In Hinduism, the river Ganga (feminine) is sacred. The Ganges is also notable in that it contains a rare species of freshwater shark, Glyphis gangeticus, about which little is known. Two species of dolphin can be found in the Ganges, the Ganges River Dolphin and the Irrawaddy Dolphin. The region encompassing the delta near the Bay of Bengal coast is known as The Sundarbans ( Beautiful Forests) - a region of thick mangrove forests and one of the major habitats of the Royal Bengal Tiger. In the flat plains of Bangladesh, the Ganges splits almost immediately into a dense network of distributaries, all of which finally empty into the Bay of Bengal. The combined stream then joins with the Meghna River before flowing out to sea. Here, it unites with the Jamuna branch of the even larger Brahmaputra river.

The main stream of the river (known as the Padma River) then enters Bangladesh. The city of Kolkata (previously Calcutta) stands on the banks of the Hoogly. Near the town of Malda in West Bengal, it undergoes its first attrition with the branching away of the Hoogly, its first distributary. Swollen by the waters of a wide basin that draws from watersheds as diverse as the Himalayas and the Aravallis, the Ganga forms a formidable current in the stretch between Allahabad and Malda, and thereafter, a large delta. This section sees extensive whitewater rafting and kayaking from September to March.Įarly morning on the Ganges at the city of Varanasi The river then flows through the Himalayan valleys and emerges into the north Indian plain at the town of Haridwar.

The Gangotri Glacier in the Uttaranchal Himalayas is the origin of the Bhagirathi river, which joins the Alaknanda river at Devaprayag, also in the Uttaranchal Himalayas, to form the Ganga. Due to this incredible concentration of population, pollution and the destruction of habitats are matters of serious concern. Indeed, about one in every 12 people on earth (8.5% of world population) live in its catchment area. Along with another river Yamuna, it forms a large and fertile basin, known as the Gangetic plains, stretching across north India and Bangladesh, and supports one of the highest densities of human population in the world. The total length of the river is about 2,510 km (1,557 mi). It is often called the 'holy Ganga' or 'Ganga ma' (mother Ganga).

The river has a long history of reverence in India and is worshipped by Hindus as a goddess. The Ganges River (English: /ˈgænʤiz/ Gangā /ˈgəŋgaː/ in most Indian languages) ( Devanagari गंगा) is a river of northern India and Bangladesh.

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