The Mahabharata Range ( mahabharat shrinkhala) – also called the Lesser Himalaya – is a major east-west mountain range with elevations 3,700 to 4,500 m (12,000 to 14,500 feet) along the crest, paralleling the much higher Great Himalaya range from the Indus River in Pakistan across northern India, Nepal, Sikkim and Bhutan but then the two ranges become increasingly difficult to differentiate east of Bhutan as the ranges approach the Brahmaputra River. The Mahabharat range also parallels the lower Shivalik or Churia Range (Outer Himalaya) to the south.