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Brief Description of the Basin

·       The Krishna is the second largest eastward draining interstate river in Peninsular India.

·        It rises in the Mahadev range of the Western Ghats at an altitude of 1,337 m near Mahabaleshwar in Maharashtra State, about 64 km from the Arabian Sea.

·        It flows for a distance of 305 km in Maharashtra, 483 km in Karnataka and 612 km in Andhra Pradesh before finally out falling into the Bay of Bengal.

·        The length of the river is about 1,400 km

·        Krishna basin lies between latitudes 13º 07’ N and 19º 20’ N and longitudes 73º 22’ E and 81º 10’ E.

·        On the north, the basin is bounded by the range separating it from the Godavari basin, on the south and east by the Eastern Ghats and on the west by the Western Ghats.

·          Drainage area of the basin is 258,948 km2 

Drainage area of the Basin (in Km2)

Statewise Drainage Area (in Km2)

Name of State

Drainage area

Maharashtra

69,425

Karnataka

113,271

Andhra Pradesh

76,252

Total Drainage Area of Krishna Basin (in Km2)

258,948

Geology of the Basin

The geology of the Krishna basin is dominated in the northwest by the Deccan Traps, in the central part by unclassified crystallines, and in the east by the Cuddapah Group. The Dharwars (southwest central) and the Vindhian (east central) form a significant part of the outcrops within the unclassified crystallines. Krishna delta is predominantly formed by Pleistocene to recent material.

Water Potential of the Basin

Surface Water potential

78.1 km3

Ground Water potential

26.41 km3

Hydropower Potential

Hydropower Station

(Installed capacity 50MW and above)

Nagarjunsagar

815

Srisailam

770

Nagarjunsagar RC

91

Nagarjunsagar CH

61

Srisailam LB

900

Water Utilization

Surface Water Utilization

Drinking  purposes

 

Irrigation purposes

 

Ground Water Utilization

Drinking purposes

 

Irrigation purposes

 

Tributaries with drainage area in sq. km.

Name of the Tributary

Drainage area (Km2)

Koyna

4,890

Panchganga

2,575

Dudhganga

2,350

Ghataprabha

8,829

Malaprabha

11,549

Bhima

70,614

Tungabhadra

71,417

Dindl

3,490

Peddavagu

2,343

Halia

3,780

Musi

11,212

Major Projects

Upper Krishna Project Stage – 1,Upper Krishna Project Stage – 2, Srisailam Dam, Pulichintala Project, Nagarjunasagar Project, Ghatprabha Dam, Tungabhadra Project, Vanivilas Sagar Project, Bennihora Project, Bhadha Reservoir Project, Bhima Irrigation Project, Hipparagi Barrage, Malprabha Project, Upper Tunga Project,  Koyna dam, Markendaya Project, Singatalur Lift Irrigation, Krishna Irrigation Project, Osmansagar Reservoir and Prakasam barrage

Water Quality of the Basin

Based on the systematic sampling of river water at many locations in the basin, its suitability for various purposes is determined by CPCB and as per the results, the quality is not as per the desired class and BOD remains the most critical parameter. At some places, DO and total coliform are also causing problem.

Problems in the Basin

The Krishna basin particularly in east coast faces periodically flood problems in the wake of cyclonic storms.

Mythology

Krishna is a mighty east flowing river of peninsular India. It is the same river as Krsnavena in the Puranas or Krsnaveni in the Yoginitantra. It is also known as Kanhapenna in Jatakas and Kanhapena in the Hathigumpha inscription of Kharavela. The word Krishna also indicates dark color