The Tungabhadra River is one of the sacred rivers in south India. Industrial and mining operations on its banks generate enormous amounts of effluent that have led to substantial metal and nutrient contamination of the aquatic system. In the present investigation an attempt has been made to assess variation in the physico-chemical characteristics and speciation of zinc in the water and sediment of the Tungabhadra River. Most of the metal ions in the collected samples were in high concentrations compared to the applicable standards. The Individual Contamination Factor (ICF) of Zn was found to be more at Site-B compared to sites A and C. Zinc-bearing particles were characterized by the different morphologies measuring from large colloidal to small particles which were associated with biological structures or may be present in amorphous nature which were observed by Transition electron microscopy (TEM) with X-EDS (Energy dispersive spectrometry). In conclusion, the level of Zn contamination in the Tungabhadra River is increasing at an alarming rate due to industrial activities.