Baitarani River

File:Gonasika Guptaganga Temple, Gonasika - 1.jpg

The Baitarani originates from the Gonasika/Guptaganga{{cite book | last1=Mohanty | first1=G. | last2=Patnaik | first2=J.K. | last3=Ratha | first3=S.K. | last4=Das | first4=H.C. | last5=Pattanayak | first5=A.K. | last6=Satpathy | first6=H. | title=Cultural Heritage of [Orissa]: Dhenkanal | publisher=State Level Vyasakabi Fakir Mohan Smruti Samsad | series=Cultural Heritage of Orissa | year=2002 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cENQAQAAIAAJ | access-date=2020-02-18 | page=373| isbn=9788190276153 }} (Cow Nose Shaped) hills, and starts flowing over a stone looking like the nostril of a cow. Afterwards, for about half a kilometre, the river flows underground and is not visible from outside. The Baitarani is known here by the name Guptaganga or the Gupta Baitarani, in Gonasika of Keonjhar district in Odisha state of India at an elevation of {{convert|900|m|ft}} above sea level. The uppermost part of the river, about {{convert|80|km|mi}} in length, flows in a northerly direction; then it changes its path suddenly by 90 degrees and flows eastward. The beginning portion of Baitarani briefly marks the boundary between the states of Odisha and Jharkhand.{{cite web|url=https://www.google.co.in/maps/place/Baitarani+River/@22.0327151,85.5508481,12.17z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x3a1bed59355fc723:0x5f1391d2ee80e5b0!8m2!3d21.430626!4d86.1091555 |title=Google Maps |publisher=Google.co.in |date= |accessdate=2022-04-04}}

The river enters a plain at Anandapur and creates a deltaic zone at Akhuapada. The river is {{convert|360|km|mi}} in length and drain into the Bay of Bengal after joining of the Brahmani at Dhamra mouth near Chandabali.{{cite book | last=Hunter | first=W.W. | title=The Imperial Gazetteer of India | publisher=Trübner & Company | series=The Imperial Gazetteer of India | issue=v. 2 | year=1881 | url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.39059 | access-date=2020-02-18 | page=[https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.39059/page/n535 531]}} The river has 65 tributaries, of which 35 join from the left side and 30 from the right. The river basin in Odisha is spread among 42 blocks of eight districts. Budhi, Kanjori, Ambajhara, Mushal, Kusei, Salandi are some of the tributaries of Baitarani.

A major portion of the river basin lies within the state of Odisha, while a small patch of the upper reach lies in Jharkhand state. The upper Baitarani basin on the western slopes of the Eastern Ghats, comprising the Panposh-Keonjhar-Pallahara plateau, is one of the two plateaus forming "The Central Plateaus"—one of Odisha's five major morphological regions.

File:Dam on the Baitarani river at Singhanali.jpg

Dams and barrages on the Baitarani and its major tributary, the Salandi, irrigate {{convert|61920|ha|acre}}. The proposed Bhimkund and upper Baitarani multi-purpose projects envisage many more dams across this river and its tributaries to provide irrigation to more than {{convert|1000|km2|mi2}}.

A new barrage was established near Anandapur and it was inaugurated by the CM of Odisha, Naveen Patnaik.

Flooding is a regular phenomenon in the Baitarani basin. The inhabitants near the river live in fear of loss to life and property. Even a two-day rain in July 2005 caused the river to overflow its banks, affecting 140,000 people in 220 villages of Jajpur and Bhadrak districts. In at least two places the embankments were breached and flooding occurred, inflicting loss of life and property. Apart from the long pending construction of a dam at Bhimkund and other proposed measures like riverbed excavation and construction of embankments etc. in the deltaic region, there remain the unaddressed land use issues in the upstream, to which, till date, no serious thoughts or efforts have been directed.

Due to drainage into the Bay of Bengal, its water become salty as it heads towards the end of the River.

Baitarani basin, with its rich mineral and agricultural resources and with availability of cheap labour, offered an ideal ground for establishment and operation of various industries. However, the principal development activities in the industrial, agricultural and mining sectors have contributed significantly towards deterioration in the water quality.[http://www.baitarani.org Baitarani River Basin Project]

It forms part of the boundary between Balasore district and Undivided Cuttack district.{{cite book|last=Donaldson|first=Thomas Eugene|title=Iconography of the Buddhist Sculpture of Orissa: 2 Volume Set|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DbxE8zOuRbUC&pg=PA39|access-date=8 January 2013|year=2001|publisher=Abhinav Publications|isbn=978-81-7017-406-6|page=39}} There is a saying that "he who bathes in it and gives alms will always be free from torments inflicted by Yama."{{cite book|last=Cunha|first=J. Gerson Da|title=Notes on the History of Chaul and Bassein|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xOPlusO8qcAC&pg=PA123|access-date=8 January 2013|year=1993|publisher=Asian Educational Services|isbn=978-81-206-0845-0|page=123}}

The district Jajpur is the gift of river Baitarani. Historical evidences show early civilization on the bank of this river. Currently the district is subject to massive floods which are common during monsoon.

{{Reflist}}

{{Hydrography of Jharkhand}}

{{Hydrography of Odisha}}

{{Mahanadi Basin}}

{{Authority control}}

{{Coord|20|45|N|86|48|E|display=title|region:IN_type:river_source:GNS-enwiki}}

Category:Rivers of Jharkhand

Category:Rivers of Odisha

Category:Geography of Odisha