Kaveri

Kaveri is mentioned in Sanskrit as a holy river in various Hindu religious texts including the Mahabharata and the Puranas. The name itself might have had different etymologies. As per Skanda Purana, the river arose after Ganesha took a form of a crow and toppled sage Agastya's kamandala. The river then took its name from the Tamil language words kā meaning "crow" and viri meaning "spread" literally translating to "spread by a crow". It might also mean a river with wide spread banks as viri can also be translated as wide spread. The etymology of the river might have also been derived from kāviri, the Sankethi word for "river" from the language spoken by the Sankethi people, who live along its waters. Cauvery is the anglicized version of the original name. It is known as Daksina gaṅgā meaning the "Ganges of the South" indicating its geographical location and its significance. It is also mentioned as Ardha gaṅgā meaning Half Ganga in Mahabharata and other literature, due to its purported mythology of having arisen from the Ganges. == Course ==

The river arises at Talakaveri in Kodagu district of Karnataka. The source of the river is located at an altitude of in the Brahmagiri Hills of the Western Ghats. After flowing for in Karnataka, the river flows for about along the Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border. The river traverses for about in Tamil Nadu for a total length of about . Tributaries The Kaveri River has 21 major tributaries. The largest tributary Hemavati, and Lakshmana Tirtha join the river at Krishna Raja Sagara. Kabini is another major contributor to the flow of Kaveri and joins the river in Karnataka. It meets with its second largest tributary Bhavani at Kooduthurai in Bhavani and two other tributaries Noyyal, and Amaravati join further down the stream in Tamil Nadu. Other tributaries of Kaveri include Shimsha, Arkavati, Sarabanga, and Thirumanimutharu. Discharge Source: == Geology and ecology ==

The Kaveri basin was formed in the Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous period during Gondwana breakup and opening of the Indian Ocean. Most of the basin is made up of Precambrian rocks and the two major rock types that are found are metamorphic and igneous rocks. The run-off from the river does not drain off quickly because of the shape of the river basin, which limits the occurrence of floods. It is a perennial river fed mostly by monsoons. Four distinct seasons occur in the basin with hot and cold seasons sandwiching the monsoon seasons. The river basin is fed by South-West monsoon in Karnataka, and North-East monsoon in Tamil Nadu. The population in the river basin, which was estimated to have reached 40 million in 2015, led to an increased per capita consumption of inorganic salts. When adequate salt export from the river basin is not taking place to the sea, the water quality would deteriorate beyond the permissible limits impeding its sustainable productivity and the ecosystem. The Kaveri basin is made up of two sub-zones, forest and agro-ecosystem. The basin has a variety of flora with major species including Terminalia arjuna, Tamarindus indica, Pongamia pinnata, Salix tetrasperma, Ficus benghalensis, Ficus religiosa, Eucalyptus torticornis, and Diospyros montana. There are many protected areas spread across the river basin including significant tiger and elephant habitats. The basin provides habitat to a range of animal species such as gaur, leopard, sloth bear, Bengal tiger, Indian elephant, Nilgiri tahr, grizzled giant squirrel, and various species of deer, wild boar and reptiles. The river also hosts a variety of avifauna including the painted stork (Mycteria leucocephala), spot-billed pelican (Pelecanus philippensis), and black-headed ibis (Threskiornis melanocephalus). It is also home to the mugger crocodile (Crocodylus palustris), smooth-coated otter (Lutrogale perspicillata), and hump-backed mahseer (Tor remadevii). == Riparian zone ==

formed by Mettur Dam, the largest dams on the river. The total watershed of the basin is and the riparian zone of the river consists of in Tamil Nadu, in Karnataka, in Kerala, and in the union territory of Puducherry. The river is also used for drinking water and hydroelectric power generation. The Grand Anicut was constructed by a Chola King in 2nd century CE. The Mettur Dam in Tamil Nadu was constructed in 1934 and the Stanley Reservoir formed by the dam has a capacity of 93.4 tmc ft. Krishna Raja Sagara in Karnataka is the second largest dam on the river and has a capacity of 49.5 tmc ft. Bhavanisagar Dam (32.8 tmc ft) on the Bhavani River in Tamil Nadu, Gorur dam (37.1 tmc ft) on the Hemavathi River, Kabini Dam (18.5 tmc ft) on the Kabini River, and Harangi Dam (9.5 tmc ft) on the Harangi River in Karnataka are major dams on the tributaries of Kaveri. The agreement was revised in 1924, with a validity of fifty years. After the expiry of the 1924 agreement in 1974, Karnataka demanded a renegotiation and its due share of water from the river while Tamil Nadu favored an extension of the agreement. After Indian Independence, article 262 of the Constitution of India provided powers to the Government of India to adjudicate on inter-state disputes on water sharing. The union government constituted the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT) on 2 June 1990, based on the order of the Supreme Court of India, to adjudicate the water dispute between the riparian states and territories in the river basin. The tribunal gave an interim award on 25 June 1991 that was based on its 10-year calculation of average inflow of water from Karnataka into Tamil Nadu. The CWDT announced its final verdict on 5 February 2007. According to its verdict, Tamil Nadu was awarded 419 tmcft of the Kaveri river waters while Karnataka got 270 tmcft, with Kerala and Puducherry getting 30 tmcft and 7 tmcft respectively. It also laid down the terms for monthly release of water from Karnataka to Tamil Nadu. After further disputes in 2012, and the intervention of the Supreme Court, the Indian Government notified the final award in the gazette on 20 February 2013. However, after further disputes in 2016, and further appeals by the concerned states, the Supreme Court ruled on 16 February 2018, that Karnataka will get 284.75 tmcft, Tamil Nadu will get 404.25 tmcft, Kerala will get 30 tmcft and Puducherry will get 7 tmcft of water from the river basin. An additional 10 tmcft was reserved for environmental protection and 4 tmcft was reserved for wastage into the sea. The court directed the government to form a Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) within six weeks and acting on the Supreme Court's direction, the central government constituted the CMWA in June 2018. == Religious significance ==

creating the Kaveri with Ganesha, at a Kovil in Johor Bahru, Malaysia In Hinduism, the river is considered one of seven holy rivers in India. The river is personified and worshiped as the river goddess Kaveri Amma. Kaveri is mentioned as both a river and a goddess in various Hindu texts such as the Mahabharata and the Puranas. The river is mentioned as one of the seven holy Gangas and bathing in the river is said to grant one's desired as per the Sivapurana. The Varaha Purana states that the river flows from the five great mountains and gives longevity to those who drink the waters of the river. The Skanda Purana narrates the various origins of the river. Shiva filled Agastya's bowl with Kaveri, who flowed as a river with the help of Ganesha. Another story narrates that during the Samudra Manthana, or churning of the Ocean of Milk, Mohini and Lopamudra retrieved the nectar of immortality for the gods. Afterwards, Brahma took care of Lopamudra as his daughter and later offered her to king Kavera, who renamed her as Kaveri. When Kaveri grew up she prayed to Brahma to transform her into a purifying river. It is generally observed once every 12 years, The key pilgrimage sites includes Srirangam and Thula Kattam at Mayiladuthurai near the mouth of the river. The festival is celebrated for 12 days, and includes ceremonial observations such as homam, yagnam, chanting of the Vedas, ritual feeding, and tharpanam accompanied by cultural activities such as music, dance, and spiritual speeches. == See also ==