The Ganges River is over 2,500 km long and flows through several countries including China, India, Nepal, and Bangladesh. It is considered sacred in Hinduism and people bathe in it to wash away sins. However, pollution is a major problem as many cities draw drinking water from the river and untreated waste is dumped into it. The Ganges is important for irrigation, agriculture, fishing, and generating electricity, but efforts are needed to control pollution to protect the hundreds of millions who depend on the river.

1. Social Science
Class- 9th

2. THE
GANGA

3. The Ganges
Length : Over 2500 km
Drainage : Dendritic pattern
Ambala : Water divide between
Indus and Ganga
Length of plains: 1800 km
Fall in slope : Hardly 300 meters,
i.e.one meter for every
6 km therefore ,the river
develops large meanders

4. The Ganga River System

5. The Ganges river is one of
the largest and by far the
most important rivers in India.
She has been a symbol of
India’s age long culture and
civilization, ever changing,
ever flowing, and yet ever the
same Ganga.

6. The river Ganges is officially
and popularly known by it’s
hindu name,Ganga. The
Ganges is 1560 miles long
and flows through China,
India, Nepal and Bangladesh.
The river flows through 29
cities and about 48 towns.

7. Hindus, who constitute the
vast majority of India's
population, consider the
Ganges a sacred river:
Ganga (or Ganges) is the
daughter of the mountain
god, Himavan or Himalaya.

8. Every day people bathe in
the sacred water believing
that it will wash away their
sins. It is believed that even a
few drops on their tongue will
clean their bodies. To bathe
in the Ganga is a lifelong
ambition for Hindus.

9. It is believed that any water
that mixes with the smallest
amount of Ganges river
becomes holy with healing
powers. Hindus also cast the
ashes of their dead in the
river in the belief that this will
guide the souls of the
deceased to paradise.

10. The Ganges has been used
for irrigation since ancient
times, the use of irrigation
canals has increased the
production of cash crops like
sugarcane, cotton and
oilseeds.

11. Floods of the Ganges have
enriched the soil. This makes
the Ganges Valley a great
agricultural region in India.
Fishing also is an important
use of the Ganges. The
Ganges is also a burial
ground for the dead.
Floods of the Ganges have
enriched the soil. This makes the
Ganges Valley a great agricultural
region in India.

12. Drinking- Many cities get their
drinking water from the
Ganges, which is a large
problem because the water is
very polluted in some parts of
the Ganges.

13. Energy-Only 20% of the
estimated capacity of dams
has been developed. At the
upper part of the Ganges
River, electricity is generated
at the waterfalls of the
Ganges River.

14. Gangotri glacier

15. Gnagotri glacier

16. Source of Alaknanda river

17. The five river confluences of
Alakananda are Vishnu Prayag,
Nandaprayag, Karnaprayag,
Rudraprayag and Devaprayag… All
five along the path of the
Alakananda river, that goes on
assimilating other rivers… Till it
reaches Devaprayag, where
Alakandanda meets Bhagirathi and
thereon, is known as Ganga.

18. The confluence of Alaknanda and Mandakini rivers. karnaprayag

19. Alaknanda River

20. Alakananda river
Bagirathi river
Devaprayag the confluence
of the two rivers

21. The headwaters of the
Ganga called the ‘Bhagirathi’
is fed by the Gangotri Glacier
and joined by the Alaknanda
at Devaprayag in
Uttaranchal. At Haridwar the
Ganga emerges from the
mountains on to the plains.

22. The Ganga is joined by many
tributaries from the
Himalayas, a few of them
being major rivers
such as the Yamuna, the
Ghaghara, the Ghandak and
the Kosi. The river Yamuna
rises from the Yamunotri
Glacier in the Himalayas.

23. Ganga Yamuna Sangam

24. The River Ganga
Pollution

25. “ Environmentalists say
the river supports over
400 million people, and
if the unabated pollution
is not controlled, it will
be the end of communities
living along the banks.”

26. “Let each one of us be
responsible and ensure
we are not contributors
to pollution of our
environment.”