Krishna river: origin, course, tributaries and dams

Origin: Mahabaleshwar in the Western Ghats

The Krishna rises near Jor village at Mahabaleshwar, in Satara district of Maharashtra, on the eastern side of the Western Ghats. The Karnataka government's water resources department gives the source altitude as about 1,337 metres, while other accounts round it to about 1,300 metres.

From Mahabaleshwar the young river flows to Wai and then turns east, crossing the full width of the peninsula. Unlike the Himalayan rivers, the Krishna is rain-fed, so its flow rises sharply in the monsoon and falls in the dry months, a pattern that shapes farming and dam management across its basin.

Course: four states to the Bay of Bengal

The Krishna flows east through Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, passing Sangli, the pilgrim centre of Srisailam, and Vijayawada before reaching the Bay of Bengal at Hamsaladeevi in Krishna district, Andhra Pradesh. Its total length is about 1,400 km, though some sources give around 1,290 km, so the figure should be treated as approximate.

Its basin covers about 2,58,948 sq km, nearly 8% of India's geographical area, divided among Maharashtra (69,425 sq km), Karnataka (1,13,271 sq km) and Andhra Pradesh with Telangana (76,252 sq km). The basin is mostly rolling country with black, red and alluvial soils, and its lower delta, shared with the Godavari, is known as a rice granary.

Tributaries: Bhima, Tungabhadra, Ghataprabha and Malaprabha

The Krishna has 13 major tributaries. From the left bank come the Bhima, Musi, Munneru and Dindi; from the right bank come the Koyna, Ghataprabha, Malaprabha and Tungabhadra. The Bhima is the longest tributary at about 861 km, rising in the Western Ghats and joining the Krishna in Karnataka.

The Tungabhadra, formed by the Tunga and Bhadra rivers, is the largest right-bank tributary, about 531 km long, and its valley holds the historic site of Hampi. The Ghataprabha (about 283 km) and Malaprabha (about 306 km) drain northern Karnataka, and the Musi flows through Hyderabad before joining the Krishna in Telangana.

Dams, irrigation and water sharing

The Krishna's water is stored behind major projects including the Almatti Dam in Karnataka, the Srisailam Dam on the Telangana-Andhra Pradesh border, the Nagarjuna Sagar Dam, and the Prakasam Barrage near Vijayawada. These projects irrigate large areas, generate hydroelectric power and supply drinking water to cities including Hyderabad.

Because four states share the river, its waters have been a long-running dispute. The Bachawat tribunal's 1976 award governed sharing for decades, and a later tribunal award of 2013 was challenged in the Supreme Court, with Telangana also seeking a fresh hearing after its formation. The Telugu Ganga project even carries Krishna water to Chennai, although the river does not flow through Tamil Nadu.

Editorial disclosure

This article was researched and published with AI assistance. No human prepublication review is claimed. Report factual errors through our contact page.