Identify the river of the Indian sub-continent on the basis of the following information:

1. It has an antecedent drainage system.

2. It flows through three countries.

3. It originates in the Tibetan Plateau and is an important river for irrigation.

4. It does not form distributaries.

Antecedent Drainage: An antecedent river is one that existed before the uplifting of the mountains (the Himalayas) and maintained its course by cutting deep gorges through the rising land. The Sutlej, Brahmaputra, and Indus are all antecedent rivers, but this feature eliminates Teesta.

Flows through Three Countries: The Sutlej flows through China (Tibet), India, and Pakistan. (The Brahmaputra flows through China, India, and Bangladesh; the Indus flows through China, India, and Pakistan).

Originates in Tibet and Crucial for Irrigation: The Sutlej originates near Mount Kailash from Lake Rakshastal in Tibet. It is the backbone of the Indus Basin Irrigation System, feeding major canals like the Indira Gandhi Canal and supporting the Bhakra-Nangal dam project.

Does not form distributaries: This is the deciding factor. Unlike the Indus and Brahmaputra, which branch out into extensive networks of distributaries forming massive deltas before emptying into the sea (the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal, respectively), the Sutlej is a tributary. It merges into the Indus River (via the Panjnad River in Pakistan) and therefore does not form its own independent deltaic distributaries at the ocean.