GANGA 49th Issue | Page 8

broad and fertile area, well-suited for

considered

cultivation. The Narmada basin mainly

palaeontological studies in India. Several

consists of black soils. The coastal plains

dinosaur fossils have been found in this area

in Gujarat are composed of alluvial clays

including the Titanosaurus indicus that was

with a layer of black soil on the surface.
The

valley

experiences

hydromorphological

and

of

climatic

conditions with the upper catchment

very

significant

for

found in 1877 by Richard Lydekker and the
recently discovered one is that of the
Rajasaurus narmadensis.
The

Narmada

River

Valley’s

water

resources potential was recognized by the

having an annual precipitation in the

British in the early 1900s. The Central

range of 1000-1850 mm. and with less

Waterways,

than half in its lower regions having

Commission first proposed damming the

650-750 mm. The diversity of vegetation

Narmada

from bright green to in the upper region

irrigation between

to dry deciduous teak forest vegetation

1946. However, disputes between Madhya

in the lower region, is testimony to this

Pradesh,

Maharashtra,

Rajasthan

concerning

feature.
The Narmada Valley is geologically termed
as a graben, which means a layered block of
the

earth's

crust

that

dropped

down

comparatively to the blocks on either side
due to ancient spreading of the earth's crust.
Two normal faults, known as the Narmada
North fault and Narmada South fault,
parallel to the river's course, and smear the

Irrigation

River

for

and

the

Navigation

purposes

1945

and

Gujarat
the

of

and

sharing

of

development costs and the dams’ resources
stalled damming plans until 1969. In 1969,
the NWDT was formed and by 1979, the
NWDT had allocated shares of water and
power between the four states. Madhya
Pradesh would receive the highest share of
water

and

electricity

(65%)

and

Maharashtra, the lowest (1%).

boundary between the Narmada block and
the Vindhya and Satpura blocks or in
geological term horsts which rise relative to
the Narmada Graben. As a result Narmada

Editor- Sujit Choudhury, Published by
IRBMS (© Integrated River Basin
Manage ment Society)

watershed includes the northern slopes of
the Satpuras, and the steep southern slope of
the Vindhya Range. The Narmada valley is

8

Integrated River Basin Management Society