Chenab River
Template:Geobox The Chenab River (Hindi: चेनाब cenab; Urdu: چناب), known traditionally as the Chandrabhaga River (Sanskrit: चंद्रभाग),[1] is a major river that flows in India and Pakistan, and is one of the 5 major rivers of the Punjab region. It forms in the upper Himalayas in the Lahaul and Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh state, India, and flows through the Kishtwar district of Jammu region in Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir into the plains of the Punjab, Pakistan, before flowing into the Indus River near the city of Uch Sharif. The waters of the Chenab were allocated to Pakistan under the terms of the Indus Waters Treaty.[2][3]
The river is formed by the confluence of two rivers, Chandra and Bhaga, at Tandi, 8 km southwest of Kyelang, in the Lahaul and Spiti district in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. The Bhaga river originates from Surya taal lake, which is situated a few kilometers east of the Bara-lacha la pass in the in Himachal Pradesh. The Chandra river originates from glaciers east of the same pass.[4] This pass also acts as a water-divide between these two rivers.[5] The Chandra river transvers 115 km (71 mi) before the confluence. The Bhaga river transverses through narrow gorges a distance of 60 km (37 mi) before the confluence at Tandi.[6]
Name
The Chenab river was called Asikni (Sanskrit: असिक्नी) in the Rigveda (VIII.20.25, X.75.5). The name meant that it was seen to have dark-coloured waters.[7][8] The term Krishana is also found in the Atharvaveda.[9] A later form of Askikni was Iskamati (Sanskrit: इस्कामति)[citation needed] and the Greek form was Ancient Greek: Ἀκεσίνης - Akesínes; Latinized to Acesines.[10][7][8]
In the Mahabharata, the common name of the river was Chandrabhaga (Sanskrit: चंद्रभाग) because the river is formed from the confluence of the Chandra and the Bhaga rivers.[9] This name was also known to the Ancient Greeks, who Hellenised it in various forms such as Sandrophagos, Sandabaga and Cantabra.[8] The similarity of Sandrophagos (Σανδροφάγος) to Androphagos (Ἀνδροφάγος), meaning cannibals, or to Alexandrophagos (Ἀλεξανδροφάγος), meaning those who would eat Alexander, likely caused the followers of Alexander to change the name to avoid the evil omen, the more so perhaps on account of the disaster which befell the Macedonian fleet at the turbulent junction of the river with the Hydaspes (modern Jhelum River).[10]
The simplification of Chandrabhaga to 'Chenab', with evident Persianate influence, probably occurred in early medieval times and is witnessed in Alberuni.[11]
History
The river was known to Indians in the Vedic period[12][13][14] In 325 BC, Alexander the Great allegedly founded the town of Alexandria on the Indus (present day Uch Sharif or Mithankot or Chacharan in Pakistan) at the confluence of the Indus and the combined stream of Punjab rivers (currently known as the Panjnad River).[15]
Dams
The river has rich power generation potential in India.[16]
- Salal Dam - 690 MW hydroelectric power project near Reasi
- Baglihar Dam - a hydroelectric power project near Batote in Doda district
- Dul Hasti Hydroelectric Plant - 390 MW run-of-the-river type power project in Kishtwar District
- Pakal Dul Dam - a proposed dam on a tributary Marusadar River in Kishtwar District
- Ratle Hydroelectric Plant - an under construction power station of run-of-the-river type near Drabshalla in Kishtwar District
- Kiru Hydroelectric Power Project (624 MW proposed) located in Kishtwar district
- Kwar Hydroelectric Power Project (540 MW proposed) located in Kishtwar district
- Marala Headworks - located near Sialkot
- Khanki Headworks - located in Gujranwala District
- Trimmu Barrage - located in Jhang District
See also
References
- ^ Handa, O. C.; Omacanda Hāṇḍā (1994), Buddhist Art & Antiquities of Himachal Pradesh, Upto 8th Century A.D., Indus Publishing, pp. 126–, ISBN 978-81-85182-99-5
- ^ "River Chenab" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Indus Waters Treaty". The World Bank. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
- ^ Gosal, G.S. (2004). "Physical Geography of the Punjab" (PDF). Journal of Punjab Studies. 11 (1). Center for Sikh and Punjab Studies, University of California: 31. ISSN 0971-5223. Retrieved 6 August 2009.
- ^ R. K. Pant; N. R. Phadtare; L. S. Chamyal; Navin Juyal (June 2005). "Quaternary deposits in Ladakh and Karakoram Himalaya: A treasure trove of the palaeoclimate records" (PDF). Current Science. 88 (11): 1789–1798. Retrieved 6 August 2009.
{{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter|last-author-amp=ignored (|name-list-style=suggested) (help) - ^ Lahaul & Spiti
- ^ a b Kapoor, Subodh (2002), Encyclopaedia of Ancient Indian Geography, Cosmo Publications, p. 80, ISBN 978-81-7755-298-0
- ^ a b c Kaul, Antiquities of the Chenāb Valley in Jammu 2001, p. 1.
- ^ a b Kaul, Antiquities of the Chenāb Valley in Jammu 2001, p. 2.
- ^ a b
Smith, William, ed. (1854–1857). "Acesines". Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography. London: John Murray.
- ^ Kazmi, Hasan Askari (1995), The makers of medieval Muslim geography: Alberuni, Renaissance, p. 124
- ^ Yule, Henry; Burnell, Arthur Coke; Crooke, William. "Hobson-Jobson: A glossary of Anglo-Indian colloquial words & phrases and of kindred terms". p. 741.
- ^ https://www.britannica.com/place/Chenab-River, Chenab River on Encyclopædia Britannica, Retrieved 8 Dec 2016
- ^ Encyclopædia Britannica article on the Chenab
- ^ Alexandria (Uch)
- ^ "Harnessing gigantic hydro power potential of Indus, Jhelum and Chenab rivers in India". Retrieved 30 November 2017.
Bibliography
- Kaul, P. K. (2001), Antiquities of the Chenāb Valley in Jammu: Inscriptions-copper Plates, Sanads, Grants, Firmāns & Letters in Brāhmi-Shārdā-Tākri-Persian & Devnāgri Scripts, Eastern Book Linkers
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