Mahanadi River

 🌊Mahanadi River

✅The Mahanadi basin extends over states of Chhattisgarh and Odisha and comparatively smaller portions of Jharkhand, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, draining an area of 1.4 lakh Sq.km.

✅It is bounded by the Central India hills on the north, by the Eastern Ghats on the south and east and by the Maikala range on the west.

✅The Mahanadi (“Great River”) follows a total course of 560 miles (900 km).

✅It has its source in the northern foothills of Dandakaranya in Raipur District of Chhattisgarh at an elevation of 442 m.

✅The Mahanadi is one of the major rivers of the peninsular rivers, in water potential and flood producing capacity, it ranks second to the Godavari.

✅Other small streams between the Mahanadi and the Rushikulya draining directly into the Chilka Lake also forms the part of the basin.

✅The major part of basin is covered with agricultural land accounting to 54.27% of the total area.

✅It is one of the most-active silt-depositing streams in the Indian subcontinent.

✅After receiving the Seonath River, it turns east and enters Odisha state.

✅At Sambalpur the Hirakud Dam (one of the largest dams in India) on the river has formed a man-made lake 35 miles (55 km) long.

✅It enters the Odisha plains near Cuttack and enters the Bay of Bengal at False Point by several channels.

✅Puri, at one of its mouths, is a famous pilgrimage site.