Alaknanda River

The Alaknanda is a Himalayan river in the Indian state of Uttarakhand and one of the two headstreams of the Ganges, the major river of Northern India and the holy river of Hinduism. In hydrology, the Alaknanda is considered the source stream of the Ganges on account of its greater length and discharge;[1] however, in Hindu mythology and culture, the other headstream, the Bhagirathi, is considered the source stream.

The Alaknanda is considered to rise at the confluence and foot of the Satopanth and Bhagirath Kharak glaciers in Uttarakhand[2][3] and meet the Sarasvati River tributary at Mana, India, 21 km from Tibet. Three km below Mana the Alaknanda flows past the Hindu pilgrimage centre of Badrinath.

The origin of Alaknanda River is of special interest to the tourists who visit the important pilgrimages in Uttarakhand. The Ganges as Alaknanda rises in the southern Himalayas on the Indian side of the Tibet border. On the Satopanth Glacier 6 km up from Alaknanda’s origin at its snout, the triangular Lake Satopanth is found at a height of 4350 m and it is named after the Hindu trinity Lord Brahma, Lord Vishnu, Lord Shiva.

The five main tributaries joining with Alaknanda in order includes Dhauliganga, Nandakini, Pindar, Mandakini and Bhagirathi all rising in the northern mountainous regions of Uttarakhand. After the last tributary merging at Devprayag the river is known as the Ganges. The Alaknanda contributes a significantly larger portion to the flow of the Ganges than the Bhagirathi.