The Babai River ( ne, बबई नदी) originates in and completely drains Inner Terai Dang Valley of Mid-Western

Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...

. Dang is an oval valley between the

Mahabharat Range The Lower Himalayan Range ( ne, पर्वत शृङ्खला parbat shrinkhalā) – also called the Middle Himalayas or Lesser Himalayas or Himachal – is a major east–west mountain range with elevations 3,700 to 4,500 m (12,000 to ...

and

Siwalik Hills The Sivalik Hills, also known as the Shivalik Hills and Churia Hills, are a mountain range of the outer Himalayas that stretches over about from the Indus River eastwards close to the Brahmaputra River, spanning the northern parts of the India ...

in its eponymous district. Dang was anciently home to

indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention *Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band *Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...

Tharu people The Tharu people are an ethnic group indigenous to the Terai in southern Nepal and northern India. They speak Tharu languages. They are recognized as an official nationality by the Government of Nepal. In the Indian Terai, they live foremost i ...

and came to be ruled from India by the

House of Tulsipur Tulsipur State was a small kingdom in the Awadh region of India that became the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh under the British Raj and Dundwa Range of the Siwaliks in the Dang and Deukhuri Valleys that became part of the Kingdom of Nep ...

who also counted as one of the Baise Rajya ( ne, बाइसे राज्य)—a confederation of 22

petty kingdoms A petty kingdom is a kingdom described as minor or "petty" (from the French 'petit' meaning small) by contrast to an empire or unified kingdom that either preceded or succeeded it (e.g. the numerous kingdoms of Anglo-Saxon England unified into th ...

in the Karnali (Ghagra) region. About 1760 AD all these kingdoms were annexed by the

Shah Dynasty The Shah dynasty ( ne, शाह वंश), also known as the Shahs of Gorkha or the Royal House of Gorkha, was the ruling Chaubise Thakuri dynasty ; and the founder of Gorkha Kingdom from 1559 to 1768 and later the unified Kingdom of Nepal ...

during the

unification of Nepal The Unification of Nepal, also known as Expansion of Gorkha Kingdom, officially began in 1743 AD (1799 BS) after King Prithvi Narayan Shah of Gorkha launched an aggressive annexation campaign seeking to broaden his own kingdom's border. After ...

, except Tulsipur lands south of the Siwalik Hills were not taken. Since Dang Valley was somewhat higher, cooler, better-drained and therefore less

malaria Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. S ...

l than most of the country's Inner Terai, it was settled to some extent by Shah and

Rana Rana may refer to: Astronomy * Rana (crater), a crater on Mars * Delta Eridani or Rana, a star People, groups and titles * Rana (name), a given name and surname (including a list of people and characters with the name) * Rana (title), a histori ...

courtiers and other Paharis long before

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. ...

was introduced to control the disease-bearing ''

Anopheles ''Anopheles'' () is a genus of mosquito first described and named by J. W. Meigen in 1818. About 460 species are recognised; while over 100 can transmit human malaria, only 30–40 commonly transmit parasites of the genus ''Plasmodium'', which c ...

'' mosquito. Exiting Dang Valley and its district, the Babai enters

Salyan District Salyan may refer to: Places Azerbaijan *Salyan District (Azerbaijan), a district of Azerbaijan *Salyan, Azerbaijan Salyan ( az, Salyan), is a city and the capital of the Salyan District of Azerbaijan. The city of Salyan is industrialized and kn ...

and flows between sub-ranges of the Siwalik Hills along their west-northwest axis. Sharada Khola drains about half of Salyan's larger Middle Hills region before cutting through the Mahabharat Range and joining the Babai from the right. Salyan was another Baise principality before unification. About beyond this confluence, the Babai crosses into

Bardiya District Bardiya District ( ne, बर्दिया जिल्ला), one of the seventy-seven Districts of Nepal, is part of Lumbini Province of Nepal. The district, with Gulariya as its headquarters, covers an area of and according to the 2001 ce ...

and enters

Bardiya National Park ; , iucn_category = II , photo = Bardiya_02.jpg , photo_caption = , photo_alt= , map_image = , map_caption = Location in Nepal , location = Nepal , map = Nepal , relief = 1 , coordinates = , area_km2 = 968 , established = 1988 , go ...

. The river continues another west-northwest until the enclosing Siwalik hills fall away and the Outer Terai begins. At this point the river crosses Nepal's main east–west

Mahendra Highway Mahendra Highway (), also called East-West Highway () runs across the Terai geographical region of Nepal, from Mechinagar in the east to Bhim Datta in the west, cutting across the entire width of the country. It is the longest highway in Nepal a ...

and exits the national park. On the Outer Terai the Babai is finally free to gradually bend left toward the main inclination of the

Indo-Gangetic Plain The Indo-Gangetic Plain, also known as the North Indian River Plain, is a fertile plain encompassing northern regions of the Indian subcontinent, including most of northern and eastern India, around half of Pakistan, virtually all of Bangla ...

. The river flows south some and enters

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 ...

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

state. The Babai continues about (straight line) south from the border before joining the much larger

Ghaghara Ghaghara, also called Karnali, is a perennial trans-boundary river originating on the Tibetan Plateau near Lake Manasarovar. The Karnali cuts through the Himalayas in Nepal and joins the Sharda River at Brahmaghat in India. Together they form th ...

from the left at about west-northwest of

Bahraich Bahraich is a city and a municipal board in Bahraich district in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Located on the Saryu River, a tributary of the Ghaghara river, Bahraich is north-east of Lucknow, the state capital. The districts of Barab ...

. This confluence is about upstream of the Sharda (Mahakali) confluence from the right. In Nepal the

catchment A drainage basin is an area of land where all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, the ...

of the Babai is bordered by that of the Rapti on the north, east and south; and by the main Ghaghra catchment on the west until their confluence. In India the Rapti takes a more easterly course, joining the Ghagra some southeast of the Babai's confluence. In Season 9, Episode 55 of the television series River Monsters,

Jeremy Wade Jeremy John Wade (born 23 March 1956) is an English television presenter, an author of books on angling, a freshwater detective, and a biologist. He is known for his television series ''River Monsters'', ''Mighty Rivers'', and ''Dark Waters''. He ...

visits

Bardia National Park ; , iucn_category = II , photo = Bardiya_02.jpg , photo_caption = , photo_alt= , map_image = , map_caption = Location in Nepal , location = Nepal , map = Nepal , relief = 1 , coordinates = , area_km2 = 968 , established = 1988 , gov ...

to fish the Babai. He hoped to catch a large Goonch catfish but was unsuccessful.

Gallery

File:Babai River.jpg, Babai River File:Babai River 03.jpg, Babai River File:Babai River 04.jpg, Babai River File:Babai River 05.jpg, Babai River File:Babai River 06.jpg, Babai River File:Babai River 07.jpg, Babai River

References

{{Authority control Rivers of Lumbini Province Rivers of Uttar Pradesh International rivers of Asia Rivers of India

Gallery

See also

References