The Cambridge History of India, Vol. I: Ancient India v1.c15.113

v1.c15.113

Immediately to the north of Simla the Sutlej, tributary to the Indus, trenches a way out of the mountains, and where it issues on to the plain is the off-take of a great system of irrigation canals. The lowland north-westward of Delhi has a sparse rainfall, for the monsoon has lost much of its moisture thus far north-westward from the Bay of Bengal. As a result of the construction of the irrigation canals colonies have been established between the Sutlej and the Jumna, and wheat is grown on thousands of square miles that were formerly waste. India has a great population, but with modern methods of water supply, and more advanced methods of cultivation, there is still ample room for settlement within its boundaries.