The Sind River or the Sindh River is a

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of w ...

in the

Ganderbal district The Ganderbal district, or more formally District Ganderdal, is a district in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, India. Ganderbal town is administrative headquarters of district. It was formed in 2007 and has 6 subdistricts (tehsils): ...

of the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir,

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 a major tributary of the

Jhelum River The Jhelum River (/dʒʰeːləm/) is a river in the northern Indian subcontinent. It originates at Verinag and flows through the Indian administered territory of Jammu and Kashmir, to the Pakistani-administered territory of Kashmir, and then ...

and is 108 kilometres long.

Geography

The Sind River forms the Sind Valley. The

source Source may refer to: Research * Historical document * Historical source * Source (intelligence) or sub source, typically a confidential provider of non open-source intelligence * Source (journalism), a person, publication, publishing institute o ...

of the river lies in the

Machoi Glacier The Machoi Glacier is a 9 kilometer long glacier in the Himalayan Range in Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, India. Geography It is situated 30 kilometer west from Drass, Ladakh, India and 8 kilometers east from Sonamarg on the southern side o ...

at an elevation of 4800m, east of the Amarnath temple and south of the

Zoji La Zoji La (sometimes Zojila Pass) is a high mountain pass in the Himalayas. It is in the Indian Union territory of Ladakh, Kargil district, Kashmir. Located in the Drass, the pass connects the Kashmir Valley to its west, with the Drass ...

. It flows through Panjtarni (a camping site of Amarnath yatra) southwards up to Domail where it joins a tributary which doubles its flow from the

Kolhoi Glacier Kolahoi Peak (locally called 'Gashe-braer' meaning the goddess of light) is a mountain with a peak elevation of located in Anantnag district, Jammu and Kashmir, India. The mountain is the highest mountain in Kashmir Division. Kolahoi Peak is e ...

. It then flows mostly westwards along the

NH 1D National Highway 1 (NH 1) in India runs between the union territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh. It comprises parts of old NH1A and NH1D. The number 1 indicates, under the new numbering system, that it is the northernmost East-Wes ...

and is fed by many glacial streams on its way to Ganderbal town. At Kichpora Preng it is fed by the Wangath river which flows down from the Gangabal Lake. The major tributaries of the river are: the Amarnath stream, Kolhoi Grar, Shitkadi Nallah, Gund Nallah, Surfraw Nallah and Wangath Nallah. Surfraw Nallah is a big Nallah which joins the Sind river at Surfraw (Soraf raw). This Nallah is also known for its beauty and fish. The Sind river is navigable from Ganderbal town onwards as the waterflow slows down. It joins the

at Shadipora, 17 kilometres northwest of Srinagar. The river also passes through the famous alpine hill station

Sonamarg Sonamarg () or Sonmarg (), known as Sonamarag (; ) in Kashmiri, is a hill station located in the Ganderbal District of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It is located about 62 Kilometers from Ganderbal Town and northeast of the capital city, Srina ...

where river

rafting Rafting and whitewater rafting are recreational outdoor activities which use an inflatable raft to navigate a river or other body of water. This is often done on whitewater or different degrees of rough water. Dealing with risk is often a ...

tournaments are organised annually by the Tourism Department of Jammu and Kashmir. It is also the only river in Jammu and Kashmir on which three hydroelectric power plants are functional. The waters of the river are used for

irrigation Irrigation (also referred to as watering) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has been devel ...

by way of different canals and for domestic use after going through water treatment plants.

Fish

The Sind River is the natural habitat of

trout Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', '' Salmo'' and '' Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-salm ...

, and various other fish. The most famous among them are: brown trout, (''Salmo trutta'') rainbow trout (''Oncorynchus mykiss''), snow trout (''Schizothorax plagiostomus''), Shuddgurn and Anyour.

Ecological issues

Trout Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', '' Salmo'' and '' Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-salm ...

and hence trout fishing are at risk along the Sind river. This is for several reasons. The

extraction of sand 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 concr ...

/bajri by engagement of heavy machines is destroying the natural habitat of trout and other fish. Waste from the use of pesticides,

DDT Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, commonly known as DDT, is a colorless, tasteless, and almost odorless crystalline chemical compound, an organochloride. Originally developed as an insecticide, it became infamous for its environmental impacts. ...

and

insecticides Insecticides are substances used to kill insects. They include ovicides and larvicides used against insect eggs and larvae, respectively. Insecticides are used in agriculture, medicine, industry and by consumers. Insecticides are claimed t ...

by farmers kills many fish every day. The change in

topography Topography is the study of the forms and features of land surfaces. The topography of an area may refer to the land forms and features themselves, or a description or depiction in maps. Topography is a field of geoscience and planetary sc ...

leads to the destruction of aquatic fauna of the river. In various riverine villages people catch fish through the conventional way of angling and using nets. These methods are replaced today by resorting to unconventional and illegal methods. The most ecologically destrucutive method is using

bleaching powder Bleach is the generic name for any chemical product that is used industrially or domestically to remove color (whitening) from a fabric or fiber or to clean or to remove stains in a process called bleaching. It often refers specifically, to ...

, procured from officials of the PHE department. Bleaching powder not only kills fish but other aquatic life as well. This process is very common during summers, especially in the Wayil catchment area. The Fisheries Department and other government agencies have not been able to effectively intervene. Mismanagement of water diversion to power canals is another concern for the survival of fish.

Major projects on the Sind

* Upper Sind Hydroelectric Power project 1st Sumbal. * Upper Sind Hydroelectric Power Project 2nd Kangan. * Lower Sind Hydroelectric Power project Ganderbal. * Rangil water treatment plant.

Major bridges

* Wayil Road Bridge of

. It is a steel structure bridge for one way vehicular traffic at a time. *Shithkadi Bridge of

. It is a steel structure bridge for two way vehicular traffic at a time. *Hariganiwan Link Road Bridge. It is one of the major steel bridge on River Sind for two way Vehicular traffic at time. *Ramwari Gund Link Road Bridge is another steel bridge on River Sind & The Construction work is in progress. * Duderhama Road Bridge, connecting

Ganderbal Ganderbal is a town and a municipality committee in Ganderbal district in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters of Ganderbal district.It is in Central Kashmir, it has an average elevation of 1,619 metres (5,3 ...

town.

References