Indus RiverThe

The Indus River, also called the Sindhū River, or Abāsīn, is a major south-flowing river in South Asia. The total length of the river is 3,180 km (1,980 mi) which makes it one of longest rivers in Asia. It flows through Pakistan, the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmirand western Tibet. Originating in the Tibetan Plateau in the vicinity of Lake Mansarovar, the river runs a course through the Ladakhregion of Jammu and Kashmir, towards Gilgit-Baltistan and then flows in a southerly direction along the entire length of Punjab, Pakistan to merge into the Arabian Sea near the port city of Karachiin Sindh. It is the longest river of Pakistan.

The river has a total drainage area exceeding 1,165,000 km²(450,000 sq mi). Its estimated annual flow stands at around 207 km³ (50 cu mi), making it the twenty-first largest river in the world in terms of annual flow. The Zanskar is its left bank tributary in Ladakh. In the plains, its left bank tributary is the Chenab which itself has four major tributaries, namely, the Jhelum, the Ravi, theBeas and the Sutlej. Its principal right bank tributaries are theShyok, the Gilgit, the Kabul, the Gomal and the Kurram. Beginning in a mountain spring and fed with glaciers and rivers in theHimalayas, the river supports ecosystems of temperate forests,plains and arid countryside.

The Indus forms the delta of present-day Pakistan mentioned in theVedic Rigveda as Sapta Sindhu and the Iranian Zend Avesta asHapta Hindu (both terms meaning "seven rivers"). The river has been a source of wonder since the Classical Period, with KingDarius of Persia sending his Greek subject Scylax of Caryanda to explore the river as early as 510 BC.

Other names[edit]

In other languages of the region, the river is known as सिन्धु नदी (Sindhu Nadī) in Hindi, سنڌو (Sindhu) in Sindhi, سندھ (Sindh)in Shahmukhi Punjabi, ਸਿੰਧ ਨਦੀ (Sindh Nadī) in Gurmukhī Punjabi, اباسين (Abāsin, lit. "Father of Rivers") in Pashto, رود سند,(Nahar al-Sind) in Arabic, نهر السند(Nahr Alssund, lit. "Lion River") in Tibetan, 印度 (Yìndù) in Chinese, and Nilab in Tu