Multipurpose Projects and Dams
India has over 5,000 large dams (third in the world in the number of large dams). Nehru called dams "the temples of modern India".
Important projects
| Project / dam | River | State | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bhakra-Nangal | Sutlej | Himachal-Punjab | Gobind Sagar; tallest straight gravity dam (~226 m) |
| Tehri | Bhagirathi | Uttarakhand | ~260 m: tallest dam in India; Tehri lake |
| Hirakud | Mahanadi | Odisha | One of the longest earthen dams (~25 km with dykes) |
| Nagarjuna Sagar | Krishna | Telangana-AP | Largest masonry dam among the world's largest; Srisailam upstream |
| Sardar Sarovar | Narmada | Gujarat | Gravity dam ~163 m height; Statue of Unity near it |
| Rihand (Govind Ballabh Pant Sagar) | Rihand | UP | Largest reservoir by volume in India (by area) |
| Tungabhadra | Tungabhadra | Karnataka-AP | |
| Koyna | Koyna | Maharashtra | Earthquake 1967 near the dam |
| Mettur (Stanley) | Kaveri | Tamil Nadu | |
| Krishna Raja Sagar | Kaveri | Karnataka | |
| Idukki | Periyar | Kerala | Arch dam; Mullaperiyar nearby |
| Maithon, Panchet, Tilaiya | Damodar | Jharkhand-WB | DVC, first multipurpose project (1948) |
| Ukai | Tapi | Gujarat | |
| Gandhi Sagar, Rana Pratap Sagar | Chambal | MP-Rajasthan | |
| Pong | Beas | Himachal | Ramsar |
| Salal, Baglihar, Dulhasti, Kishanganga | Chenab, Kishanganga | J&K | Run-of-river hydropower |
| Subansiri Lower, Teesta, Siang Upper | Subansiri, Teesta, Siang | Arunachal / Sikkim | Northeast hydropower |
Canals
- Indira Gandhi Canal, Sirhind Canal, Upper Ganga Canal (Haridwar, 1854), Sharda canal, Sone canals, Kakatiya.
- Irrigation types: canals (north), tanks (south), tube wells (UP, Punjab).
Keep practising
Notes are only half the work. Test yourself with questions and discuss doubts with other aspirants.
Prepared for exam revision from NCERT, standard geography textbooks, the Census of India 2011, the India State of Forest Report, IMD, Ministry of Agriculture and other official sources. Maps are schematic teaching maps, not Survey of India maps, and zone boundaries are approximate. Figures such as production, capacity, counts of parks and ports, and census status change, so check the latest official source before relying on them. Found a mistake? Tell us.