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Dams and River Projects: asked and not asked.
UPSC has asked 29 of these 61. 6 came more than once. 32 have not come yet. Lock the repeated ones first, then read the rest.
First, the concept
UPPCS asks a dam as a set of three: the dam, its river and its state. Learn them river by river, not state by state.
Many dams have a separate name for their lake: Bhakra → Gobind Sagar, Pong → Maharana Pratap Sagar, Rihand → Govind Ballabh Pant Sagar.
Big multipurpose projects give irrigation, power and flood control together. Tehri is the highest dam; Hirakud is among the longest.
🔁 Asked again and again (6)
Tap a year to open that solved question.
Mahanadi and the east
✅ Asked once (23)
Indus system
Ganga system
- Tehri · Bhagirathi, Uttarakhand; India's highest dam 2008
- Gandhi Sagar · Chambal, Madhya Pradesh 2022
- Rana Pratap Sagar · Chambal, Rawatbhata (Rajasthan)
- Jawahar Sagar · Chambal, Rajasthan
- Maithon and Panchet · Barakar and Damodar; Damodar Valley Corporation 2022
- Tilaiya and Konar · Barakar and Konar; Damodar Valley Corporation 1984
Narmada, Tapi and Mahi
Godavari and Krishna
Kaveri and the south-west
- Mettur · Kaveri, Tamil Nadu (Stanley Reservoir)
- Idukki · Periyar, Kerala; an arch dam 1996
- Linganamakki · Sharavati, Karnataka
❌ Not asked by UPSC yet (32)
Items marked 'asked in UPPCS' have already come in the UP state exam, so examiners do use them.
Indus system
- Nathpa Jhakri · Sutlej, Himachal Pradesh asked in UPPCS
- Kol Dam · Sutlej, Himachal Pradesh asked in UPPCS
- Pong · Beas, Himachal Pradesh; lake: Maharana Pratap Sagar asked in UPPCS
- Thein (Ranjit Sagar) · Ravi, Punjab asked in UPPCS
- Salal · Chenab, Jammu and Kashmir asked in UPPCS
- Baglihar · Chenab, Jammu and Kashmir asked in UPPCS
- Dulhasti · Chenab, Jammu and Kashmir asked in UPPCS
- Tulbul · Jhelum, at Wular Lake asked in UPPCS
- Pandoh · Beas, Himachal Pradesh; Beas–Sutlej link
- Pakal Dul · Marusudar (Chenab), Jammu and Kashmir
- Uri · Jhelum, Jammu and Kashmir
Ganga system
- Ramganga (Kalagarh) · Ramganga, Uttarakhand asked in UPPCS
- Rihand · Rihand, Sonbhadra (Uttar Pradesh); lake: Govind Ballabh Pant Sagar asked in UPPCS
- Matatila and Rajghat · Betwa, Uttar Pradesh–Madhya Pradesh asked in UPPCS
- Bansagar · Son, Madhya Pradesh asked in UPPCS
- Tawa · Tawa (Narmada tributary), Madhya Pradesh asked in UPPCS
Narmada, Tapi and Mahi
- Bargi · Narmada, near Jabalpur asked in UPPCS
- Maheshwar · Narmada, Madhya Pradesh
- Kadana · Mahi, Gujarat
- Mahi Bajaj Sagar · Mahi, Banswara (Rajasthan)
- Dharoi · Sabarmati, Gujarat
Mahanadi and the east
- Machkund · Machkund, Andhra Pradesh–Odisha asked in UPPCS
- Rengali · Brahmani, Odisha
Godavari and Krishna
- Jayakwadi · Godavari, Maharashtra asked in UPPCS
- Tungabhadra · Tungabhadra, Hospet (Karnataka) asked in UPPCS
- Polavaram · Godavari, Andhra Pradesh
- Ujani · Bhima, Maharashtra
Kaveri and the south-west
- Kabini · Kabini (Kaveri tributary), Karnataka asked in UPPCS
- Bhavanisagar · Bhavani, Tamil Nadu asked in UPPCS
- Krishnaraja Sagar · Kaveri, near Mysuru (Karnataka); Brindavan Gardens
- Mullaperiyar · Periyar, Kerala; run by Tamil Nadu
North-East
- Umiam · Umiam, near Shillong (Meghalaya)
⚠️ Gandhi Sagar is in Madhya Pradesh, but Rana Pratap Sagar and Jawahar Sagar are in Rajasthan: all three are on the Chambal. Ukai and Kakrapar are on the Tapi, not the Narmada.
'Asked' is checked against the solved UPSC questions on this site. 'Not asked yet' does not mean it will surely come.