The name 'India' comes from the river Indus, which in Sanskrit is called:

The name "India" is derived from "Indus", the river which in Sanskrit is called "Sindhu".

How the name developed:

• The ancient Persians (Iranians) pronounced the Sanskrit "s" as "h", so "Sindhu" became "Hindu" in Old Persian.
• In the inscriptions of the Persian emperor Darius I (6th century BCE), the region along the Indus is called "Hindush".
• The Greeks, who learnt about India through the Persians, dropped the "h" sound and called the river "Indos" and the land around it "India".
• From Greek, the name passed into Latin and later into English and other European languages.
• The word "Hindustan" also comes from the Persian form "Hindu" plus "stan" (land).

The name "Bharat":

• The other name of the country, "Bharat" or "Bharatavarsha", comes from the Bharata tribe or the legendary king Bharata.
• The Rigveda mentions the Bharatas as an important group.
• Article 1 of the Constitution of India says: "India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States".

About the river Sindhu (Indus):

• It rises near Lake Mansarovar in Tibet, and is called "Singi Khamban" (Lion's Mouth) there.
• It flows through Ladakh, enters Pakistan, and falls into the Arabian Sea near Karachi.
• Its length is about 2,880 to 3,180 km, depending on the source.
• It is one of the longest rivers of Asia.
• The Indus Waters Treaty (1960), signed by India and Pakistan with the help of the World Bank, divides the waters of the Indus system between the two countries.

Why not the other options?

• ✗Saraswati is a river mentioned in the Rigveda.
• ✗Vitasta is the ancient name of another river of the Punjab region.
• ✗Drishadvati is a river mentioned in Vedic texts, often identified with the Chautang.