Mandovi River view on cloudy day in winter, Goa, India

The Mahadayi/Mandovi River (''Mandovi'', pronounced ), also known as Mahadayi or Mhadei river, is described as the lifeline of the

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

n state of

Goa Goa () is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is located between the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north and Karnataka to the ...

. The Mandovi and the

Zuari The Zuari River ''Zuvari,'' pronounced ) is the largest river in the state of Goa, India. It is a tidal river which originates at Hemad-Barshem in the Western Ghats. The Zuari is also referred to as the Aghanashani in the interior regions. It fl ...

are the two primary rivers in the state of Goa. Mandovi joins with the Zuari at a common

creek A creek in North America and elsewhere, such as Australia, is a stream that is usually smaller than a river. In the British Isles it is a small tidal inlet. Creek may also refer to: People * Creek people, also known as Muscogee, Native Americans ...

at Cabo Aguada, forming the

Mormugao Mormugao is a seaport city situated in the eponymous Mormugao taluka (municipality) of the South Goa district, South district, in the Goa state, India. It has a deep natural harbour and remains Goa's chief port. Towards the end of the Indo-Po ...

harbour.

Panaji Panaji (; also known as Panjim) is the capital of the Indian state of Goa and the headquarters of North Goa district. Previously, it was the territorial capital of the former Portuguese India. It lies on the banks of the Mandovi river estuary ...

, the state capital and

Old Goa Old Goa ( Konkani: ; pt, Velha Goa, translation='Old Goa') is a historical site and city situated on the southern banks of the River Mandovi, within the Tiswadi ''taluka'' (''Ilhas'') of North Goa district, in the Indian state of Goa. The ci ...

, the former capital of Goa, are both situated on the left bank of the Mandovi.

River course

The river has a total length of ; in

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

, in Maharashtra and in Goa. It originates from a cluster of 30 springs at Bhimgad in the Western Ghats in the

Belagavi Belgaum (ISO: ''Bēḷagāma''; also Belgaon and officially known as Belagavi) is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka located in its northern part along the Western Ghats. It is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous Belagavi ...

district of Karnataka. The river has total 2,032 km² catchment area of which 1,580 km², 375 km² and 77 km² catchment area are in Goa, Karnataka and Maharashtra respectively. With its cerulean waters,

Dudhsagar Falls Dudhsagar Falls () is a four-tiered waterfall located on the Mandovi River in the Indian state of Goa. It is 60 km from Panaji by road and is located on the Belgavi–Vasco Da Gama rail route about 46 km east of Madgaon and 80 ...

and

Varapoha Falls Vajrapoha Falls (also Vajrapoya waterfalls), a waterfall in the Belgaum district of Karnataka in India, is situated about in the mountainous forest in south west direction from the village of Jamboti. Between the village of Gavali and Chapoli ...

, it is also known as the Gomati in a few places. The Mandovi enters Goa from the north via the Sattari Taluka and from

Uttara Kannada Uttara Kannada is a district in the Indian state of Karnataka. Uttara Kannada District is a major coastal district of Karnataka, and currently holding the title of the largest district in Karnataka. It is bordered by the state of Goa and Bela ...

District of Karnataka near the Castle Rock Rly. Stn. The Mandovi flows through

in Karnataka and

Cumbarjua Cumbarjua, is an island and town within the Mandovi River in Goa. It is situated to the east of Goa's capital Panjim at a distance of 20 kilometres. It is one of 6 major islands between the Mandovi and Zuari, he others being: * Ilhas de Goa, * ...

, Divar and Chorão in Goa, eventually pouring into the

Arabian Sea The Arabian Sea ( ar, اَلْبَحرْ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Bahr al-ˁArabī) is a region of the northern Indian Ocean bounded on the north by Pakistan, Iran and the Gulf of Oman, on the west by the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channel ...

. The tributaries of Mandovi or Mhadei include

Nerul River Nerul (Pronunciation: eɾuːɭ is an upmarket residential and commercial node in Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. Nerul is located in the Harbour Line, Trans-Harbour Lines and Nerul-Uran Line of Mumbai local train network where Kharghar a ...

St Inez Creek St Inez creek is a creek in Panjim, in the Indian state of Goa. The creek opens up into the Mandovi River. The creek is in length, with a surface area of with an average width of . The creek begins at the paddy fields at Altinho hill at Taleig ...

, Rio de Ourém,

Mapusa River Mapusa River (Rio de Mapuça) river is one of the main tributary of the River Mandovi in Goa, India. The river originates from the jungles of Dumacem and Amthane, meanders eastward and then southward before it drains itself in the Mandovi ri ...

, Valvanti River, Udnai River,

Dudhsagar River Dudhsagar Falls () is a four-tiered waterfall located on the Mandovi River in the Indian state of Goa. It is 60 km from Panaji by road and is located on the Belgavi–Vasco Da Gama rail route about 46 km east of Madgaon and 80 k ...

Ragada River ''Ragada'' () is a 2010 Indian Telugu-language action film directed by Veeru Potla and produced by D. Siva Prasad Reddy. It stars Nagarjuna, Anushka Shetty, and Priyamani in lead roles, with the music composed by S. Thaman. The film revolves ...

and Kotrachi Nadi. The

Cumbarjua Canal The Cumbarjua Canal is a distributary channel formed by the merger of the Mandovi and Zuari rivers in Goa, India. It's flow has led to the formation of river deltas, most prominent of them are - Ilhas de Goa, Cumbarjua and St Estevam. The shallow ...

, which links both rivers, has made the interiors of the Mandovi accessible to ships carrying

iron ore Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the fo ...

Iron ore Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the fo ...

is Goa's prime mineral and it is mined in the eastern hills. Three large freshwater isles —

Divar The island of Divar (formerly ''Piedade'') ( knn, Divaddi, pronounced ) (derived from the word ''Dipavati'' or 'small Island' in Konkani) lies in the Mandovi river in the Indian state of Goa. It is one of the of 6 major islands within the M ...

Chorão Alexandre Magno Abrão (9 April 1970 – 6 March 2013), known professionally as Chorão, was a Brazilian singer-songwriter, skateboarder, filmmaker, screenwriter and businessman. Best known for being a founding member and the vocalist/main lyri ...

and

Vanxim Vanxim or Capão is an island of Goa situated in the Ilhas region. One can reach here by taking a ferry from Divar. The colonial name for Vanxim was Capão. One may see a lot of houses with few villagers many of whom are fisher-folk in the area ...

are present in the Mandovi near the town of Old Goa. The island of Chorão is home to the Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary, named after the renowned ornithologist

Salim Ali Sálim Moizuddin Abdul Ali (12 November 1896 – 20 June 1987) was an Indian ornithologist and naturalist. Sometimes referred to as the "''Birdman of India''", Salim Ali was the first Indian to conduct systematic bird surveys across Indi ...

. A regular ferry transports the inhabitants between the isles and the mainland.

Bridges

Spanning across the Mandovi River near

Panjim Panaji (; also known as Panjim) is the capital of the Indian state of Goa and the headquarters of North Goa district. Previously, it was the territorial capital of the former Portuguese India. It lies on the banks of the Mandovi river estuary ...

are three parallel

Mandovi Bridge The Atal Setu is a cable-stayed bridge in Goa that runs between Panaji and Porvorim. It carries National Highway 66 over the tidal part of the Mandovi River. It is long, making it the third longest cable-stayed bridge in India. Two wheelers, t ...

s. The older bridge collapsed in the 1980s before a new bridge was constructed to accommodate heavy transport vehicles. The Mandovi Bridge links the towns of

Porvorim Porvorim (pronounced ''Parvari '' ), is the ''De facto'' legislative and executive capital of the state of Goa, India, as both the Goa Legislative Assembly and Secretariat are functioning from the same complex in the region of Alto Porvorim in ...

. On 14 June 2014, the foundation stone for the third bridge, which is the largest bridge in Goa, was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It will span and will be higher than the existing bridges and will be spaced in between the two. The 3rd Mandovi bridge is named Atal Setu after former Prime Minister of India Atal Bihari Vajpayee. The bridge was inaugurated on 27 January 2019 at the hands of Union Roads Minister Nitin Gadkari, Goa CM Manohar Parrikar. During the winter months, the peak tourist season, special dusk cruises on the Mandovi - complete with serenading bands - add to the charm of the river.

Interstate water sharing

The sharing of the waters of this river is a cause of dispute between the governments of Karnataka and Goa. The Karnataka government proposes to divert some water from the Mahadayi river to the

Malaprabha River The Malaprabha River (Kannada ಮಲಪ್ರಭಾ ನದಿ) is a tributary of the Krishna River and flows through the state of Karnataka in India. It rises in the Western Ghats at an elevation of in the state's Belgaum district. The rive ...

basin as part of

the Kalasa-Banduri Nala project The Kalasa-Banduri Nala is a project undertaken by the Government of Karnataka to improve drinking water supply to the Districts of Belagavi, Bagalkot, Dharwad and Gadag. It involves building across Kalasa and Banduri, two tributaries of the Mah ...

, as approximately 188

tmcft Tmcft, (Tmc ft), (TMC), (tmc), is the abbreviation of thousand million cubic feet (1,000,000,000 = 109 = 1 billion), commonly used in India in reference to volume of water in a reservoir or river flow. Conversion 1 tmcft is equivalent to: * ( ...

of water at 75% dependability is available in the river.

Mahadayi Water Disputes Tribunal Mahadayi Water Disputes Tribunal (MWDT), also referred to as the Mhadei Water Disputes Tribunal, is a tribunal that adjudicates the dispute over River Mhadei water allocation. The sharing of the waters of this river is a cause of dispute between ...

under

Interstate River Water Disputes Act The Interstate River Water Disputes Act, 1956 (IRWD Act) is an Act of the Parliament of India enacted under Article 262 of Constitution of India on the eve of reorganization of states on linguistic basis to resolve the water disputes that would ...

has been constituted to decide the sharing of the river waters by the riparian states. In August 2018, Mahadayi Water Tribunal verdict permitted Goa to use 24 tmcft (excluding the 9.395 tmcft prevailing uses), Karnataka to use 13.42 tmcft of which 5.5 tmcft is meant for use within the river basin and for diversion to the Malaprabha reservoir, and around 8 tmcft for power generation (including 3.9 tmcft for export outside the basin) and Maharashtra to use 1.33 tmcft for consumptive purposes. The tribunal assessed the water generated in the river catchment area of Karnataka and Maharashtra as 32.11 tmcft and 7.21 tmcft respectively at 75% dependability. The tribunal has apportioned only 40.125 tmcft of Mandovi river water for consumptive uses among the three riparian states. Karnataka approached the Supreme Court alleging injustice is done in allocation of water to the state.

References

{{Authority control Rivers of Goa Inter-state disputes in India Rivers of Karnataka Geography of North Goa district Geography of South Goa district Geography of Belagavi district Geography of Uttara Kannada district Rivers of India

River course

Bridges

Interstate water sharing

See also

References