Indus River, Tibetan and Sanskrit Sindhu, Sindhi Sindhu, or Mehran, great trans-Himalayan river of South Asia. It is one of the longest rivers in the world, with a length of some 2,000 miles (3,200 km). Its total drainage area is about 450,000 square miles (1,165,000 square km), of which 175,000 square miles (453,000 square km) lie in the ranges and foothills of the Himalayas, the Hindu Kush, and the Karakoram Range; the rest is in the semiarid plains of Pakistan. The river’s annual flow is about 58 cubic miles (243 cubic km)—twice that of the Nile River and three times that of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers combined. The river’s conventional name derives from the Tibetan and Sanskrit name Sindhu. The earliest chronicles and hymns of the Aryan peoples of ancient India, the Rigveda, composed about 1500 BCE, mention the river, which is the source of the country’s name.

Physical Features

The river rises in the southwestern Tibet Autonomous Region of China near Lake Mapam at an elevation of about 18,000 feet (5,500 metres). For about 200 miles (320 km) it flows northwest, crossing the southeastern boundary of the disputed Kashmir region at about 15,000 feet (4,600 metres). A short way beyond Leh, in Ladakh (in the Indian-administered state of Jammu and Kashmir), it is joined on its left by its first major tributary, the Zaskar River. Continuing for 150 miles (240 km) in the same direction into the Pakistani-administered areas of the Kashmir region, the Indus is joined by its notable tributary the Shyok River on the right bank. Below its confluence with the Shyok, as far as the Kohistan region of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, it is fed by mighty glaciers on the slopes of the Karakoram Range, the Nanga Parbat massif, and the Kohistan highlands. The Shyok, Shigar, Gilgit, and other streams carry glacial meltwater into the Indus.

The Shigar River joins the Indus on the right bank near Skardu in Baltistan. Farther downstream the Gilgit River is another right-bank tributary, joining it at Bunji. A short distance downstream the Astor River, running off the eastern slope of Nanga Parbat, joins as a left-bank tributary. The Indus then flows west and turns south and southwest to enter Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, in the process skirting around the northern and western sides of the Nanga Parbat massif (26,660 feet [8,126 metres]) in gorges that reach depths of 15,000 to 17,000 feet (4,600 to 5,200 metres) and widths of 12 to 16 miles (19 to 26 km). Trails cling grimly to precipitous slopes overlooking the river from elevations of 4,000 to 5,000 feet (1,200 to 1,500 metres).

After emerging from this highland region, the Indus flows as a rapid mountain stream between the Swat River and Hazara areas in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province until it reaches the reservoir of Tarbela Dam. The Kābul River joins the Indus just above Attock, where the Indus flows at an elevation of 2,000 feet (600 metres) and is crossed by the first bridge carrying rail and road. Finally, it cuts across the Salt Range near Kalabagh to enter the Punjab Plain.

The Indus receives its most-notable tributaries from the eastern Punjab Plain. These five rivers—the Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej—give the name Punjab (“Five Rivers”) to the region divided between Pakistan and India.

After receiving the waters of the Punjab rivers, the Indus becomes much larger, and during the flood season (July to September) it is several miles wide. It flows through the plain in western and southern Punjab province in Pakistan at an elevation of about 260 feet (80 metres). Because it moves so slowly across the plain, it deposits accumulated silt on its bed, which is thus raised above the level of the sandy plain; indeed, most of the plain in Sindh (Sind) province in Pakistan has been built up by alluvium laid down by the Indus. Embankments have been constructed to prevent flooding, but occasionally these give way, and floods destroy large areas. Such floods occurred in 1947, 1958, and 2010. During heavy flooding the river sometimes changes its course.

Pakistanis taking shelter on higher ground after an Indus River flood, near Thatta, Sindh province, Pakistan, August 2010.

Near Tatta the Indus branches into distributaries that form a delta and join the sea at various points south-southeast of Karachi. The delta covers an area of 3,000 square miles (7,800 square km) or more (and extends along the coast for about 130 miles (210 km). The uneven surface of the delta contains a network of existing and abandoned channels. The coastal strip, from about 5 to 20 miles (8 to 32 km) inland, is flooded by high tides. The Indus delta has elongated protruding distributaries and low sandy beaches.