Son River

Topic: Rivers

Why in the news?

• Seven children of a tribal family drowned while bathing in Son River in Rohtas district.

The bodies of five children have been fished out by the local divers and a search had been carried out for the others. 

• The state disaster response force (SDRF) has dispatched a team to the area. 

Source: Hindustan Times 

About Son River:

• It is a principal southern tributary of the Ganga River after the Yamuna River. 
• Course:
  • It originates in the Amarkantak highlands in Madhya Pradesh, in the east direction of the origin of the Narmada River.
  • It then flows in the north-northwest direction through Madhya Pradesh before turning in the east direction where it meets the Kaimur range.
  • It starts flowing in the parallel direction of the Kaimur range in the east-northeast direction through Uttar Pradesh and Bihar and joins the Ganga River just above Patna, the capital of Bihar.
• Its total length is 784 km.
• It is a wide and shallow river and forms pools of water in the remaining parts of the river.
• The floodplain of the river is narrow and is only 3 to 5 kilometers wide. 
• The river’s flow is seasonal. 
• The Sone valley is geologically almost a continuation of that of the Narmada River to the southwest. 
  • It is largely forested and sparsely populated.
  • It is bordered by Kaimur Range to the north & Chota Nagpur plateau to the south. 
• Its tributaries are the Rihand, Koel, Gopad Kanhar rivers.
• Dehri is the major town situated on this river.