The Indus River is embedded in the history of India and gave the country its name. In terms of its annual flow, the river is the third largest river in India. The Indus River is an important river in Pakistan.

The river originates in the Tibet at the confluence of the Sengee and Gar rivers that flow through the Nganglong Kangri and Gangdise Shan mountain ranges. After its birth the river flows in the northwest direction through Ladakh - Baltistan into Gilgit, which is in the south of the Karakoram Range. The river slowly starts flowing in the south direction coming out of the hills between Peshawar and Rawalpindi. The river flows through massive ravines that are 4,500-5,200 metres in height and near the Nanga Parbat. The river then flows through Hazara and there is dammed at a Tarbela Reservoir. The Kabul River meets the Indus River at Attock. The river in its remaining course flows calmly through the plains of Punjab and Sind. The Indus River meets Panjad at Mithankot. Earlier at this merging point the river was named as Satnad River because the river carried the waters of Kabul, Indus River and the five rivers of Punjab. As it flows through Jamshoro, the river ends up in a large delta, which is in the east of Thatta in the Sindh province of Pakistan.

The Indus River is amongst the few rivers in the world that have a tidal bore. The Indus System largely lives on the snows and glaciers of the Karakoram, Hindu Kush and the Himalayan ranges of Tibet, Kashmir and Northern areas of Pakistan. The flow of the river depends on the season; it decreases during the winters and floods the banks during the monsoons.

The total length of the river is 3,180 kilometers (1,976 miles) out of which the Indus River flows 1,114 km in India. The total drainage area of the river is 1,165,000 square kilometers (450,000 square miles). The annual flow of the river is 272 billion cubic yards. One of the oldest civilizations of the world, the Indus Valley civilization was situated on the bank of this river. The Indus River Dolphin lives in the waters of the Indus and the Ganges.

The Indus River has several tributaries. They are Astor River, Beas River, Chenab River, Gar River, Ghizar River, Gilgit River, Gumal River, Hunza River, Jhelum River, Kabul River, Kunar River, Ravi River, Shigar River, Shingo River, Shyok River, Suru River, Sutlej River, Swaan River, Wakha River, Zanskar Gorge, Zhob River and Balram River