhar in Mayiladuthurai district of Tamil Nadu. The river flows for a total length of about 800 km (500 mi). The major tributaries include Amaravati, Arkavati, Bhavani, Hemavati, Kabini, Lakshmana Tirtha, and Noyyal.

There are a number of dams on the river which form part of an extensive irrigation system and are used for the generation of hydroelectric power. The river has supported agriculture for centuries and has served as the lifeline of several kingdoms in the past. Access to the river's waters has been a cause of dispute among the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu for decades. The Kaveri basin is a densely populated region, with several towns and cities located on its banks.

The river is considered as sacred by the people of Southern India and is considered to be among the seven holy rivers of India. The river is often personified and worshiped as the goddess Kaveri. The river is mentioned in various Hindu religious texts including the Mahabharata and the Puranas. In ancient Tamil literature, the river is referenced to as Ponni meaning "the golden one".

Etymology

Kaveri is mentioned in Sanskrit as a holy river in various Hindu religious texts including the Mahabharata and the Puranas. The name itself might have had different etymologies. As per Hindu mythology, the river arose after Ganesha took a form of a crow and toppled sage Agastya's kamandala. The river then took its name from the Tamil language words kā meaning "crow" and viri meaning "spread" literally translating to "spread by a crow". It might also mean a river with wide spread banks as viri can also be translated as wide spread. The etymology of the river might have also been derived from kāviri, the Sankethi word for "river" from the language spoken by the Sankethi people, who live along its waters. Cauvery is the anglicized version of the original name.

The river is also known by other names. In ancient Tamil literature, the river was called Ponni meaning "the golden one" in reference to the fine silt it deposits. It is known as Daksina gaṅgā meaning the "Ganges of the South" indicating its geographical location and its significance. The river is mentioned as one of the seven holy Gangas in the Sivapurana. It is also mentioned as Ardha gaṅgā meaning Half Ganga in Mahabharata and other literature, due to its purported mythology of having arisen from the Ganges. Marudvṛdhā is another hypothesised name for this river, meaning "the beloved of the Maruts" in Sanskrit.

Course

The river arises at Talakaveri in Kodagu district of Karnataka. The source of the river is located at an altitude of 1,341 m (4,400 ft) in the Brahmagiri Hills of the Western Ghats. Its follows a rough upper course consisting of rocky beds and high banks. Once it leaves the Kodagu hills, it flows eastwards and forms a series of rapids and falls. It flows through a narrow gorge onto the Deccan plateau and drops about 18–24 m (59–79 ft) at Chunchanakatte Falls. The river forms the island of Srirangapatna and widens to 900–1,200 ft (270–370 m) before flowing south-east. At Shivanasamudra, the river drops 91 m (299 ft) and forms the Shivanasamudra Falls, one of the largest waterfalls in the country. After forming the island of Shivanasamudra, the river converges and passes through the Mekedatu gorge. After flowing for 320 km (200 mi) in Karnataka, the river flows for about 64 km (40 mi) along the Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border.

The river enters Tamil Nadu and forms the Hogenakkal Falls. After the falls, the river flows southwards towards Mettur Dam and joins its main right bank tributary Bhavani. The river flows eastwards through Erode and Karur, and widens further before entering the Tiruchirappalli district. It splits into two branches with the northern part called as Kollidam River and the southern part of the river retaining the name Kaveri. After flowing for 16 km (9.9 mi), the two branches converge around the Srirangam island. The river further branches off into 36 different channels before emptying into the Bay of Bengal near Puhar in Mayiladuthurai district. The river traverses for about 416 km (258 mi) in Tamil Nadu for a total length of about 800 km (500 mi).

Tributaries

The Kaveri River has 29 major tributaries. Hemavati, and Lakshmana Tirtha join the river at Krishna Raja Sagara. It meets with its major right bank tributary Bhavani at Bhavani and two tributaries Noyyal, and Amaravati join further down the stream in Tamil Nadu. Other tributaries of Kaveri include Kabini, Shimsha, Arkavati, Sarabanga, and Thirumanimutharu.

Discharge

Average, minimum and maximum discharge (m/s) of the Kaveri River at Grand Anicut and Lower Caleroon Anicut (Lower Anicut). Period from 1998 to 2022.

Geology

The Kaveri basin was formed in the Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous period during Gondwana breakup and opening of the Indian Ocean. Most of the Kaveri basin is made up of Precambrian rocks. The two major rock types that are found are metamorphic and igneous rocks. Closepet granite is found in the upper parts of the Kaveri basin and Charnockite rocks are only found in the central part.

A 2017 paper proposed that an impact structure was present in the vicinity of the Kaveri river.

Ecology

In Karnataka the riparian zone of the Kaveri basin is made up of two sub-zones, forest and agro-ecosystem. Over half of the basin is arable and the most cultivated crops are rice and sugarcane. The Kaveri basin also has a variety of flora. Some of the major species that occur in the basin include Terminalia arjuna, Tamarindus indica, Pongamia pinnata, Salix tetrasperma, Ficus benghalensis, Ficus religiosa, Eucalyptus torticornis, and Diospyros montana. Kaveri located in coorg district of Karnataka.India The Ranganthittu Bird Sanctuary is located on the Kaveri River. It is a designated Ramsar site that supports many bird species including the painted stork (Mycteria leucocephala), spot-billed pelican (Pelecanus philippensis), and black-headed ibis (Threskiornis melanocephalus). It is also home to the mugger crocodile (Crocodylus palustris), smooth-coated otter (Lutrogale perspicillata), and hump-backed mahseer (Tor remadevii).

Religious significance

In Hinduism, the Kaveri River is considered one of seven holy rivers in India. Kaveri Amman is worshipped as a river goddess.

There are many stories narrated in the Puranas about the origin of Kaveri as a river and a goddess. The Skanda Purana narrates that during the Samudra Manthana, or churning of the Ocean of Milk, Mohini and Lopamudra retrieved the nectar of immortality for the gods. Afterwards, Mohini became a cave in the Brahmagiri hills and Brahma took care of Lopamudra as his daughter. Later, Brahma offered Lopamudra to king Kavera, who was childless, as he was pleased by king Kavera's devotion. Lopamudra was then renamed as Kaveri. When Kaveri grew up she prayed to Brahma to transform her into a purifying river.

In another legend, Lopamudra becomes sage Agastya's wife and takes on a form of water during a severe drought in south India. Sage Agastya carries her in his small brass water pot on his journey to the south. Arriving on a hill, he places the water pot on the ground, but Ganesha, in the form of crow, knocks the water pot down. The spilled water runs down the hill and onto the drought-stricken land.

Irrigation

The primary uses of the Kaveri is providing water for irrigation, water for household consumption and the generation of electricity.

An estimate at the time of the first Five Year Plan puts the total flow of the Kaveri at 15 cubic kilometres (12,000,000 acre⋅ft), of which 60% was used for irrigation.

The Torekadanahalli pumpstation sends 540 million litres (19,000,000 cu ft) per day of water from the Kaveri 100 kilometres (62 mi) to Bangalore.

The hydroelectric plant built on the left of Sivanasamudra Falls on the Kaveri in 1902 was the first hydroelectric plant in Asia.

The Krishna Raja Sagara Dam has a capacity of 49 tmc ft. and the Mettur Dam which creates Stanley Reservoir has a capacity of 93.4 tmc ft. (thousand million cubic ft)

In August 2003, inflow into reservoirs in Karnataka was at a 29-year low, with a 58% shortfall. Water stored in Krishna Raja Sagara amounted to only 4.6 tmc ft.

In February 2020, Tamil Nadu assembly passed bill to declare Cauvery Delta as Protected Agricultural Zone, includes Thanjavur, Thirvarur, Nagapattinam and five blocks in Cuddalore and Pudukottai. The bill does not include Tiruchirappalli, Ariyalur and Karur which are geographically included in the Cauvery Delta.

Water sharing

The dispute over the sharing of Kaveri River began in 1807 when the Madras Government objected to Mysore State's plans for the development of irrigation projects. After initial discussions failed between the two Governments, Mysore asked the Government of India to intervene. Discussions were held again which led to a six rule agreement called the General Agreement of 1892. On 16 February 2018, the Indian Supreme Court said that Karnataka will get 284.75 tmc ft, Tamil Nadu will get 404.25 tmc ft, Kerala will get 30 tmc ft and Puducherry will get 7 tmc ft. 10 tmc ft will be reserved for Environmental Protection and 4 tmc ft will be reserved for Inevitable Wastage into the Sea.

Acting on the Supreme Court's direction, the Centre constituted a Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) on 1 June 2018 to address the dispute over sharing of river water among Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Puducherry. The central government failed to adhere with the top court's deadline of delivering a judgement within six weeks.

On 16 February 2018, the apex court had directed the government to form the CWMA within six weeks in a verdict that marginally increased Karnataka's share of Cauvery water, reduced the allocation for Tamil Nadu and sought to settle the protracted water dispute between the two states.

On 22 June 2018, despite opposition from Karnataka, the Central government constituted the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC) as per the provisions in the Kaveri Management Scheme laid down by the Supreme Court.

See also

• List of rivers of India
• Kaveri Pushkaram

References

1. ^ Integrated Hydrological Data Book (PDF) (Report). Central Water Commission. p. 92. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 April 2016. Retrieved 13 November 2017.
2. "Cauvery Water". Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
3. ^ "River Discharge and Reservoir Storage Changes - Area 2043". Flood observatory, Colorado University. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
4. ^ "River Discharge and Reservoir Storage Changes - Area 2042". Flood observatory, Colorado University. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
5. "Gauging Station - Data Summary". RivDis. Archived from the original on 4 October 2013. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
6. ^ "Kaveri". Wisdom library. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
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8. ^ "Cauvery flows, thanks to a crow!". E-pao. 4 January 2024. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
9. "How the Rivers of India Descended From the Heavens: Kaveri". Outlook. 5 November 2022. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
10. "Daughter of Ponni". The Indian Express. 27 April 2014. Retrieved 27 April 2014.
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14. "Marudvṛdhā". Sanskrit Lexicon. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
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16. ^ Singh, Dhruv Sen (2018). The Indian rivers : scientific and socio-economic aspects. Singapore: Springer Science. pp. 354–356.
17. Ramkumar, Mu; Kumaraswamy, K.; Mohanraj, R. (2015). Environmental Management of River Basin Ecosystems. Springer Science. p. 286.
18. Nagendra, R.; Nallapa Reddy, A. (1 January 2017). "Major geologic events of the Cauvery Basin, India and their correlation with global signatures – A review". Journal of Palaeogeography. 6 (1): 69–83. doi:10.1016/j.jop.2016.09.002.
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21. Subrahmanya, K. R.; Prakash Narasimha, K. N. (October 2017). "Kaveri crater – An impact structure in the Precambrian terrain of southern India". Journal of the Geological Society of India. 90 (4): 387–395. doi:10.1007/s12594-017-0733-5. ISSN 0016-7622. S2CID 134717819.
22. ^ Sunil, C.; Somashekar, R. K.; Nagaraja, B. C. (1 November 2010). "Riparian vegetation assessment of Cauvery River Basin of South India". Environmental Monitoring and Assessment. 170 (1): 548. doi:10.1007/s10661-009-1256-3. PMID 20024615. S2CID 19865294.
23. "Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary | Ramsar Sites Information Service". rsis.ramsar.org. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
24. ^ Warrier, Shrikala (2014). Kamandalu: The Seven Sacred Rivers of Hinduism. Mayur University. pp. 20, 192–195. ISBN 9780953567973.
25. Eck, Diana L. (2012). India: A Sacred Geography. United States: Harmony Books. p. 179. ISBN 9780385531917.
26. "Chapter 26: Irrigation and power". 1st Five Year Plan. Planning Commission, Government of India. Archived from the original on 28 March 2019. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
27. "Archived copy" (PDF). www.tce.co.in. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 March 2007. Retrieved 13 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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29. "Corporation urged to chalk out water policy for Mysore city". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 26 March 2006. Archived from the original on 29 October 2006.
30. ^ "Cauvery reservoirs' inflow hits record low". Deccan Herald. Bangalore. 2 August 2003. Archived from the original on 6 April 2012. Retrieved 18 March 2011.
31. "TN assembly passes bill to declare Cauvery Delta as Protected Agricultural Zone". The Week.
32. ^ Rani, Midatala; Rani, Middatala (2002). "Historical Background Of The Cauvery Water Dispute". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 63: 1033–1042. JSTOR 44158173.
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34. "Judgement Copy- SC verdict on Cauvery water dispute". Scribd.
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37. "Cauvery dispute". www.thenewsminute.com. 23 June 2018. Retrieved 2 December 2019.

External links

• Cauvery.com (presentation on the Cavery River)
• Kaveri Pushkaralu (archived 2 August 2018)
• Kaveri Pushkaram 2017 (archived 24 September 2018)

• Kaveri River
• Rivers of Tamil Nadu
• Rivers of Karnataka
• Ancient Indian rivers
• Sacred rivers
• Coromandel Coast
• Rivers in Buddhism