The Karnali River Basin lies between the mountain ranges of Dhaulagiri in Nepal and Nanda Devi in Uttarakhand. Dhaulagiri II, elevation , is the highest point of the entire basin. In the north, it lies in the rain shadow of the Himalayas. The basin formed by the river has a total catchment area of , of which 45 percent is in India. The population of the Basin districts in Nepal increased from 1.9 million in 1971 to 4.7 million people in 2001, almost a 250% increase over three decades. The average population density of the Basin area increased from 53 persons/km2 in 1981 to 87 persons/km2 in 2001. There is a steady growth in the economically active population in the basin districts. The average literacy rate has increased from a mere 7.5% in 1971 to 45% in 2001. The social status of the permanent households increased from 24% in 1991 to 31% in 2001. The basin has a total road length of , but the pace of road development is slow.