Damodar River begins near Chandwa village, Palamau district, on the Chota Nagpur Plateau in the Jharkhand state in eastern India. The river flows in the direction of east for about 592 km across the states of Jharkhand and West Bengal to the estuary of the River Hooghly. It has a number of tributaries and sub tributaries, such as Barakar, Konar, Bokaro, Jamnai, Haharo, Guaia, Ghari, Khadia and Bhera.

In some of the local languages of Jharkhand, the river is known is called Damuda. The term damu means sacred and da means water. The Damodar used to flow previously through Bengal on a direct west to east course and join the River Hooghly near Kalna. However, the river has changed its course and in its lower reaches most of the water flows into the Mundeswari River, which again merges with other rivers and finally most of the Damodar water debouches into the Rupnarayan River. The remaining water flows through the Damodar into the Hooghly south of Kolkata.

The Barakar is the most important tributary of the Damodar. It originates near Padma in Hazaribagh district and flows through Jharkhand before meeting the Damodar near Dishergarh in West Bengal. The Damodar and the Barakar divides the Chota Nagpur plateau. The rivers pass through hilly areas with great force, sweeping away whatever comes in their path. The Barakar, the great stone bridge build in 1913 and the successive iron bridge in 1946 interrupted two bridges on the Grand Trunk Road near Barhi in Hazaribagh district down.

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