Darna River

Darna is a minor right-bank tributary of Godavari in the Nashik District, Maharashtra. Rising north of the Kalsubai range, it drains Igatpuri, Nashik and Niphad Talukas of Nashik District. The conjunction with Godavari is situated at Darnasangvi.

Origin

The Darna rises on the northern slopes of the Kulang hill fort in the Sahyadris about 13 km. south-east of Igatpuri.

Course

Though the straight line distance from the source to its confluence with the Darna is only about 50 km., it has a very long and winding course which measures about 80 km.^[1] Its banks are like those of the Godavari below Nashik, of no great height, but broken by scores of small streams, making the passage along the banks of the river very difficult for laden carts. It is crossed by a bridge at Chehedi on the Nasik-Pune road, on the way to Sinnar. The bed is for the most part wide and sandy, though at times, the water flows over rocks. The Darna Dam is constructed across the Darna near Nandgaon village giving rise to the storage known as Lake Beale, which is visible for considerable distance while travelling by train from Mumbai to Nasik on the right hand side. This has enabled the construction of a pick-up weir on the Godavari river at Nandur-Madhmeshwar to divert the water into the Godavari canals.

On the right bank, at Belu, the river Darna receives the Kadva, not the large river of that name, but a small stream flowing north-eastwards between Mhordan-Katlia hills on the west and Kalsubai-Bitangad-Patta range on the east in the south-eastern part of Igatpuri taluka. On the left bank the Darna has only three tributaries of any size, and they hold little water during the hot season. They are the Waki, the Unduhol and the Valdevi.^[2]

Tributaries

• Vaki : The Vaki nadi rises in the Dhoria hill and flows in a general southerly direction. The Tringalwadi Dam is located on the river. It passes between Igatpuri and Ghoti joins the Darna.
• Aaundha : The river is also spelt as Unduhol or Aund Vahal. It rises to the south of Anjaneri hill and flows in a south-easterly course. Here the river is impounded by the Mukane Dam. The reservoir waters turn in a northerly direction to the north of Kavnai hill, expelling the Aundha river to resume its easterly course before it joins the Darna just below the Darna dam.
• Waldevi : The Valdevi river comes to exist on the eastern slopes of the Anjaneri hill.It flows in a general easterly direction passing by Dadhegaon, runs through the outskirts of Nashik city and joins the Darna near Chehdi. It the longest tributary of Darna and joins it on the left-bank.

Dams

• Darna Dam

References

Godavari basin
Rivers	Major tributaries Godavari Pranhita Indravati Sabari Manjira Manair Wardha Wainganga Penganga Minor tributaries Pravara Kinnerasani Purna Sileru Sindphana Taliperu Sub-tributaries Adan Banganga Bindusara Darna Kadva Kanhan Kolar Nasardi Pench Purna Shivana
Dams, barrages	Jayakwadi Dam Majalgaon Dam Sriram Sagar Project Nizam Sagar Upper Wardha Dam Singur Reservoir Neher water system Dowleswaram Barrage Balimela Reservoir Devadula lift irrigation scheme Upper Dudhana Dam Godavari River Basin Irrigation Projects
Geographical features / regions	Marathwada Vidarbha Coastal Andhra Konaseema Deccan Plateau Western Ghats Eastern Ghats
Riparian districts	Maharashtra Nashik Ahmednagar Aurangabad Parbhani Nanded Gadchiroli Beed Amravati Bhandara Gondia Chandrapur Wardha Nagpur Yavatmal Washim Buldhana Hingoli Madhya Pradesh Balaghat Seoni Betul Chhindwara Odisha Kalahandi Koraput Malkangiri Chhattisgarh Bastar Bijapur Karnataka Bidar Telangana Medak Nizamabad Adilabad Karimnagar Warangal Khammam Andhra Pradesh West Godavari East Godavari Vishakapatnam
Cities	Nashik Nagpur Nanded Rajahmundry Warangal Koraput Bastar Bidar
Languages / people	Indo-Aryan languages Marathi Bhili Khandeshi Andh Banjari Odia Bhunjia Hindi Dravidian languages Kolami Goni Telugu Kannadiga Duruwa Multani Urdu
Coalfields	Godavari Valley Coalfield Wardha Valley Coalfield Kamptee Coalfield Pench Kanhan Coalfield
Oil / gas fields	Krishna Godavari Basin Ravva oil field
Industries	Khaparkheda Thermal Power Station Koradi Thermal Power Station Chandrapur Super Thermal Power Station Wardha Warora Power Plant Lanco Vidarbha Power Plant Nashik Thermal Power Station Dhariwal Power Station RattanIndia Nashik Thermal Power Station Kothagudem Thermal Power Station Kakatiya Thermal Power Station Parli Thermal Power Station NTPC Ramagundam NTPC Mauda Super Thermal Power Station Ramagundam B Thermal Power Station Tiroda Thermal Power Station Butibori Power Project Heavy Water Plant at Manuguru Waluj MIDC Shendra MIDC Shendra – Bidkin Industrial Park Ballarpur Industries HAL Sunabeda NALCO Damanjodi
Transport	NH 5 National Highway 6 (India)(old numbering) NH 7 Godavari Bridge Old Godavari Bridge Godavari Arch Bridge Hyderabad-Godavari Valley Railways Visakhapatnam–Vijayawada section Bilaspur–Nagpur section Nagpur–Hyderabad line
Related topics	Godavari Water Disputes Tribunal
Other basins	Mahanadi–Brahmani–Baitarani Damodar Kosi Narmada Son Krishna Penna