Brahmani River & Baitarani River Detailed [Map]

The Brahmani River and the Baitarani River are two important rivers in India, particularly in the state of Odisha.
The Brahmani River has a total length of 799 km and is formed by the confluence of the Sankh and South Koel rivers. It flows through several districts in Odisha and forms a large delta before emptying into the Bay of Bengal at Dhamra. On the other hand, the Baitarani River travels a distance of 360 kilometers and has 65 tributaries, draining into the Bay of Bengal.

Now Let’s see Brahmani river and Baitarani river one by one

Brahmani River

  • Brahmani river is formed by the combined waters of Koel and Sankh rivers at Vedavyasa near Rourkela of Sundargarh District.
  • Major Tributaries: Koel, Kuradhi, Mankara, Samakoi, Ramiala, Karo, Sankh, Rukura, Gohira, Tikira, Singdajhor, Nigra, Barjor, Nandira
  • Major Distributaries: Kharasuan
  • The Brahmani is 799 km in length.
  • Brahmani, the second major river in Odisha, emerges from the combined waters of South Koel and Sankh rivers at Vedvyasa near Rourkela in the Sundargarh district.
  • The left bank tributary of Brahmani river, the South Koel originates near to Nagri village in the Ranchi district of Jharkhand state. After its confluence with Karo river in the Singhbhum district, it is known as Koel.
  • From Manoharpur, Koel flows in the southwest direction for about 54 km upto Vedvyasa, where the right bank tributary of Brahmani, the Sankh River, joins with it.
  • River Sankh originates at an elevation of 1000 m near village Lupungpat in the Ranchi district of Jharkhand state.
  • River Brahmani traverses southward through the valleys incised in the Gadjat Hills to form the famous Gangpur Basin. In this area, the Brahmani river is joined by several fast-flowing tributaries.
  • The deltaic region of Brahmani starts from Jenapur at a river distance of 315.00 km, where the Kalamitra island divides the river into two branches.
  • The left branch is called Brahmani main, and the right branch is called Kharasuan, which again joins the Brahmani river at a river distance of 429.00 km.
  • River Birupa, a distributary of the Mahanadi river, joins the Brahmani river at a river distance of 372.00 km.
  • In place of being a receiving stream, it now branches into numerous spill-channels which criss-cross the spill channels of river Baitarani and ultimately joins river Baitarani at river distance 446.00 km to form Dhamra mouth before finally being discharged into the Bay of Bengal at river distance 461.00 km.
  • The basin area of river Brahmani in Odisha constitutes 57.63 % of the total basin area.
  • Major towns located on the bank of the Brahmani river are Rourkela, Angul, Talcher and Dhenkanal.

Major Towns located on the bank of Brahmani River

TownLocation
RourkelaOdisha
AngulOdisha
TalcherOdisha
DhenkanalOdisha

Brahmani River Basin

  • A large part of the catchment (almost 80%) lies above 100 m.
  • The upper parts of the basin virtually consist of series of plateaus at different levels of elevation.
  • The elevation of the whole north-eastern cap of the basin is generally between 600 – 700 m.
  • This western part of central Ranchi plateau is also commonly known as Pats and has few high-level hills reaching higher than 750 m.
  • The topography of this region is characterized by undulations and highly dissected.
  • It slopes down towards the southeast.
Brahmani river
Brahmani river

Now let’s learn about Baitarani River

Baitarani River

  • Origin: Gonasika hills of Keonjhar district
  • Major Tributaries: Deo, Salandi, Kanjhari, Musal, Arredi, Siri, Kukurkata, Gahira, Remal.
  • Baitarani River originates at an elevation of 900 m above mean sea level from Guptaganga hills.
  • in Gonasika of Keonjhar district.
  • The Baitarani river travels about 360 km to drain water in the Bay of Bengal.
  • The beginning portion of Baitarani acts as the boundary between Odisha and Jharkhand states.
  • It first flows in a north-easterly direction for about 80 km and then takes a southeasterly direction for the next about 170 km to reach Jajpur. Here the Baitarani river turns left to flow towards the east and enter the coastal plain or delta.
  • The river enters the plains at Anandpur and creates a deltaic zone below Akhuapada.
  • The Baitarani river traverses a total distance of 360 km in Odisha before joining the Dhamra river and finally falls into the Bay of Bengal.
  • Before draining into the Bay of Bengal, the Baitarani river flows in a northern direction for about 80 km and then takes an abrupt right turn near Champua and flows in a southeasterly direction and joins the deltaic area of the river Brahmani.
  • Many drainage lines are present, which allow the runoff to rush into the main river with greater force in a very short time.
  • Baitarani is a highly meandering river. In meandering channels, the flow is highly turbulent and forms eddy currents, leading to sudden overflow of the embankments causing inundation of surrounding areas.
  • There are heavy mining activities and practices of shifting cultivation in the upper catchment. Therefore, a large quantity of sediments is added to the river during monsoon seasons.
  • The most flood-affected blocks in the Baitarani basin are Anandapur, Dasarathpur, Korei, Bari, Jajpur, Binjharpur and Rajkanika.

Tributaries

  • The river has 65 tributaries, out of which 35 joins from the left side, and 30 joins from the right side.
  • Salandi, Kanjhari, Musal, Arredi, Siri, Kukurkata, Kusei, Gahira,  Budhi,  Ambajhara and Remal are few major tributaries of Baitarani river.

Baitarani basin

  • The Baitarani basin covers most of the area of Kendujhar, Bhadrak, Mayurbhanj and Balasore districts.
  • A significant portion of the Baitarani river basin (94.8%) lies within the state of Odisha, while a small patch of upper reach (5.2%) lies in Jharkhand state.
  • The main urban centres in the Baitarani basin are Keonjhar, Joda, Jajpur, Vyasanagar, Bhadrak, Anandpur, Chandbali and Dhamnagar.
  • The Baitarani river basin mainly falls within the subtropical monsoon climate zone.
  • The average annual rainfall varies from 1250 mm to 1500 mm over the Baitarani basin.
  • About 80% of the average annual rainfall occurs during the four months of the southwest monsoon season (June to September).
  • The drainage pattern of the Baitarani river basin (central plateau) is dendrite type, and flash flood is a natural drainage pattern.
  • The major part of the basin is covered with agricultural land accounting for 52% of the total area, and water bodies cover 3% of the basin.
  • The upper catchment of the Baitarani river is full of hillocks.
baitarani river
baitarani river

Brahmani Baitarani river basin

  • The Brahmani and Baitarani river Basin extends over the states of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, and Odisha.
  • The Basin’s total area is 51,822 sq. Km. with a population of 16.7 million, 87% of which is rural. Agriculture plays a critical role in the economy and the livelihoods of the majority of the Basin population and is the primary sector for employment.
  • The Basin’s total area is 51,822 sq. km. with a maximum length and width of 403 km and 193 km.
  • The Brahmani sub-Basin covers 39,0332 sq. km, and the Baitarani sub-Basin extends over 12,789 sq. km.
  • The Basin drains into the Bay of Bengal.
  • The Basin covers small parts of the two districts within Chhattisgarh, seven districts partly within Jharkhand, and twelve districts either entirely or partly within Odisha.
  • Agricultural land covers 52% of the total area of the Basin.
  • Agriculture is the primary occupation and principal economic activity of the people in the Basin.
  • Of the three states covering the Basin, Jharkhand and Odisha constitute about 98% of the Basin area. At the state level, agriculture is the mainstay for 80% of the rural population in Jharkhand.
  • Agriculture is the primary employment and income-generating activity.
  • The agricultural economy of the Jharkhand state is characterised by dependence on nature, low investment, low productivity, mono-cropping with rice as the dominant crop, limited irrigation facilities and small and marginal holdings.
  • Agriculture is highly dominated by rainfed agriculture; only 8% of the total cultivated area is irrigated.
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UCN Team
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One comment

  1. Thank You so much Ma’am, maps quality is great and it is making me more interested in mapping.

    Again thank u so much for proving everything on one place with unambiguity

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