Natural distribution of water in india

• Water availability in India depends greatly on the seasonal monsoons.
• The monsoons bring heavy rains over most of the country between June and October.

India Annual Average Rainfall Map

• Only Tamil Nadu is the exception and receives over half of its rain from October to November.
• India ranges from places having waterless conditions (Thar Desert) to places with rainforest climate (North Eastern States).
• In general, the northern half of the country sees greater extremes in rainfall.
• India has a large network of rivers too.
• The three major rivers, Indus, Ganga and the Brahmaputra originate in the Himalayas and drain nearly two-thirds of the land area.
• These rivers also account for nearly the same proportion of India's total water resources.
• Water in these rivers is strongly influenced by the monsoons.
• During the monsoons water levels in rivers increase greatly and may result in floods.
• On the other hand, during the dry season, water levels go down quite a bit in most large rivers.
• Smaller tributaries and streams generally dry off completely.
• To regulate water flow in these rivers and distribute water more evenly throughout the year, large dams have been built on a number of rivers.