River Hemavati at the southern side of Banakal
Hemavati dam in Gorur

The Hemavati is a river in southern India near Karnataka[1] and an important tributary of the Kaveri.

Origin and course

The source of the Hemavati River lies in the Western Ghats (Javali village) at an elevation of about 1,230 metres (4,040 ft).[2] Located in Mudigere taluk of Chikmagalur District in the state of Karnataka, it flows through Hassan District where it is joined by its chief tributary the Yagachi River and then into Mandya district before joining the Kaveri near Krishnarajasagara. It is approximately 245 km long and has a drainage area of about 5,410 km².[3]

Hemavati Dam and Reservoir

Gorur dam across the Hemavati was completed in 1979 above Gorur in Hassan district and downstream from the Yagachi confluence. The dam is a masonry dam with a central spillway through 6 radial gates. It is 44.5 meters in height and 4692 meters long with an area of 9162 hectares. The reservoir has a live storage capacity of 35.7 TMC.[4] The dam provides irrigation and drinking water not only for major portion of Hassan and Mandya districts, but also to far away regions of Tumkur district, that fall under Krishna River basin.[5]

The Shettihalli Rosary Church, which was submerged during the construction of the dam, can be seen only when the water level is low during the summer months. The church was constructed in the Gothic architectural style by French missionaries in the 1860s. The church was abandoned in 1960 when the government decided to build the dam. When the water level is low coracles are used to go inside the church.[6][7]

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Hemāvati River (Approved) at GEOnet Names Server, United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency
  2. ↑ "Main Rivers of Karnataka". Karnatakavision.com. Retrieved 5 October 2006.
  3. ↑ "Hemavati River". www.india9.com. Retrieved 5 October 2006.
  4. ↑ "Hemavathy Reservoir Project".
  5. ↑ "Tributary of Cauvery reaches Krishna Basin". Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  6. ↑ "Rising out of the waters". No. Bangalore. Deccan Herald. 13 October 2014. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
  7. ↑ Singh, Gurdyal (2013). "Rosary Church at Shettihalli (emerges and submerges)". National Geographic Traveller. Archived from the original on 6 May 2013. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
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