Key Facts about Krishna River

About Krishna River:

• In terms of water inflows and river basins, Krishna is the fourth largest river after Ganga, Godavari, and Brahmaputra. 
• Course:
• It rises in western Maharashtra in the Western Ghats range near Mahabaleshwar, about 64 km from the Arabian Sea.
• It passes through Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana, and Andhra Pradeshand meets the Bay of Bengal at Hamasaladeevi in Andhra Pradesh, on the east coast.
• Total Length: 1300 km
• The Krishna River Basin extends over an area of about 258,948 sq. km, which is nearly 8 percent of the total geographical area of the country. 
• It is bounded by the Balaghat range on the north, by the Eastern Ghats on the south and the east, and by the Western Ghats on the west.
• Its principal tributaries joining from the right are the Ghatprabha, the Malprabha, and the Tungabhadra, whereas those joining from the left are the Bhima, the Musi, and the Munneru.

Q1: Where is the Prakasam Barrage?

Prakasam Barrage is a 1223.5 meter long modern regulator and Road Bridge built across the River Krishna and is located at the southern entrance of Vijayawada. The barrage was first built by Sir Arthur Cotton in 1855 and later reconstructed in the 1950s. This is one of the earliest major irrigation projects in Southern India. It was named after the first Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, Tanguturi Prakasam. The scheme irrigates nearly one million hectares of land, converting the Krishna delta into a rich granary in Andhra Pradesh. This barrage also supplies water to Buckingham canal which was constructed as an inland navigation canal initially but later used as an irrigation water supply canal.

Source: TH