Kameng River

Located north eastern of the Arunachal Pradesh state is one of the lesser known and unexplored river in India, the Kameng River or Jia Bhoreli River as the people of Assam call it. Formerly known as the Bhoreli River, the river that runs through the lush greenery of India’s rainforest is also home to lots of tribe including the Nishis and Aka. It was only recently that this section of India’s river can be access by outsiders after lots of white water rafter approach the government to do their activity there.

The river which flow over 264 kilometers from Tawang district through Bhalukpong circle into the Arunachal Pradesh originates from one spectacular glacier lake. The lake that is located at the snowy Gori Chen Mountain which is about 6, 300 meters high also acts as the natural border between India and southern Tibet. Besides being a border between countries, the river is also a border between districts in India. Among the districts are the east and west Kameng, and also between the protected area of India under the Kameng Elephant Reserve which is Eaglenest’s Wildlife Sanctuary and Pakhui tiger reserve.

With over 11, 000 square kilometers of drainage basin, the river is providing lots of water for the farmer and herder living nearby. The Kameng River is also one of the tributaries for the India’s major river which is the Brahmaputra River where it will first combined in Tezpur, the centre of administration for the Sonitpur district.

With cultural rich tribal and great biodiversity surrounding it, this river had become one of the must visit to the river rafter and kayaker to go on an expedition although it is considered only as medium volume river trip. With a steady flow of rapids and some deep gorges, it is no wonder that this river is attracting lots of traveler ever since it was open.

Now, just like other rivers with strong flow, there will be a hydroelectric power dam to be build by harnessing the power that the Kameng River has to offer. The construction starts from the Bichom River ending at the Kimi district covering a total length of 14.5 kilometers is said to be completed in 2016. This dam will provide a total energy up to 600 MW of power which is large enough for the current usage.

Courses

The Kameng River consists of two section which is the east and west section. The east section of the river consists of Dafla Hill resided by the Daphla tribe. The hill also acts as the border between Arunachal and Assam. The west section of the river consists of the Akka hill resided by the Akka tribe living all ocer across this hill in many small villages.

The river is flowing through the lush greenery of the India rainforest filled with lots of species inside it. Because of this, lots of sanctuaries and protected area were declared there such as the orchid and tiger sanctuary. However, all these beautiful scenery and sanctuary are fast gone due to rapid deforestation that is going on there. With all of these illegal activity combine with lack of law enforcement, all the animal will soon lose its habitat and all these species can become extinct in a record time.

Tributaries

There are few rivers that are the tributaries of the Kameng River where most of them are flowing from the west section of Kameng River. These rivers are the Dirang Chhu, Bichom River and Tenga River. Located near the Dirang Chhu is the Dirang Dzong, set up by the Monpa tribe about 500 years ago.  The Dirang chhu emerged from the Sangti River that flows through lots of valley including the Sangti Valley.

For the eastern section of the river, the Tippi Naala is the main tributaries for the Kameng River that met at the Tippi Village which flows from the Sessa Orchid Sanctuary. This river is also located not far from the Bhalukpong which is about 11 kilometers from there.

The Kameng River will also combine with other to form the mighty river of Brahmaputra in Tezpur. There, it will continue to flow through the Kolia Bhomora all the way towards Bangladesh ending in the Bay of Bengal.

Photo Gallery