Godavari River

The Godavari River is a major waterway in India, next to the Ganges and Indus rivers.

Description

The river is about 1,450 km (900 miles) long. It rises at Trimbakeshwar, in Nashik, near Mumbai (formerly Bombay) in Maharashtra around 380 km distance from the Arabian Sea, flows southeast across south-central India into Andhra Pradesh, and empties into the Bay of Bengal. At Dhavaleswaram, approximately 10 km downstream of Rajahmundry, 80 km from the coast, the river splits into two arms namely Gautami and Vasista, thus forming a very fertile delta. At Dhavaleswaram the river is nearly four miles wide.

It is a seasonal river, approximately 80% of its discharge into the Bay of Bengal is during the monsoons between July and October. The colour of the river is turbid yellow during the monsoons, while in the rest of the seasons the water is clear and greenish. After Bhadrachalam the river enters a gorge in the Eastern Ghats, a mountain range and becomes very narrow, at places just 200 metres but also about 60 metres deep.

Place of Pilgrimage

The Godavari has been held as a special place of pilgrimage for many thousands of years. Many famous personalities, including Baladeva (5000 years ago) and more recently Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (500 years ago) have bathed in her waters as an act of worship.

River Basin and Tributaries

Godavari River

Major Towns and Cities along the river

Trimbakeshwar, Nashik, Kopargaon, Paithan, Nanded in Maharashtra

Bhadrachalam, Rajamundry, Kovvur and Narsapur in Andhra Pradesh.

Dams and Bridges along the river

Dowleswaram Barrage, built at the mouth of the Godavari River by Sir Arthur Cotton. Bridge is more than 100 years old, still its acts as reservoir for Godavari. Since the river flows only in the plains there are no dams till date. Dowleswaram Barrage is also called as Cotton barrage the only water reserve on Godavari.

Places of interest

Like any other major rivers in India, the banks of this river also has many pilgrimage sites.

Trimbakeshwar- One of the twelve Jyotirlingas and ancient tenple of Lord Shiva.

Nasik- One of the four Kumbh Mela, Hindu pilgrimage place.

Nanded - Takht Sri Hazur Sahib One of the five most sacred place in Sikhism.

Bhadrachalam - Hindu Temple of Lord Rama.

Pattiseema - a Hindu temple on a small hill in an island in the river.

Basar (orignially, Vyasara) - Sri Gyana Saraswathi temple is situated on the banks of Godavari, in Adilabad district, Andhra Pradesh. It is 210 km from state capital Hyderabad and accessible by road and rail (nearest major station: Nizamabad, although Basar station also exists). It is considered that the sage Vyasa wrote the Mahabharata on the banks of Godavari at this location, and thus the place came to be known as Vyasara.

External links

Rivers of India | Shakti Peethas