Sabarmati River

Course

The Sabarmati River originates in the Aravalli Range in the Indian state of Rajasthan. The total length of the river is 371 km. After travelling 48 km in Rajasthan it flows into the Indian state of Gujarat where it is joined by a left bank tributary, Wakal, near the village Ghonpankhari. From there, the river continues southwest to Mhauri and meets a right bank tributary, the Sei River. Continuing its journey, it is joined by a left bank tributary, the Harnav River, before entering the Dharoi reservoir. After the Sabarmati passes the Dharoi dam it meets another left bank tributary, the Hathmati River. From there, the river flows past the city of Ahmedabad and is joined by a left bank tributary, the Vatrak River. The Sabarmati River continues to flow and drains into the Gulf of Khambhat, in the Arabian Sea.

Basin

The catchment area of the Sabarmati basin is 21674 km2 out of which 4124 km2 lies in Rajasthan State and the remaining 18550 km2 in Gujarat. The basin is located in a semi-arid zone with rainfall ranging from 450 to in different parts of the basin. The river traverses three geomorphic zones: rocky uplands, middle alluvial plains, and lower estuarine zone.

The major tributaries are the Watrak, Wakal, Hathmati, Harnav, and Sei rivers. Average annual water availability in the Sabarmati basin is 308 m3 per capita, which is significantly lower than the national average of 1545 m3 per capita.

The Sabarmati is a seasonal river whose flows are dominated by the monsoon, with little or no flows post-monsoon. An average flow of 33 m3 per second was measured at Ahmedabad during the period 1968–1979. Over the past century, the flood of August 1973 is considered to be the largest flood, when a flow of 14,150 m3 per second was measured at Dharoi.

Significance in Hinduism

In Rajasthan, it is believed that the Sabarmati River originated due to the penance of ascetic Kashyapa on Mount Abu. His penance had pleased Shiva and in return, Shiva gave ascetic Kashyapa the Ganges River. The Ganges River flowed from Shiva's hair onto Mount Abu and became the Sabarmati River. In another legend surrounding the origin of the river, Shiva brought the goddess Ganga to Gujarat and that caused the Sabarmati to come into being.

History

Rajashekhara's Kavya-mimamsa (10th century) calls the river Shvabhravati (IAST: Śvabhravatī). The 11th century text Shringara-manjari-katha calls it "Sambhramavati" (literally, "full of fickleness").

Jain acharya Buddhisagarsuri has written many poems about the Sabarmati River.

During India's independence struggle, Mahatma Gandhi established the Sabarmati Ashram as his home on the banks of this river.

In 2018, an assessment by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) named the Kheroj-Vautha stretch of the Sabarmati among the most polluted river stretches in India. Ahmedabad civic body's failure to build a sewage treatment plant in Motera resulted in further pollution of the river water.

Dams

There are several reservoirs on the Sabarmati and its tributaries. The Dharoi dam is located on the main river. The Hathmati, Harnav and Guhai dams are located on the tributaries meeting the main river upstream of Ahmedabad while Meshvo reservoir, Meshvo pick-ueir, Mazam and Watrak dams are located on tributaries meeting downstream. The Kalpasar is planned project in the Gulf of Khambhat.

In 2002, water from the Narmada river was released into the Sabarmati River through the Sardar Sarovar dam.

Economy

Sabarmati Riverfront

Main article: Sabarmati Riverfront

The Sabarmati Riverfront project is one of the most ambitious projects undertaken by the government to enrich the economy. As per the research conducted by couple of academics, the main concern of the riverfront project was to reduce river pollution, increase tourism, and prevent future floods. As of 2020, the second phase of the project has received in-principle approval. KPMG has listed the Sabarmati Riverfront project in its top 100 most innovative global infrastructure projects.

Gallery

File:Lithograph by Dutchman Philip Baldeus depicting Ahmedabad and Sabarmati river circa 1752.jpg|Lithograph by Dutchman Philip Baldeus depicting Ahmedabad and Sabarmati River circa 1752 File:Sabarmati River Ahmedabad India 1890.jpg|Sabarmati River in 1890 File:Watercarts Sabarmati River Ahmedabad 1890.jpg|Watercarts in Sabarmati near Ahmedabad in 1890s File:Harnav River.jpg|View of the Harnav, a tributary of the Sabarmati Image:Sabarmati river.jpg|Construction work going on near the river under the Sabarmati River Front Development Project Image:River-Sabarmati-1.jpg|River Sabarmati in Ahmedabad, Gujarat Image:Sabarmati River near Ambod.jpg|Sabarmati River near Ambod

References

References

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2. (2012). "Water Year Book 2011-12: Mahi, Sabarmati & Other West Flowing Rivers". Central Water Commission.
3. (2018). "The Indian rivers : scientific and socio-economic aspects". Springer Nature Singapore.
4. (2007). "Hydrology and water resources of India". Springer.
5. "Sabarmati River, India". National River Conservation Directorate.
6. (25 August 2014). "Palaeoflood record of high-magnitude events during historical time in the Sabarmati River, Gujarat". Current Science.
7. (2017). "Paleoenvironmental implications and drainage adjustment in the middle reaches of the Sabarmati river, Gujarat: Implications towards hydrological variability". Quaternary International.
8. (2005). "Water Resources Assessment of Sabarmati River Basin, India". International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage.
9. (2016). "Integrated Hydrological Data Book". Central Water Commission.
10. "Sabarmati Basin, Station: Ahmedabad". UNH/GRDC.
11. (2002). "Highest floods in India". IAHS.
12. Eck, Diana L.. (2012). "India : a sacred geography". Harmony.
13. (2 September 2002). "The sacrificial maiden river". [[The Times of India]].
14. Kalpalata Munshi. (1959). "Śṛṅgāramañjarī Kathā of Paramāra King Bhojadeva". Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan.
15. (2019-08-16). "पीएम मोदी ने जिन जैन मुनि का ज़िक्र किया वो कौन हैं". BBC News Hindi.
16. "Sabarmati Ashram History".
17. Jacob Koshy. (2018-09-17). "More river stretches are critically polluted: Central Pollution Control Board". The Hindu.
18. (2024-05-15). "Delay in Motera STP project turns river into toxic channel". The Times of India.
19. (2022-08-18). "Gujarat’s Dharoi dam water release: Lower promenades of Sabarmati riverfront closed till water recedes".
20. "Release of Narmada waters to Sabarmati brings hope of rich agricultural yields".
21. (2017-03-01). "Mehta, Vishwa & Bhatt, Bhasker. (2017). Waterfront Development: A Case Study of Sabarmati Riverfront.".
22. (2020-10-27). "Sabarmati Riverfront Phase 2 plan receives in-principle approval".
23. (2012-07-03). "Sabarmati riverfront among top 100 global projects".