Rivers of Bangladesh

Atrai River: The Atrai River flows in West Bengal (India) and northern parts of Bangladesh. In ancient times the river was called Atrei and finds a mention in the Mahabharata. It is linked with Karatoya River. It originates in West Bengal and then after flowing through Dinajpur District of Bangladesh, it enters India again. It passes through Kumarganj and Balurghat community development blocks in Dakshin Dinajpur District.The river then renters Bangladesh. It splits into two rivers - the Gabura and the Kankra in Dinajpur district. It crosses the Barind Tract and flows into Chalan Beel. The river serves as a perennial source of fishing, even though it is often the cause of flooding in many areas during monsoons. Total length of this river is approximately 390 km. Maximum depth of river is 30 m.                                                            Bangali River: The Bangali River is one of the main rivers in the northern part of Bangladesh. As of 2007, the river is in the news because of the possibility that it might merge with the Jamuna River, which could lead to major changes in the geography of the region.

Balu River: The Balu River, located in Bangladesh, is a tributary of the Shitalakshya River. It passes through the wetlands of Beel Belai and Dhaka before its junction with the Shitalakshya at Demra.

Baral River: The Baral River is one of the offshoots of the Ganges, starts its journey at Charghat Upazila of  Rajshahi District of Bangladesh. The Baral flows through Natore and Pabna meets with the Gumani at the east of  Bangura and finally meets with the Hurasagar river after joining with the Karatoya south of  Shahjadpur Upazaila. The river is approximately 147 kilometers long, and 120 m wide and 6.1 m deep on average.

Biskhali River: The Biskhali is a river of Bangladesh. The River Flows through Barguna District. On November 20, 2005, a navy patrol boat detained a trawler on the river for carrying smuggled goods worth almost Tk 20 crore.

Brahmaputra River: The Brahmaputra,  also called Tsangpo-Brahmaputra, is a trans-boundary river and one of the major rivers of Asia. From its origin in southwestern Tibet as the  Yarlung Tsangpo River,  it flows across southern Tibet to break through the Himalayas in great gorges and into Arunachal Pradesh (India) where it is known as  Dihang. It flows southwest through the Assam Valley as Brahmaputra and south through Bangladesh as the Jamuna.There it merges with the Ganges to form a vast delta, the Sunderbans. About 2,900 km long, the river is an important source for irrigation and transportation. Its upper course was long unknown, and its identity with the Yarlung Tsangpo was only established by exploration in 1884-86. This river is often called Tsangpo-Brahmaputra river. The average depth of river is 38 m and maximum depth is 120 m.

Buriganga River: The Buriganga River distant past, a course of the Ganges river used to reach the Bay of Bengal through the  Dhaleshwari river. This course gradually shifted and ultimately lost its link with the main channel of the Ganges and was renamed as the  Buriganga. It is said that the water levels during high and low tides in this river astonished the Mughals. The water tables even is very astonishing due to pollution of polythenes deposited beneath water. The materials from breaking of buildings of the river banks also add hazardous substances in the river. The course of the Padma has changed considerably during the period 1600 to 2000 AD. It is difficult to trace accurately the various channels through which it has flowed. The probability is that it flowed past Rampur Boalia, through Chalan Beel, the Dhaleshwari and Buriganga rivers, past Dhaka into the  Meghna estuary. In the 18th century, the lower course of the river flowed further south. About the middle of the 19th century the main volume of the channel flowed through this southern channel which came to be known as Kirtinasa. Gradually the Padma adopted its present course.

Dhaleshwari River: The Dhaleshwari River is a 160-km-long distributary of the Jamuna River in central Bangladesh. It starts off the Jamuna near the northwestern tip of Tangail District. After that it divides into two branches: the north branch retains the name Dhaleshwari and merges with the other branch, the Kaliganga River at the southern part of Manikganj District. Finally the merged flow meets the Shitalakshya River near  Narayanganj District. This combined flow goes southwards to merge into the Meghna River. Dhaleshwari River Average depth is 37 m and maximum depth is 81 m.

Dhepa River: The Dhepa is a small river in northern Bangladesh.  The river originates from the Atrai river in Mohanpur and falls into the  Punarbhaba.The length of this river is 40 km.

Feni River: The Feni River is a river in the Indian state of Tripura and southeastern Bangladesh. It is a tuans-boundary river with an on-going dispute.

Gorai-Madhumati River: The Gorai-Madhumati River is one of the longest rivers in Bangladesh and a distributary of the Ganges.

Halda River: The Halda RiverBangladesh. It originates at the Badnatali Hill Ranges in Ramgarh Upazila in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, flows through Fatikchhari Upazila, Hathazari Upazila, Raozan Upazila and Chittagong Kotwli Thana, and falls into the Karnaphuli River. 81 km long river has a very turbulent tributary, the Dhurung River, which joins Purba Dhalai about 48.25 km downstream. The river is navigable by big boats 29 km into it and by small boats 16-24 km further. The Halda river is also famous for breeding pure Indian carp. This is the only pure Indian carp breeding field of Bangladesh, perhaps in South Asia.

Jaldhaka River: The Jaldhaka River is a trans-boundary river with a length of 192 kilometres that originates in southeastern  Sikkim in the eastern  Himalayas and flows through Bhutan and the Darjeelin, Jalpaiguri and Cooch Behar districts of West Bengal, India. At that point the river enters Bangladesh through the Lalmonirhat District and then joins with the Dharla River until the  Dharla Debouches into the Brahmaputra River Brinear the Kurigram District. Due to the river's wandering over several international borders, only a small length of the river lies within Bangladesh.

Jamuna River: The Jamuna River is 3 major Rivers in Bangladesh.

Karnaphuli River: The Karnafuli is a 667 metres wide river in the south-eastern part of Bangladesh. Originating from the Lushai hills in Mizoram, India, it flows 270 km southwest through Chittagong Hill Tracts and Chittagong into the Bay of Bengal. A large hydroelectric power plant using Karnaphuli river was built in the Kaptai region during the 1960s. The mouth of the river hosts Chittagong sea port, the main port of Bangladesh.                                                                                 Kopothakho River: Bhairab River at Chaugacha, Jessore. Outfall: Kholpatua River at Koyra, Khulna. River Type: Tidal river Length: 180 Km Average Width: 150 m. Depth: 3.5 to 5.0 m.

Kushiyara River: The Kushiyara River is one of the many rivers in Bangladesh that crosses international boundaries. It originates in the northern hill country of Assam, India  and runs along the border of the Indian states of Nagaland and Manipur before entering Bangladesh. The total length of the Kushiyara is about 161 km. The average width of the river is 253 metres and in the rainy season the mean depth of the Kushiyara reaches up to 10 m the maximum depth of river is 12 m. The river carries a huge amount of water as well as sediments from Karemganj in Assam and the hilly areas of Hill Tripura. The highest and lowest discharges have been measured at Sherpur amounting to 3,700 cubic metres per second and 33 cubic metres per second respectively.

Khowai River:  Khowai River originates from the eastern part of the Atharamura Hills of Hill Tripura In India. Flowing west and northward, the Khowai enters Bangladesh at Balla in Sylhet district. The river further flows beside the east of Habiganj town and debouches into the Meghna near the mouth of the Kalni at Nabiganj.

Karotoa River: The Karotoa River is a river of Bangladesh. The depth of river is approximately 1.8 m, in origin of Mahasthangarh, Bogra.

Mahananda River: The Mahananda originates in the Himalayas: Mahaldiram Hill near Chimli, east of Kurseong  in Darjeeling district at an elevation of 2,100 metres It flows through Mahananda Wildlife Sanctuary and descends to the plains near Siliguri. It touches Jalpaiguri district. It enters Bangladesh near Tentulia in  Panchagarh District, flows for 3 kilometres after Tentulia and returns to India. After flowing through Uttar Dinajpur district in West Bengal and  Kishanganj district in Bihar, it enters Malda district in West Bengal. The Mahananda divides the district into two regions the eastern region, consisting mainly of old alluvial and relatively infertile soil is commonly known as Barind, and the western region, which is further subdivided by the river Kalindri into two areas, the northern area is known as Tal. It is low lying and vulnerable to inundation during rainy season; the southern area consists of very fertile land and is thickly populated, being commonly known as Diara.It joins the Ganges at Godagiri in Nawabganj district in Bangladesh. The total length of the Mahananda is 220 m out of which 201 m are in India and 22 m are in Bangladesh. Manu River, Tripura The Manu River rises in the mountains of Tripura (India). After its initial rapid passage through mountainous terrain it slows and meanders during its course, which includes the Sylhet plains. It joins the Kushiyara River at Manumukh in the Bangladeshi district of Maulvi Bazar.

Meghna River: The Meghna River is an important river in Bangladesh, one of the three that forms the Ganges Delta, the largest on earth fanning out to the Bay of Bengal. Being a part of the Surma-Meghna River System, Meghna is formed inside Bangladesh by the joining of different rivers originaing from the hilly regions of eastern India. The river meets Padma  River in Chandpur District.The river ultimately flows into the Bay of Bengal in Bhola District. The Meghna is the widest river among those that flow completely inside the boundaries of Bangladesh. At one point near Bhola, Meghna is 12 km wide. In its lower reaches this river follows almost a straight line in its path. Despite its very calm and quiet look, this river is the cause of many deaths every year. Several ferry sinkings in the past have killed hundreds, like the MV Salahuddin and the MV Nasrin. Near Chandpur it is very dangerous.The river's average depth is 308 m and maximum depth is 490 m. In the origin of Hatiya and Bhola, the deepest point is the Meghna River Creek, it reaches 609 m.

Muhuri River: Muhuri River one of the trans-boundary rivers of  Bangladesh. The river takes its rise on the Lushai hills of Tripura in India and enters Bangladesh through Parshuram upazila of Feni district after flowing over the hilly regions of India. As such the river is wild in nature and often causes flash floods. At some places it demarcates the boundary between India and Bangladesh and falls into the Bay of Bengal after dividing the Feni and the Chittagong district.The Muhuri is not wide enough and it is only 150 to 200 metres wide. But the width increases towards the sea. The depth of the river is also very little and people can cross it on foot during the lean period. Close to the sea, the river is under tidal influence.

Naf River: Naf River is a river marking the border of Bangladesh and Myanmar. It is an elongated estuary in the extreme southeast of Cox's Bazar district dividing the district from Arakn, Myanmar. It rises in the Arakan hills on the southeastern borders of the district and flows into the Bay of Bengal. Its width varies from 1.61 km to 3.22 km. The river is influenced by tide. Sittwe  in Myanmar is on the eastern bank and Teknaf  upazila of Cox' Bazar district is on the western bank of the river.The Naf River's average depth is 39 m and maximum depth is 120 m.

Padma River: The Padma is a major trans-boundary river in Bangladesh. It is the main distributary of the Ganges, which originates in the Himalaya. The Padma enters Bangladesh from India near Chapai Nababganj. It meets the  Jamuna, near Aricha and retains its name, but finally meets with the Meghna, near Chandpur and adopts the name 'Meghna' before flowing into the Bay of Bengal. Rajshahi, a major city in western Bangladesh, is situated on the north bank of the Padma. Its maximum depth is 479 m and average depth is 295 m.

Punarbhaba River: The Punarbhaba River is a river of Bangladesh and West Bengal in India, of total length about 160 km and a width of 3–8 km. It originates from the lowlands of Thakurgaon District of Bangladesh. The river's upper part is a few kilometres west of Atrai. Dinajpur district town of Bangladesh is situated on the east bank of the river. It flows through Gangarampur and Tapan community development blocks of Dakshin Dinajpur district of West Bengal. After flowing to the south, this river meets with the Dhepa River.

Pasur River: The Pasur River is a river in southwestern Bangladesh and a tributary of the Ganges.

Shitalakshya River: Shitalakshya River is a distributary of the Brahmaputra. In its initial stages it flows in a southwest direction and then east of the city of Narayanganj  in central Bangladesh until it merges with the Dhaleswari near Kalagachhiya. A portion of its upper course is known as Banar River. The river is about 110 km long and at it widest, near Narayangani, it is 300 meters in width. Its highest discharge has been measured at 2,600 cu ft/s at Demra. It remains navigable year round. The river flows through Ghazipurforming its border with Narsingsi  for some distance and then through Narayanganj. The river's maximum depth is 21 m and average depth is 10 m.

Surma River: The Surma River is a major river in Bangladesh, part of the Surma-Meghna River Sysrtm. It starts when the Barak River from northeast India divides at the Bangladesh border into the Surma and the Kushiyara rivers. It ends in Kishoreganj District, above Bhairab Bazar, where the two rivers rejoin to form the Meghna River. The waters from the river ultimately flow into the Bay of Bengal. The average depth of river is 86 m and maximum depth is 170 m.

Teesta River: River Teesta is said to be the lifeline of the Indian state of Sikkim, flowing for almost the entire length of the state and carving out verdant Himalayan temperate and tropical river valleys. The emerald-coloured river then forms the border between Sikkim and West Bengal before joining the Brahmaputra as a tributary in Bangladesh. The total length of the river is 315 kilometres 196 m.

Titas River: Titas River is a trans-boundary river of south-eastern Bangladesh. It originates in the state of Tripura in India where it is known as Haora River in Bengali and Saidra in the local Kokborok language. Flowing near Agartala, (India), it enters Bangladesh through Akhaura Upazila in the Brahmanbaria District of Bangladesh, then merges with the Meghna River to the south near Ashuganj. The length of the river is about 98 km. There is another river of the same name which starts as a distributary of the Meghna and flows back into it.

Turag River: The Turag River is the upper tributary  of the Buriganga, a major river in Bangladesh. The Turag originates from the Bangshi River, the latter an important tributary of the Dhaleshwari River, flows through Gazipur and joins the Buriganga at Mirpur in Dhaka District. It is navigable by boat all year round.