River Course
It rises in the southern slopes of the Himalayas in Tibet, in the glaciers of Mapchachungo, at an altitude of about 3962 metres (13,000 ft) above sea level. The river flows south through one of the most remote and least explored areas of Nepal as the Karnali River. The 202 km Seti River drains the western part of the catchment and joins the Karnali River in Doti District north of Dundras hill. Another tributary the 264 km long Bheri rises in the western part of Dhaulagiri Himalaya and drains the eastern part of the catchment, meeting the Karnali near Kuineghat in Surkhet.
Cutting southward across the Siwalik Hills, it splits into two branches, the Geruwa on the left and Kauriala on the right near Chisapani to rejoin south of the Indian border and form the proper Ghaghara. Other tributaries originating in Nepal are the West Rapti, the Kali (or Mahakali) and the little Gandak. Another important tributary of Ghaghara in India is the Sarayu river, famous for the location of Ayodhya, the capital of Dasarath’s Kingdom. It flows southeast through Uttar Pradesh and Bihar states to join the Ganges downstream of the town of Chhapra, after a course of 1080 km. Sarayu river is stated to be synonymous with the modern Ghaghara river or as a tributary of it.
Karnali River exposes the oldest part of the Sivalik Hills of Nepal. The remnant magnetization of siltstones and sandstones in this group suggests a depositional age of 16-5.2 million years.
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