River · India
Narmada
The Narmada is the longest river in India that flows west. It rises on the Amarkantak Plateau and runs through a long valley between two mountain ranges to the Arabian Sea.
Picture credit: Ssriram mt (Public domain) · Wikimedia Commons
Where is Narmada?
The river starts here: Narmada Kund on the Amarkantak Plateau, Madhya Pradesh.
It ends in the Gulf of Khambhat (Arabian Sea) near Bharuch, Gujarat.
Countries on the river: India.
The story behind it
The Narmada begins at Narmada Kund, high on the Amarkantak Plateau in central India. From there it flows west through a rift valley, a long sunken valley between two mountain ranges, the Vindhya and the Satpura. Near the city of Jabalpur, the water crashes down the Dhuandhar Falls, whose spray looks like smoke. Just below, the river has carved a gorge about 8 kilometres long between high marble cliffs, the Marble Rocks. Visitors glide through it by boat, even by moonlight. Wild bees once built their hives on these cliffs, and they inspired a story by Rudyard Kipling. Further west, the huge Sardar Sarovar Dam holds back the river. Facing it, on an island in the Narmada, stands the Statue of Unity. At 182 metres, it is the tallest statue in the world. For Hindus, the Narmada is a holy river, and pilgrims honour it with a long walk called a parikrama.
Questions children ask
How long is the Narmada?
The Narmada is about 1 312 kilometres long. It is the fifth-longest river in India and the longest one that flows west.
What are the Marble Rocks?
Near Jabalpur, the Narmada flows through a gorge about 8 kilometres long with high marble cliffs. Visitors can explore it by boat, and moonlight trips are especially popular.
What is the Statue of Unity?
It is a giant statue of the Indian leader Sardar Patel on an island in the Narmada, facing the Sardar Sarovar Dam. At 182 metres, it is the tallest statue in the world.
Where these numbers come from
Every figure on this page was checked against public reference sources before publication. Where sources genuinely disagree, the text says so.
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