Narmada River is a major river in peninsular India which flows in east-west direction, along with two other rivers namely, the Tapti River and Mahi River. Reva is another name of Narmada River. It is one of the rivers in India which flows in a rift valley and acts as a divider between north India and south India. Narmada River can be used for navigation. At Hoshangabad, the river has some striking ghats on its banks.

History of Narmada River
History of Narmada River is closely associated with the place called Amarkantak and Narmada Kund. In Hindu religious texts like Indian Puranas, Ramayana, Mahabharata, Shatapatha Brahmana and Vashishtha Samhita, Amarkantak and its rivers have been mentioned. However, there is hardly any mention of Narmada River in Vedic literature.History of near about 3000 years has remained in dark, after the epic age of Mahabharata. King of Purukutsa, who was the son of Mandhatri, gave the name Narmada to the river. History states that Pulakeshin II, the Chalukya emperor, defeated Indian ruler, Harshavardhan of Kannauj on the banks of Narmada River. History shows that Aryans settled on the banks of Narmada River, as they expanded eastwards.

Geology of Narmada River
Geology of Narmada River Valley states the river to be a graben. A graben means a layered block of the earth`s crust that dropped down on the blocks on either side due to ancient spreading of the earth`s crust. Geology of Narmada River also relates to the paleontological studies of Narmada Valley.

Geography of Narmada River
Geography of Narmada River relates to the features of Narmada River and the Narmada Valley. The length of Narmada River is approximately 1,315 km (817 mi). Valleys of Narmada River are historically as well as economically significant. The narrow valley of the Narmada lies below the Vindhyachal scarps. Narmada River flows across this narrow valley and the valley covers the southern region of Dhar District`s Manawar tehsil and the southeastern part of Kukshi tehsil. The height of the river ranges from about 275 meters to 150 meters. Its height in the northern part of Manawar tehsil and southwest low plain of Nisarpur varies. Westwards, Narmada Valley comprises of several hills that are the originating point of a number of streams. These streams join Narmada River resulting in a few stretches of alluvium deposit. Narmada River`s watershed consists of northern slopes of Satpura Mountain Range as well as the vertical southern slope of the Vindhya Mountain Range.

Origin of Narmada River
Origin of Narmada River is an open pool known as Narmada Kund situated on the Amarkantak Hill in Shahdol district of eastern Madhya Pradesh. Narmada Kund is an open pond and is regarded sacred. Several Indian temples dedicated to many Gods and Goddesses surround Narmada Kund such as Sri Shuryanarayan Temple, Siddheswar Mahadev Temple and Annapurna Temple. Tourists from far and wide come to visit this place.

Course of Narmada River
Course of Narmada River is relatively straight and there are very less rocky hindrances. Narmada River flows down from the Amarkantak Hill Range at the Kapildhara Falls over a tall cliff. It moves down the hills, flowing through a distorted course and crossing the rocks and islands up to the ruined palace of Ramnagar. The river traverses further between Ramnagar and Mandla in the southeast direction. It traverses the first 320 kilometers (200 miles) around the Mandla Hills, which form the head of the Satpura Range. It then moves towards Jabalpur. Passing through the `Marble Rocks`, it enters the Narmada Valley between the Vindhya Mountain Range and Satpura Mountain Range and moves westwards towards the Gulf of Cambay. Narmada River flows through several Indian states including Maharashtra, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh, before merging into the Arabian Sea in Gujarat`s Bharuch district.

Tributaries of Narmada River
The main tributaries of Narmada River namely, Hallon River, Banjar River, Barna River and Tawa River are the main source of water, irrigation and other resource based activities in central India. Tawa River is the longest tributary of Narmada River. It joins Narmada River at Bandra Bhan in Hoshangabad district, Madhya Pradesh. This river broadens out in Bharuch district, after traversing through Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. Below a city of India namely, Bharuch, it forms a 20 kilometer wide estuary where it enters the Gulf of Cambay. The water of the river is used not only for feeding the drought prone areas of the states of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh, but also for navigation as well.

Religious Significance of Narmada River
Religious Significance of Narmada River relates to its origin, Narmada Kund. The river is one of the five holy rivers of India, the other four being Ganga River, Yamuna River, Godavari River and Kaveri River. Narmada River is considered to be very holy by the Hindus and an important pilgrimage site. It is closely associated with Lord Shiva, who is believed to have descended from the sky. It is believed that a dip in Narmada River washes away all the sins. It is also believed that just the sight of the river cleanses one of all the sins. Rewa Khand of Vayu Purana and of Skanda Purana is entirely dedicated to the story of origin and importance of Narmada River.

Forests and Sanctuaries along Narmada River
Forests and Sanctuaries along Narmada River are various. Some of the best hardwood Indian forests are found along this river. The Indian teak trees along this river are much older as compared to the ones in the Himalayan Mountain Range.

Anthropological Sites along Narmada River
Anthropological Sites along Narmada River are considered to be of great interest among the tourists as well as historians. The extensive caves of Bhimbhetka are located in a dyke structure of the Narmada Valley, at about 45 km northeast of Bhopal. These caves lie between Bhopal and Hoshangabad highway and depict pre-historic rock shelter paintings. These paintings are considered to be a priceless chronicle in the history of India, which have been sculpted on the summit of the Vindhyas.

Development of the Basin of Narmada River
Development of Narmada River was planned for keeping the banks and water of the river clean and usable. The early background of Narmada River and the dispute related to it have lead to the emergence of many advanced plans for the development of the Narmada River basin. Explorations for using the Narmada waters began around the time of independence, when Central Waterways, Irrigation and Navigation Commission (CWINC) came up with several storage schemes.