Betwa River

The Betwa (Hindi: बेतवा, Sanskrit: वेत्रवती) is a river in Northern India, and a tributary of the Yamuna. It rises in the Vindhya Range (Raisen) just north of Hoshangabad in Madhya Pradesh and flows northeast through Madhya Pradesh and Orchha to Uttar Pradesh. Nearly half of its course, which is not navigable, runs over the Malwa Plateau. The confluence of the Betwa and the Yamuna rivers is in Hamirpur district in Uttar Pradesh, in the vicinity of Orchha.[1]

The Indian navy named one of its frigates INS Betwa in honour of the river.

In Sanskrit “Betwa” is Vetravati. This river is mentioned in the epic Mahabharata along with the Charmanwati river[citation needed]. Both are tributaries of Yamuna. Vetravati was also known as Shuktimati. The capital of Chedi Kingdom was on the banks of this river. The length of the river from its origin to its confluence with Yamuna is 590 kilometres (370 mi), out of which 232 kilometres (144 mi) lies in Madhya Pradesh and the balance of 358 kilometres (222 mi) in Uttar Pradesh. In accordance with an inter-state agreement between the states of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh in 1973, Betwa River Board (BRB) was constituted under the Betwa River Board Act, 1976. The Union Minister of Ministry of Water Resources the Chairman of the Board and the Union Minister of Power, Union Minister of State for Water Resources, Chief Ministers and Ministers in-charge of Finance, Irrigation and Power of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh are its Members.[3]

Some of the mythological saints also express their thoughts that the Maa Vetravati Betwa river is originated near the Kolar Dam area located at Bhopal.