Shimsha is a river that flows in the state of

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 ...

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 ...

. It is one of the tributaries of the river

Kaveri The Kaveri (also known as Cauvery, the anglicized name) is one of the major Indian rivers flowing through the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. The Kaveri river rises at Talakaveri in the Brahmagiri range in the Western Ghats, Kodagu dis ...

, which is one of the major rivers of

South India South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union territo ...

. The river originates in the southern part of the

Devarayanadurga Devarayanadurga is a temple town and hill station located in the district of Tumakuru in the state of Karnataka in India. The rocky hills are surrounded by forest and the hilltops are dotted with several temples including the Yoganarasimha and t ...

hill in the

Tumkur district Tumakuru District is an administrative district in the state of Karnataka in India. It is the third largest district in Karnataka by land area with an area of 10,598 km2, and fourth largest by Population. It is a one-and-a-half-hour drive from ...

and flows for about . before joining the river

Geography

;Origin Shimsha originates at an altitude of 914 m in the

hill located in

Tumakuru Tumkur, officially renamed as Tumakuru, is a city located in the southern part of Indian state of Karnataka. Tumkur is situated at a distance of northwest of Bangalore, the state capital along NH 48 and NH 73. It is the headquarters of the ...

Talu

which is also the location of two temples of the

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

God,

Narasimha Narasimha ( sa, नरसिंह, lit=man-lion, ), sometimes rendered Narasingha, is the fourth avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu. He is regarded to have incarnated in the form of a part-lion, part-man being to slay Hiranyakashipu, to end rel ...

. ;Course After originating in the

, The Markonahalli Dam has been built across it, the river takes a southerly course and enters the

Mandya district Mandya District is an administrative district of Karnataka, India. The district is bordered on the south by Mysore district, Mysore and Chamarajanagar district, Chamarajangar districts, on the west by Hassan District, on the north by Tumkur Di ...

. In Mandya district, the river flows in a south-eastern direction and has a waterfall at Shimshapura in Malavalli Taluk. Just after Shimshapura it reaches the border of

Chamarajanagar district Chamarajanagar or Chamarajanagara is the southernmost district in the state of Karnataka, India. It was carved out of the original larger Mysore District in 1998. Chamarajanagar town is the headquarters of this district. It is the third leas ...

where it joins the river Kaveri. The confluence of Shimsha and Kaveri is also near the

Shivanasamudra Shivanasamudra Falls is a waterfall on the border of Malavalli taluk, Mandya district and Kollegala taluk, Chamarajanagara district of the state of Karnataka, India. It is situated along the river Kaveri, which forms here the boundary to the ...

falls. The total length of the river is . and the river has a catchment area of 8469 km². ;Sub-tributaries In its course the river is joined by other smaller rivers and streams such as Veeravaishnavi, Kanihalla, Chikkahole, Hebbahalla, Mullahalla and Kanva. ;Towns and cities Maddur is a major town that lies on this river.

Dams

;Markonahalli Dam Markonahalli Dam is a dam built across the river Shimsha in the

Kunigal Kunigal is a town in Tumakuru district in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of Kunigal taluk. As of 2011 census, the town has a population of 34155. Kunigal is famous for stud farm established by Hyderali and Tippu Sultha ...

Taluk of Tumkur district. It was built by

Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV Maharaja Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV (Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar; 4 June 1884 – 3 August 1940) was the twenty-fourth maharaja of the Kingdom of Mysore, from 1902 until his death in 1940. He is popularly called ''Rajarshi'' ( sa, rājarṣi, li ...

, the king of Mysore under the guidance of his Diwan,

Sir M V Sir Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya (15 September 1861 – 12/14 April 1962), also referred to by his initials, MV, was an Indian civil engineer, administrator, and statesman, who served as the 19th Diwan of Mysore from 1912 to 1918. Visvesvaraya i ...

isweswaraiah. It was built to irrigate 6070 hectares of land and has a masonry structure of 139 m and a pair of earth dams extending to 1470 metres on either side. The reservoir has a catchment area of and can hold a volume of 68 million m³ of water at a full reservoir level of 731.57 m above the mean sea level. 27 species of fish, including 13 species of commercial fishes have been recorded in the reservoir with Puntius being the dominant species of fish found here. Cirrhinus reba and Labeo calbasu and other transplanted carps are also found here. However, the maintenance of the dam has been poor. In 2000, a part of the dam had to be demolished to prevent floods and save 25 villages. Water started overflowing the dam and only 1 crest gate could be opened. Nearly 150 feet of the dam was demolished to allow excess water to flow out.

Power generation

Shimsha has a waterfall at Shimshapura in Malavalli Taluk. This is also the location of the Shimsha Hydro Electric Project which has an installed capacity of 17,200 kilowatts. It was the first ever hydro electric project in Asia. Kolar Gold Fields was supplied with the electricity generated in 1902. Three years later Bangalore was electrified. The foundation stone for this project was laid by

, the king of

Mysore Mysore (), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern part of the state of Karnataka, India. Mysore city is geographically located between 12° 18′ 26″ north latitude and 76° 38′ 59″ east longitude. It is located at an altitude of ...

Issues

Sand mining

The sand found on the river bed of the Shimsha river is mined and used for construction activities, sometimes illegally. Due to the environmental issues that can be caused by

sand mining Sand mining is the extraction of sand, mainly through an open pit (or sand pit) but sometimes mined from beaches and inland dunes or dredged from ocean and river beds. Sand is often used in manufacturing, for example as an abrasive or in conc ...

, this activity is currently banned.

Pollution

Discharge of waste from towns and cities on the way are major contributors to pollution in the Shimsha. However, the Government is trying to clean up the river and has released funds for the same.

Accidents

In 1897, a

railway bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whic ...

over this river collapsed during a heavy flood, killing about 150 passengers.

References

{{Hydrology of Karnataka, state=expanded Rivers of Karnataka Geography of Tumkur district Tributaries of the Kaveri River Rivers of India