Pragnya IAS · Map 84 · Relief & drainage
The Ganga-Brahmaputra basin
End with the giant: one combined basin holding the world’s largest delta and a third of India’s people.
STUDY NOTE 1
Two rivers, one delta
The Ganga and Brahmaputra (with the Meghna) unite in Bangladesh to build the Bengal delta — the world’s largest, shared with the Sundarbans mangrove.
STUDY NOTE 2
A basin of superlatives
It carries enormous water and sediment, supports the densest rural populations on earth, and floods on a scale no other Indian basin matches.
STUDY NOTE 3
Shared water politics
India, Nepal, Bhutan, China and Bangladesh all hold pieces of the basin; the Ganges Treaty and Teesta talks show basin management as international relations.
Map reading task
Sketch the combined basin boundary, mark the Farakka barrage and write one line on why it matters to Bangladesh.
Map key · Reference locations
What does this the ganga-brahmaputra basin lesson explain?
The Ganga and Brahmaputra (with the Meghna) unite in Bangladesh to build the Bengal delta — the world’s largest, shared with the Sundarbans mangrove.
UPSC map practice & Geography Optional connection
For UPSC Prelims, pair the location with its state, neighbouring relief and relevant geographic process. For GS I and Geography Optional Indian geography revision, use a simple labelled sketch to explain the relationship rather than replacing the answer with place names. These are Pragnya-authored exercises, not official UPSC previous-year questions.
References & map credits
Pragnya IAS explanations and practice are independently authored. The uploaded geography compilation informed topic selection only; its pages, illustrations, advertisements and personal watermarks are not republished. Licensed base data retain their original attribution. These lessons are educational references, not navigation, legal boundary or live hazard maps.