178

BY
M. S. KR:ISHNAN,
M.A., PH.D., A.R.C.S., D.LC.
Geological Survey of I"dia
Copyright by the Author
PlRsT EDITION 1944

REPR:JNl1!D 1951
SECOND EDmoN 1958
NBSS&LUP
RegioD:!l Centre Llbnry
I
t,
Bangalore , 5:'iv ()2 '~

J
Acces~ion No " [1,& !
I
---------,~-:.-. ,
PIUNTED BY
ASSOClATED PlUNTEas (MADRAS) PIUVATIl UMITED
MADRAS .t BANGALORE
1958
PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION
This book gives a short and concise account of

the stratigraphy of India such as is needed by those
who study geology as a subsidiary subject for a
University degree or for professional courses such
as Forestry, Civil Engineering, Mining or Metallur-
gy. Its scope is much the same as that of Vreden-
burg's 'Summary of the Geology of India' published
before 1910 but which has been out of print for
nearly three decades. It is hoped that this 'Intro-
duction' will meet the requirements of the standard
aimed at.
It was my intention to bring out this book soon

after the publication of the 'Geology of India and
Burma' which appeared in June, 1943. But., though
the manuscript was ready in April, 1943, various
war-time difficulties conspired to delay the publi-
cation inordinately.
I
This book owes much to the encouragement
received from Sir Cyril S. Fox, Kt., till lately
Director of the Geological Survey of India. I am
indebted to him for numerous useful suggestions
and for obtaining the sanction of the Government
of India for its publication.
tv
My thanks are due to the management of the
Madras Law Journal Offiee, who, in spite of the
steadily deteriorating eonditions governing the
printing and publishing trades, have sueeeeded in
bringing out the book.
MADRAS, M. S. KRISHNAN
8th May, 1944
PREF ACE TO THE SECOND EDITION '

This book has gone through two printings, in
1944 and 1951. It has been revised for the present
edition, in order to bring the matter up to date.
, ,
A Hindi translation of this book by Shrimati
AkhiJandeswari is also available and ' may be
J>urehased from the publishers of this book.
CALCUTTA, M. S. KRISHNAN
15th July, 1958
CONTENT
PAGES
CHAPTER I .-PHYSIOGRAPHY AND STRUCTURE. 1- 19
The physiographic features of the Peninsula,
Extra-Peninsula and the Indo-Gangetic
plains. Climate. Mountains. Glaciers. Rivers.
Lakes. Volcanoes. EarthqUakes. Mud-vol-
canoes. structure of India.
CHAPTER n .- REVIEW OF INDIAN STRATI-

GRAPHY 20- 26
General princlples. Standard formations .
Review of Indian formations .
CHAPTER lII.- THE ARCHAEAN GROUP- PENIN-

SULA 27~
Archaeans and Dharwars. South India, Ceylon,

Eastern Ghats, Chota Nagpur, Madhya
Pradesh, Jabalpur, Rajasthan , Assam. Cor-
r elation.
CHAPTER IV.-THE ARCHAEAN GROUP- EXTRA-

PENINSULA 45-51
North-west Himalaya, Kumaon-Garhwal,
Nepal-Sikkim, Eastern Himalaya, Burma.
Mineral Deposits.
CHAPTER V.-THE CUDDAPAH rKADAPA ) SYSTEM. 52-57

Andhra Pradesh, Southern Bombay, GodavarI
valley, Madhya Pradesh, Central India,
Rajasthan. MIneral Deposits.
vi
PA(lKS
CHAPTER VI.-THE VINDHYAN SYSTEM 5~
Son valley, Andhra Pradesh, Bhlma and
GodavarI valleys. Mlneral Deposits.
CHAPTER VJI.-THE PALAEOZOIC GROUP 64-75
CambrIan, Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian,
Carboniferous.
CHAPTER vnr.- THE GONDWANA SYSTEM 76-93
General. Talchir, Damuda, Panchet, Maha-
deva, Rajmahal and Jabalpur Series, Coastal
regIons. Ceylon. lIgneous rocks. Mlneral
Deposits.
CHAPTER DC- THE PERMIAN SYSTEM 94-103
SpIt1 and Kumaon, Hundes, Mt. Everest, Kash-
mir, Salt Range, Kashmir-Hazara, S1mla-
Garhwal.
CHAPTER X.-THE TRIASSIC SYSTEM 104-114
Fauna, SpIt!, Kumaon, Kashmir, Salt Range,
Hazara, Baluchistan, Burma.
CHAPTER XI.- THE JURASSIC SYSTEM ., 115-124
SpIt1, Kumaon and Nepal, Kashmir, Hazara,
Salt Range, Baluchistan, Rajasthan, Kutch,
Andhra Pradesh, Burma.
CHAPTER XII.-THE CRETACEOUS SYSTEM 125-138
General. SpIt1, Kumaon, Tibet. Kashmir,
Hazara, Samano. Range. BaluchIstan-Sind,
Salt Range, Western India, Trlchlnopoly-
Pond1cherry, Assam, Burma. Igneous rocks.
CHAPTER xrII.-THE LAMETAS AND DECCAN
TRAPS . . 139-147
General. DistrIbution. Structural features,
Petrology. Lameta beds. Infra-trappean and
Inter-trappean beds. Age. Economic Geology.
PAGES
CHAPTEII XIV.-THE EOCENE SYSTEM as-lS8
Sind-Baluchistan, Salt Range, Samana Range,
Potwar plateau, Kashmir-Hazara, Simla,
Tibet, Assam, Burma. Peninsular areas.
CHAPTER XV.-OLIOOCENE AND LOWER MIOCENE

SYSTEMS .. 159-163
Sind-Baluchistan, Potwar plateau, Jammu,
Salt Range, Simla hills, Assam, Burma,
Peninsular areas.
CHAPTER XVI.- THE SIWALIK SYSTEM . , 164-168

Sind-Baluchistan, Assam, Burma, Kathlawar,
Kutch, South India.
CHAPTER XVJ;I.-PLEISTOCENE AND RECENT . . 169-179

North-west Frontier, Kashmir, Indo-Gangetic
alluvium. Cave, Coastal and AeoUan deposits.
Recent deposits. Laterite.
TABLES
1. The Standard geological formations 23
2. Geological formations of India 25
3. Archaean succe.s slon In Mysore 30
-4. The Archaeans of Chota Nagpur 36
5. The Archaeans of Madhya Pradesh 39
6. The Archaeans of Rajasthan 40
7. The Cuddapah system 63
8. The Vindhyan system 58
9. The Kumool series 60
10. The Cambrian of the Salt Range 65
11. The Carboniferous system of Spltl 74
12. The Gondwana system 'N
PAGES
13. The Permian of the Salt Range 100
14. Triassic succession in Spit! 108
15. Trias of Salt Range 112
16. Jurassic succession in Spit1 118
17. Jurassic succession ' in Jal8almer 121
18. Jurassic succession in Kutch 123
19. Mesozoic succession in Baluchistan 130
20. The Bagh beds 132
21. Cretaceous succession in Trlchlnopoly 134:
22. Eocene of Burma 156
23 . The Siwalik system 165
LI T OF PLATES
I . Cambrian fossils 68
n. Ordovician and Silurian fossils 69
Ill. Devonian fossIls 73
IV. Lower Gondwana fossils 87
V. Upper Gondwana fossils 88
VI. Permo-Carboniferous fossils 96
vn. Permian 10ss1}s ID1
vm. Triassic fossUs 106
IX. Do. 107
X. JurassIc fossils 116
XI. Cretaceous fossils 135
XU. Inter-trappean fossils 145
xnr. Lower Tertiary fossils 151
CHAPTER ~
PHYSIOGRAPHY AND STRUCTURE
India and Burma together occupy an area of
about 1,893,344 square mnes, of which Burma
accounts for 261,749 square miles. They lie
between North latitudes 80 and 37 0 and East
longitudes 61 0 and 100 0
India is divisible into three component unitB
physiographically. These are the Peninsula proper,
the Indo-Gangetic Alluvial Plains, and the Hima-
layan and associated mountain chains called tb
Extra-Peninsula. The physiographic featuree of
these units are related to their structure and
stratigraphy.
Physiography
THE PENINSULA.-The Peninsula of India
iH an ancient land mass, owing its present features
to denudation and weathering over long ages. The
harder rock masses which have resisted weather-
ing stand out to-day as mountains, the softer onel!!
forming the valleys and plains. It represents a
~table block of the earth's crust which has not been
affected by earth movements appreciably sinee
Pre-Cambrian times, though it has suffered some
faulting and secular movements. It is composed
mainly of ancient crystalline and metamorphic
rocks which are, in some places, covered over by
later sediments and lava flows. Since the Pre-
Cambrian times, marine rocks were deposited on
NOU:-The term India is used here In a general geographical
sense to include both the present India and Paldstan.
2 INTRODUCTION TO THE GEOLOGY OF INDIA
them only on their fringes in the Upper Mesozoic
and Tertiary times. But fluviatile and lacustrine
sediments were formed in the Gondwana era in some
places, e.g., along the eastern coast, in the Damodar.
Son, Narmada and Godavari valleys and along the
north-western and northern fringes of the ancient
land mass.
THE EXTRA-PENINSULA.-On the other hand,
the Extra-Peninsula is a region of folded mountains
of comparatively late age, that is, formed during
the Tertiary era. It has been disturbed by earth
movements of great magnitude, as the rocks are seen
to have been folded, faulted, overthrust and even
carried over considerable distances as thrust-sheets
or nappes. The topography is very rugged and the
rivers are youthful and torrential, actively eroding
their courses.
The rocks comprise sediments of all ages
representing the whole of the geological column. The
rocks comprise an almost complete sequence of sedi-
ments of all ages except part of the Tertiary. In the
Lesser Himalayas they are mainly unfossiliferous
sediments deposited near the northern shores of the
landmass of the time. North of the central ranges
of the Himalayas are great thicknesses of fos iliferous
marine sediments which can easily be correlated with
the strata in many countries of South-western Asia
and Southern Europe. The central axial zone of
these mountains contains marine sediments of various.
age intruded by igneous rocks which are generally
granitic in composition. Accompanying the earth
movements there were also igneous intrusions--
mainly granitic-on a large scale, these being seen
particularly in the Central Himalayan belt.
THE INDo-GANGETIC PLAINS.-These lie between
the two above-mentioned units and represent a.
PHYSIOGRAPHY AND STRUCTURE 3
sag or depression in the crust filled up by thick
sediments of Recent origin, formed during the
Pleistocene and Recent times. They consist of layers
of sand and clay occasionally enclosing peat beds and
forming monotonous plains with a very low gradient
towards the sea. Geologically they are of little
interest, except for their river systems though they
comprise rich agricultural lands and support a dense
'Population. The structure of the rocks forming their
basement should be an interesting subject for study,
but they are hidden and inaccessible for direct
observation. But data on theSe are expected to be
ayailable henceforth, as exploration by geophysical
methods and by drilling proceeds in connection with
prospecting for petroleum.
Climate
The climate of India is of the monsoon type,
there being two distinct periods of heavy rainfall in
the year. The south-west monsoon is active during
the months of June to September and the north-east
monsoon during the winter months. The rainfall is,
however, controlled by the topography, as the high
mountains lying across the path of the monsoon winds
help to precipitate their moisture as rain on the
windward side. It is because of this that the
Western Ghats, Tenasserim mountains, the Arakan
Yomas and the Assam ranges receive high rainfall,
the areas to the leeward side of these mountains
receiving comparatively little rain. The Gangetic
Plains and the Punjab are favoured with good rain-
fall as the south-west monsoon is deflected towards
upper India by the Himalayas. The moisture-bearing
winds from the Arabian sea pass unobstructed over
Rajasthan as the Aravallis lie along their path .
.Rajasthan therefore receives little rain. Tibet, which
lies beyond the Himalayas is effectively shut off from
the S. W. monsoon winds by these mountains.
The eastern parts of the Peninsula receive some
rain during the closing period of the S. W. monsoon
and from the north-east monsoon; this may amount
to 20-40 inches per annum. A comparatively dry
zone is situated to the east of the Western Ghats and
it extends from the interior of Madras to the Deccan
plateau and Central India. Its annual rainfall is
around 20 inches. It is frequently liable to drought
and famine as the rains in some years are not timely
with reference to the agricultural operations.
Peu:in ular Mountains
The Peninsular mountains include the Western
and Eastern Gbats, Vindhyas, Satpuras, Aravallis
and Assam ranges .
.,/ THE WESTERN GRATS.-These form a series of
ranges running parallel to the western coast of the
Peninsula, the coastal strip to their west being
comparatively narrow and less than 30 miles wide in
general. In their southern part, from Cape Comorin
to Dharwar, they are composed of ancient crystalline
and metamorphic rocks, while the lavas of the Deccan
prevail in their northern part. Different portions of
these are called the Anaimalais, Cardamom Hills,
Nilgiris and Sahyadri .
, THE EASTERN GHATS.-These are a series of
rather disconnected range stretching from Orissa to
the Nilgiris through Andhra and Madras. They
comprise the Eastern Ghats of Orissa and the
Northern Circar, the Na1lamalais, Javadi Hills,
Shevaroys and other hills. Tbey are made up of a
variety of rocks-gneisses, kbondalites, charnockites
and schists of igneous and sedimentary origin.
PHYSIOGRAPHY AND STRUCTUU 0
THE SATPURA AND VINDHYA MOUNTAINS.-
These are the ranges stretching more or less west to
east from the Gulf of Cambay to Bihar. Those to
the south of the Narmada are the Satpuras, which
extend through Bombay and Madhya Pradesh into
Bihar. The mountains to the north of the Narmada
are the Vindhyas, and a certain group of sedimentary
rocks which go largely into their constitution has
been named after them.
THE ARAVALLI MOUNTAINS.-These are the
major mountain ranges of Rajputana trending in a
N . E.-S. W. direction from near Delhi in the north to
Gujarat in the south. They tend to spread out in
the south, one part leading towards the Western
Ghats and the other towards the Satpuras of Madhya
Pradesh. The Aravallis are made up of crystalline
and metamorphic rocks and, to some extent, of
ancient sedimentaries.
THE AsSAM RANGES.-The Garo, Khasi, Jaintia.
and Mikir Hills together make up the mountains of
the Peninsular part of Assam. They are composed
mostly of ancient gneisses and schists, tapering into
a wedge-like mass towards the north-eastern corner
of India.
Extra-Peninsular Mou:ntai1t8
The Extra-Peninsular ranges include the Hima-
laya mountains and their continuation westward into
Baluchistan on the one hand and eastward into
Burma on the other. Individual units of these will
be found to be approximately parts of circular arcs,
with radii of varying magnitudes. All have their
convex side turned towards India. The arc-like
ranges are arranged one behind the other, the
curvature increasing with proximity to India.
6 INTRODUCTION TO THE GEOLOGY OP INDIA
THE HIMALAYA MOUNTAINS.-The Himalayas
are a series of mountain ranges lying more or less
parallel to each other. The different units here are
the Hindukush and Karakoram, KaHas Range,
Ladakh Range, Zanskar Range, the main Himalayan
Range and the mountains of the Sub-Himalayan
region. The Himalayas proper comprise four parallel
longitudinal zones called respectively (from south to
north) the SrwALIK ZONE of foot-hills bordering the
Indo-Gangetic Plains, the LESSER HIMALAYAS or Sub-
Himalayan zone, the GREAT HIMALAYAS or Central
Himalayas 'Containing the high snow-dad peaks, and
lastly the TRANS-HIMALAYAN ZONE. The Siwa1ilc
zone consists mainly of sediments of Tertiary age.
The Lesser Himalayas are made up of more ancient
sediments, which have been very highly disturbed
and which often show over-thrusts and nappes of
great magnitude. The Great Himalayas comprise
the same types of sediments, these being profusely
intruded by granitic rocks. The Trans-Himal~yan
region contains fossiliferous marine sediments of
various ages laid down in the Tibetan sedimentary
zone.
THE BALUCHISTAN ARc.-This is a composite
arc made up of a number of festoons, stretching from
northern Kashmir through Hazara, N. W. Frontier
Province, Sind and Baluchistan, finally turning west
into the Persian Gulf and Southern Persia (Iran).
A part of this arc branches off from Hazara towards
Afghanistan through the Safed Koh Mountains.
The main arc comprises four well marked festoons--
the Potwar Plateau with the Punjab Salt Range
bordering it on the south, terminating near Kalabagh
and the Chichali pass west of the Indus; the Sheikh
Budin, Bhattani and other ridges between Kalabagh
and Jacobabad; the conspicuous festoon of the Sulai-
man and associated ranges down to Sibi-Quetta; and
lastly the Kirthar, aki, Mari hill ranges whlch.
continue into the Mekran ranges. The last is partly
submerged in the Arabian sea, to appear again in
Oman in easternmost Arabia which is indeed a
branch of the Zagros mountain system of Southern
Persia.
THE BURMESE ARc.-The Burmese arc to the
east of India corresponds to the Baluchistan are, both
Qwing their origin to the same major mountain-
building movements. It is, however, a single
majestic arc without subsidiary festoons, from south-
western China, along the Indo-Burroa-Pakistan
Frontier, Andaman and Nicobar islands, going finally
into the Indonesian archipelago and New Guinea.
The Tertiary belt of Burma is a part of it, while the
Shan States-Tenasserim belt is an element which
belongs to South-east Asia, together with Thailand
(Siam) and Malay Peninsula.
Glaciers
Glaciers are ice-rivers, now confined more or
less to the high ranges of the Himalaya mountain
system. They are fed by the condensed moisture
(snow) falling above the snow-line. The glaciers of
the north-west descend to lower levels than those of
the north-east because of the difference in latitude.
There are numerous glaciers in the Himalaya
mountain system, some of them of considerable
dimensions. In the Karakoram and Trans-Alai
mountains there are some (e.g., the Fedchenko and
Siachen) which are over 40 miles long, the thlckness
of the ice being a few hundred feet. The majority
are however of small length and thickness. All the
Himalayan rivers are fed by glaciers at their sources.
The main or valley glaciers have tributaries which
lie at higher levels and which are therefore ealled
'hanging glaciers.' Glaciers were very extensive
during an earlier geological time (Pleistocene) and
there is evidence that they have diminished in size
and extent since then.
Peninsuktr Rivers
The chief rivers of the Peninsula are the
Subarnarekha, Damodar, Brahmani, Mahanadi, Goda-
vari, Krishna (Kistna) and the Cauvery and the
westward flowing Narmada and Tapti; also the
Chambal, Betwa and Son draining the northern edge
of the Peninsula.
The Peninsular rivers rise in the Western Ghats,
almost within sight of the Arabian sea. There is
some evidence that the Western Ghats formed the
water shed of the Peninsula in former ages and that
the land to their west has been faulted down into the
sea, probably in early Tertiary times. This is
supported by the fact that the western coast has an
extraordinary straight outUne and shelves down
rapidly. The greater parts of the river courses are
well graded and are tending to reach the base-level
of erosion. The western margin of the Peninsula.
may, however, have been uplifted in late Tertiary
times for we find some Tertiary deposits in parts of
the western coast.
The westerly courses of the Narmada and the
Tapti are, it is thought, mainly determined by fault
lines.
The rivers in the north of the Peninsula rise
from the Aravallis and Central India highlands and
join the Ganges system. In this part of India the
Aravallis act as a water-sbed separating the westerly
from the easterly flowing drainage, while the
Vindhyas and Satpuras separate the northerly from
the southerly flowing drainage.
Extra,.Peninsular Rivers
The Himalayas proper, between Hazara and
the north-east corner of Assam, give rise to over
20 important rivers which make up the Indus, Ganges
and Brahmaputra systems. The main water-shed
between Tibet and India is in teality the Trans-
Himalayan range and not the Great Himalayan range
containing the high peaks. Many of the rivers flow,
in the mountains, through deep and steep-sided
gorges, often thousands of feet below the top of the
cliffs at the sides. It is thought that this feature is
due to the rivers being antecedent (or earlier in age
than the mountains which they traverse), but in
some cases the rivers may be following fault lines,
the faults being often radial in disposition in relation
to the mountain arcs. The rivers are torrential in
the mountains but have low gradients on reaching
the plains of India. Some of the Himalayan rivers
(e.g., the Arun, which is a tributary of the Kosi)
provide excellent examples of head erosion and river
capture.
THE INDUS system comprises the Indus (Kabul
and Kurrum rivers join it from the north-west).
Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi. Beas, and the Sutlej. Though
the Indus rises near Mount KaiIas, it flows westwards
for a long distance and then turns south. The Indus
breaks through the Himalayas near the Nanga.
Parbat and flows by Attock, below which it broadens
greatly and finally flows into the Arabian Sea through
Sind. But for its life-giving waters, the Province of
Sind would be turned into a desert.
The celebrated Sarasvati of Vedic lore probably
rose in the region of the Sirmur Hills and flowed by
Adhbadri, Karna), Rasuia, Sirsa, etc. through Patiala,
Eikaner and Bahawa)pur, and through the (present
dry) bed of the Eastern Nara, finally into the Rann.
The Sutlej formerly flowed into it near Sirsa through
the channels known as Sirhind and the Naiwals. The
different parts of the river are known as Ghaggar,
Hakra, Sotar and Wahind. When the Sutlej finally
shifted its course to flow into the Beas in the 12th
century A. D., the vast tract once irrigated by the
Sarasvati became dry and was overrun by the desert.
THE GANGES system comprises the Jumna,
Ganges, Kali, Ramganga, Karnali, Gandak and Kosi,
and their several tributaries. The sources of the
Ganges, though in very difficult mountainous country,
have been thoroughly explored by the ancient Hindus
because of the sacredness with which the river is
invested.
THE BRAHMAPUTRA system includes the Tista,
the rivers of Bhutan, the Subansiri, Brahmaputra,
Dibang and Luhit. The Brahmaputra rises near
Manasarowar and flows eastward for a distance of.
1,000 miles, this portion being known as the Tsang-
Po. It turns sharply southward near the peak
Namcha-Barwa; the southward flowing part of its
course, until it emerges into the plains, is called
the Dihang. In the Assam plains it is called the
Brahmaputra.
Rivers of Burm.{L
The chief rivers of Burma are the Irrawaddy.
Chindwin, Sittang and Salween. The Irrawaddy
rises in the mountains of Upper Burma and is joined
by the Chindwin in Pakokku. It would appear that
the Irrawaddy formerly flowed in what is now part
of the course of Sittang, but has captured the Chind-
win and inherited its lower course. The Salween
rises in Tibet and flows through the Shan States into
the Bay of Bengal near Moulmein. This river has a
comparatively narrow drainage basin and its course
is marked by gorges and steep-sided valleys.
All the great rivers of S.E. Asia-the Irrawaddy.
Salween, Mekong, Yang-tse-Kiang-rise in a small
area in eastern Tibet, but after flowing for a short
distance along parallel courses between mountain
ranges, fan out to empty themselves ultimately into
the Bay of Bengal, the Sunda Sea and South China.
Sea as the case may be. Their courses are controlled
by the geological structure which finds expression
in the physiography of the region of South-east Asia.
Lakes
PENINSULA.-For a country of its size, India has
very few lakes. A few lakes on the coast like the
Chilka lake, Pulicat lake, and the back-waters
(kayals) of Travancore and Malabar are bodies of
sea-water cut off by bars or spits.
THE SAMBHAR LAKE and two or three others in
Rajputana are bodies of water derived and accumu-
lated from inland drainage, possessing high salinity.
A part of the salt content is attributable to particles
of sea salt carried by wind inland from the Rann of
Cutch and the Arabian sea. The Sambhar lake
leaves, on the partial evaporation of its water
content, a deposit of salt which is collected and used.
. THE LoNAR LAKE in Berar is a circular depres-
sion of volcanic origin, the water in which evaporates
and leaves a deposit of sodium salts. The DHANDS
in Sind are alkaline lakes amidst sand hills. The
KALLAR KAUAR, SON SAKESAR and a few other lakes
in the Punjab are saline lakes.
HIMALAYAS AND TmET.-There are numerous
lakes in the Tibetan plateau, some of which are of
large extent (e.g., Koko Nor, 1,630 square miles).
As they are depressions in areas of inland drainage
their waters are saline. The Tsai-dam depression
occupies a large area and is practically a salt-laden
desert.
Both glacial and fresh water lakes are found
amidst the Himalayan ranges. Typical examples
are the Manasarowar, Rakas Tal, Yam Drok, Wular,
Naini Tal, Bhim Tal, etc. Most of these are probably
due to obstructed drainage.
BURMA.-There are only a few lakes of impor-
tance in Burma. The Indawgyi and Indaw lakes, in
the Myitkyina and Katha districts respectively, are
probably of tectonic origin. The Inle lake in the
Shan States is situated at an altitude of 3,000 ft.
Some crater lakes occur near Shwezaye. In the
Shwebo and Sagaing districts, in the dry belt of
Burma, there are a few saline lakes. There are also
fresh-water lakes in the delta region of Lower Burma
which seem to have been formed as a result of
obstruction to river drainage.
Volcanoes
Peninsular and Extra-Peninsular India witnessed
volcanic phenomena on a grand scale in Upper
Cretaceous to early Eocene times. Upper Tertiary
activity is found in several places in Lower Burma.
Evidences of recent activity are found only in the
Barren Island and Narcondam in the Bay of Bengal
and in the Nushki desert of Baluchistan.
Barren Island and N orcondam are situated on
a ridge, a good deal of which is submerged, lying
Jlarallel to the Arakan-Andaman-Sumatra arc.
Barren Island shows a volcanic cone and crater, the
rocks being andesite and basalt with volcanic ash.
The volcano was seen in eruption in 1789, 1795 and
Us03. Narcondam appears to be a recently extinct
volcano. This same belt continues northwards into
Burma.
The Koh-i-Sultan mountain in the Baluchistan

.desert is an extinct volcano showing lavas and ash~
beds. Koh-i~Taftan in Iran has been active during
historic times. Sulphur deposits are found in the
l(oh-i-Sultan in association with ash-beds.
E al't hquakes
The Tertiary fold-belt of the Extra-Peninsulal!
mountain arcs is a region of earthquakes, Earth-
quakes occur particularly in the overthrust zones
marking the junction of different groups of rocks.
"The Indo-Gangetic alluvial tracts are also unstable
and are known to contain foci of seismic disturbance.
Within the last hundred years, several disastrous
earthquakes have occurred in the Pamir region,
Kashmir, Quetta, Kangra, North Bihar, Assam and
Burma, involving heavy loss of life and property.
'Special reports have been published by the Geological
'Survey of India on the following earthquakes-
As.sam (1897, 1930, 1950), Kangra (1905), Baluchis-
tan (1909, 1931, 1935), Burma (1912, 1930) and
North Bihar (1934)-dealing with the geological
~nd other aspects of the seismic phenomena.
14 INTRODUCTION TO THE GEOLOGY OF INDlA.
Mud-Volcanoes
Though having the cone-structure and associated
with phenomena resembling those of volcanoes, these
are not volcanoes in the strict sense. They are due
to the eruption of mud and gas from comparatively
shallow depths in strata containing petroleum and
natural gas. The cones may attain a height of 20(}
to 300 feet in a dry region like Baluchistan, but high
cones are easily destroyed in Burma by the action of
rain. The temperature of the eruptions is slightly
above that of the atmosphere. The eruptions may
be violent but are quite local in their effects.
Mud-volcanoes occur in Burma on either side of
the Arakan YomltS, those of the Arakan coast being
famous. Others are also found in and around the
oil fields of Burma and on the Mekran coast of
Baluchistan.
Since earthquakes affect the superficial strata.
over large areas, they are known to bring mud-
volcanoes into action if the latter lie in the affected
region.
Structure of India
PENINSULA.-The Peninsula of India consists
largely of ancient crystalline and metamorphic rocks.
and exhibits a high degree of stability. Parts of it
are occupied by the Cuddapah and Vindhyan forma-
tions, the Gondwanas, and the lava flows of the
Deccan Trap.
The ancient metamorphic rocks, though consist-
ing of diverse rock materials and possessed of highly
complex structures, show certain broad regional
features BUch 88 strike directions.
The region of Rajputana has a general strike
1>arallel to the Aravallis (Aravalli st1-ike) baving a
N.E.-S.W. direction. Practically parallel to this is
t'le Eastern Ghats stl'ike in the area occupied by the
Eastern Ghats and parts of the Assam plateau.
In southern Bombay, Mysore. parts of Hydera-
bad and Ne]Jore (Andhra) the prevalent direction is
N.N.W.-S.S.E., which may be called the Dharwarian
stti.ke. More or less the same strike direction (vary-
ing to N.W.-S.E.) is seen in parts of the areas of the
Mahanadi drainage and Madhya Pradesh (Mahanadi
strike) and in the southernmost districts of Madras,
apparently extending into Ceylon.
Another trend, seen in parts of Madhya Pradesh
and Bihar, is related to the Satpuras and may there-
fore be called the Satpwra strike, its dominant
direction being E.N.E.-W.S.W.
Interference of two or three of these structures
is seen in a few places. From our present knowledge
it may be stated that the rocks showing the Aravalli
and Dharwarian strikes are the oldest, perhaps 2,400
million years old. The Eastern Ghats rocks and
structures are about 1,600 million years old. The
rocks comprised in the Satpura Orogeny, which
include those of the Bihar mica belt, are of the order
of 950 to 1,000 million years old. Younger still
(about 740 million years old) are the rocks subjected
to post-Delhi Orogeny but lying in the Aravalli
mountain belt; the compression along the eastern
margin of the Cuddapab basin of Andhra are thought
to be approximately of the same age as the last.
The Cuddapah-Vindhyan rocks occur in a few
areas, overlying the Archrea.ns--e.g., the Cuddapah
basin of Andhra, the Jeypore-Bastar area and the
great Vindhyan basin of Central India. They have
been folded and overthrust in post-Cuddapah times
and less intensely in post,.Vindhyan times.
The Gondwana formations are found in a series
of faulted troughs along the Son-Damodar, Mahanadi
and Godavari valleys. The forces which affected
these were therefore tensional and not compressional.
The Deccan Traps occupy a large area in
Bombay, Kathiawar, Central India, Madhya Pradesh
and Hyderabad. They appear to have been poured
out as lava flows from fissures in the earth's crust and
repose on the land surface as vast horizontal sheets.
They are practically unaffected by earth movements.
Occasionally, how~ver, they show very gentle folding.
~ The western coast of India, and especialJy the
continental shelf, is extraordinarily straight and
indicates that it has been faulted. The age of the
fault is probably early Tertiary and may be related
to the final disruption of the Gondwanaland. Parts
of this coast have been uplifted in late Tertiary times
as indicated by the presence of Tertiary sediments
of Miocene age on the coasts of Travancore, Surat
and Kathiawar. Close to the western coast there is
a ridge, part of which rises above the sea-level as the
Laccadives and Maldives. This ridge is thought to-
be the southerly continuation of the Aravalli
Mountains.
The eastern coast is irregular and has had a
longer history. Roughly the present shape seems to
have been attained in Jurassic times, for we find
Jurassic (Upper Gondwana) sediments along this
coast. Marine transgressions have occurred also in
Cretaceous and Miocene times along this coast, these
representing secular changes in the relative levels of
land and sea.
THE EXTRA-PENINSULA.-The Himalaya Moun-
tains and the connected north-western and Burmese
a.rcs were formed during the Tertiary times, in a
series of four or five major movements. The first
phase of the upheaval is dated in Upper Cretaceous
while the second in Upper Eocene marks the end of
marine sedimentation in this region, except in
restricted basins. During the succeeding quiescent
interval were deposited the Murree, Nari-Gaj and
Pegu formations. The next upheaval took place in
Middle Miocene times when probably a conspicuous
linear trough (or series of connected troughs) was.
formed along the southern foot of the Himalayas, in
which the Siwalik sediments accumulated. These
sediments, which form the foot-hill zone of the
Himalayas at the present time, are of the nature of
fluviatile deposits, laid down mostly in fresh water by
the action of rivers carrying coarse sandy material.
The fourth movement occurred in Upper Pliocene to
Lower Pleistocene times. Feebler movements are
known to have taken place in later Pleistocene also.
The first upheaval must l).ave determined the
general trend of Himalayan structure but the second
and third must also have been of great magnitude.
For we see the rocks folded, faulted and overthrust
repeatedly in a complicated way, producing thrust-
sheets (nappes) and inversions in the succession of
the strata. The older rocks are seen thrust over
younger sediments, and these in turn over the Siwalik
formations.
The rock formations of the Himalayan region
execute remarkable hair-pin bends at the north-
western extremity beyond the Nanga Parbat and in
the north-eastern extremity in the Sadiya region of
Upper Assam. These are due to wedges of the
comparatively rigid peninsular mass pressing against
the softer rocks deposited in the marine Himalayan
zone. The festoon-like appearance of the outcrops
of the strata and their sharp compression near
Mianwali, Dehra Ismail Khan and Sibi-Quetia
indicate the presence of minor wedges of the same
type which have produced similar effects.
In the Baluchistan are, rocks of two facies are
brought together in Hazara, separated by a zone of
<Ii location. The north-western side of this disloca-
tion shows the Tibetan facies similar to that of Spiti,
while the south-eastern side shows the Calcareous
facies characteristic of Baluchistan. The Calcareous
fa~ies, consisting of rocks of Liassic to Eocene age,
is found immediately bordering on India. Beyond
it is the zone of rocks of the Flysch facies, that is,
unfossiliferous sandy sediments resembling some
E:uropean Alpine rocks of Oligocene age. Further
:away, in the interior of Baluchistan, is a zone showing
rocks of various ages which have suffered less com-
pression than the rocks of the Calcareous zone.
Compared to the North-West Frontier region,
the Mekran part of Baluchistan exhibits open folds
and the rocks are spread out over a much larger
width, a part forming land and a part submerged
under the sea to the south of Mekran.
Turning now to the Burmese arc, we notice here
also three distinct zones parallel to each other. The
Arakan belt is closest to India and comprises rocks
of the 'Axial Group' (Cretaceous and some Pre-
(Jretaceous rocks), bordered on the west by Tertiary
rocks. It is an interesting fact that these Cretaceous
rocks resemble the strata of Baluchistan rather than
those of the Assam Plateau. This Arakan belt
continues into the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and
furtbE'.r iOUth into Sumatra and Java. It serves as
a zone of separation between the Tertiaries of A am
and similar rocks of Burma.
To the east of the Arakan belt is the (central)
Tertiary belt of Burma, consisting mainly of rocks
of the Pegu and Irrawaddy series of strata. The
two belts are separated by faults. The Barren
Island-Narcondam ridge belongs to a zone near the
border of these two belts.
To the east of the Burmese arc is the zone compris-
ing the Shan States, Tenasserim and Malaya, where
Archlean, Palreozoic and Mesozoic strata are found.
This is separated from the central belt by a zone of
overthrust. It belongs to south-east Asia, being
similar to Thailand and S. W. China.
We have seen that the Extra-Peninsular rockS'
form arcs of different magnitudes and are thrust
over towards India. According to one view, the
compressive forces acted from the north, north-west
and north-east, thrusting the comparatively softer
rocks over and against India. A sag (or fore-deep)
in the crust was formed thereby in front of the-
advancing masses, now occupied by the Indo-Gangetic
alluvium. A more recent, and perhaps more accept-
able, view is that the comparatively rigid mass of
India travelled northward and was thrust under the
softer sedimentary formations around its northern
horders. Geological and geodetic data appear to.
support the latter view of the northward drift of the
Indian continent. This drift should have taken place
at the different times indicated by the phases of the
Himalayan upheaval, with quiescent periods interven-
ing. With the data available at present, it will
scarcely be possible to estimate the precise magnitude
of the drift, but it may be suggested that it is of the-
order of several degrees of latitude.
CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF INDIAN STRATIGRAPHY
Gene1'al Principles
Stratigraphy is the branch of Geology which

deals with the inter-relationship of strata and theu
arrangement and history. Of the major groups of
rocks of the earth's crust, only the sedimentary rocks
are comparatively easily arranged in the order of age
because of their mode of formation and because they
-contain the remains or organisms which flourished
while they were laid down. The criteria useful in
stratigraphical studies are the order of superposition
of strata, lithology, fossil contents and structural
.characters.
A fundamental concept in stratigraphy is the
order of superposition of formations. Amongst sedi-
mentary strata, a newer or younger formation always
overlies the one preceding it in age. When we deal
with a set of strata in a regular succession, the bed
.at the bottom is normally the oldest, and the ones
above are uccessively younger.
The arne order of succession is met with in the
same strata, over a wide region, unless they happen
to have been disturbed by geological processes. A
number of beds, lying one over the other in regular
order and sometimes grading into one another, are
said to have conforma.ble relationship. Any interrup-
tion in the process of sedimentation or any irregu-
larity in deposition produces unconformity. This
feature may be marked by an abrupt change in the
sequence and in the strike and dip of the rocks. An
REVIEW OF INDIAN STRATIGRAPHY 21
overlap is produced when a bed transgresses the limit
of deposition of the one immediately underlying it
and spreads over still Qlder beds. This is usually
brought about by an extension of the area of the
basin of sedimentation. The reverse of this also
bappens sometimes. If sedimentation is interrupted
by a temporary upheaval of the beds into dry land, a
period of erosion may intervene before sedimentation
is renewed; in such a case, there is partial erosion of
the beds, and the resumption of deposition is marked
by a zone of coarse sediments such as pebble-beds or
conglomerates.
The li thology of a bed, that is its mineral
(:omposition, is generally uniform over appreciable
areas. But the same bed may show lateral variation
when followed from place to place such as change
from a shale to limestone or other type. This is
eonditioned by the nature of the sediment being
deposited over the different parts of the same
'Sedimentary basin at one time. On the other hand
formations of different periods and those in widely
separated areas may be of the same character, and
may even bear great resemblance to each other.
An important aid to stratigraphical study is the
presence of fossils. The fossil assemblage of each
period is characteristic of it. Each assemblage,
however, comprises numerous species which are
dissimilar and which may have different degrees of
pp.rsistence in geological time. In the determination
of the age of the enclosing rocks, the long-lived
species, which have a long range of time, are not so
useful as those which have a short range. Species of
some of the specialised groups of animals, such as the
graptolites and ammonites, whose time-range is very
limited, are useful in sub-dividing formations into
small units called Stages and Zone8.
~2 INTRODUCTION TO THE GEOLOGY OJ' INDIA
Several faunal groups may be contemporaneous.
The areas in which each group thrives are generally
isolated from each other; or, if connected, the
environment may be different. We have thus different
marine faunas of the same age, as also marine,.
fiuviatile and lacustrine faunas. In these cases, the
correlation of the formations with the aid of the
faunas will have to take into account the evolutionary
stage of the elements composing each fauna and other
relevant factors.
The differences . in physical environment giV&
rise to different fa cies which affect both the lithology
and fossil content. "Ve have thus the deep sea,
shallow marine and coastal facies as also estuarine,
fluviatile and continental facies; and with reference
to lithology, the limestone, shale and sandstone facies.
etc. In accordance with the conditions of formation,
large areas may have the same facies, but on the
other hand even adjacent areas may show marked
differences.
Since the earth's crust is subject to changes with
lapse of time, its components are variously affected
by these changes. The rocks may be subjected to-
compressional forces and may suffer tilting, folding
and overthrusting; they may also be disrupted and
faulted by tension. They may be cut up by igneous
intrusions and metamorphosed by thermal and
dynamical effects. All these have to be carefulbr
observed and taken into account in the study of
stratigraphical geology.
The formations composing the crust are arrang-
ed into major units called Groups which are
sub-divided into Systems, Series and Stages. The
units of geological time corresponding to these are
era., epoch, period and a.ge. The divisions in each
REVIEW OF INDIAN STRATIGRAPHY 23
unit are not necessarily of equal magnitude; they
will depend to a large extent on lithological and
<Other characters.
The chief geological units are given in Table 1.
Table 1.-The Standard Geological Formations
Groups Systems
Recent
Quaternary { 'Pleistocene
Pliocene
Miocene
Teniary or Kainozoic
{ Oligocene
Eocene
Cretaceous
Secondary or M~ic Jurassic
{ Triassic
pennian
Carboniferous
Devonian
Primary or Palaeozoic Silurian
{ Ordovician
Cambrian
Eozoic Algonkian (Pre-Caml>zian)
.Archaean or Azoic { Archaean
The terms Azoic (life-less). Palreozoic (ancient life),

~tc., denote the stage of development of the organisms
found in the Groups.
The names of the standard formations (also

indicative of age) given in Table 1 were first adopted
in Europe and are now of universal application. The
iCirmations in different parts of the world vary widely
but the adoption of such a general scale facilitates
~lescription and comparison.
U INTRODUCTION TO THE GEOLOGY OF INDIA
REVIEW OF INDIAN FORMATIONS
The greater part of the Peninsula of India is
occupied by the Archrean rocks, comprising gneisses
and schists, and igneous and metamorphic rocks of
diverse origin and characters. Next in order of age
are the Cuddapah and Vindhyan rocks, followed by
the coal-bearing Gondwana formations, and rocks of
the Mesozoic and Tertiary Groups. Western and
Central India are covered by lava flows of the Deccan
Trap. The fossiliferous sedimentary systems occupy
but a small part of the Peninsula.
The Extra-Peninsula, on the other hand, shows.
a grand development of marine sediments of all ages.
especially to the north of the main Himalayan axis.
Cnfossiliferous sediments and igneous and meta-
morphic rocks are encountered mainly in the Great
Himalayas and Lesser Himalayas. The Baluchistan
arc is built up mainly of Mesozoic and Tertiary
formations, the Tertiaries predominating in the
Mekran region. In Burma there are three main
belts-a western Mesozoic and Tertiary belt, a
middle one of Tertiary formations and an eastern
one containing rocks extending in age from the
Archrean to the Mesozoic.
The general sequence of formations in India is
given in Table 2. There is a great deal of variation
from place to place in lithology and facies, the corre-
lation of formations thereby becoming difficult,
especially in the Peninsula. There are certain well-
marked unconformities in India which are not so
prominent elsewhere. Above the Archreans proper,
which include also the Dharwarian Group (metamor-
phosed sedimentarie with igneous materials), there
are the unfossiliferou8 Cuddapahs and Vindhyans,
corresponding roughly to the Algonkian of America.
R.EV1EW OF INDIAN STRATIGRAPHY 25
These were formerly referred to as the Upper
Transition Systems, but Sir T. H. Holland proposed
the term PURANA GROUP for them. In Holland's
classification, the formations from the base of the
Cambrian to the base of the Talchir series (Upper
Carboniferous) are put together as the DRAVIDIAN
GROUP, while all the strata from the Upper Carboni-
ferous upwards are designated as the ARYAN GROUP.
The line of division between these two groups is a
well-marked and universal unconformity in Penin-
sular and Extra-Peninsular India brought about by
the great disturbances which are recognised in many
parts of the world and which are often referred to
as the Hercynian revolution.
There are still some areas in India which await

geological study, such as parts of Orissa, Assam and
the Himalayas. The uncertainties of correlation will
gradually disappear in course of time as more detailed
and accurate information is made available by the
fi1ling up of the gaps and by the revision of the
mapping of the areas about which we have as yet only
meagre information.
Table 2.-Geological Formations of India,
Standard Extra-Peninsula Peninsula
Recent Recent alluvia, loess. ~tc. Recent alluvia. Desert

deposits, ~c.
Pleistocene ... Old~r alluvia. Pleistocene. Older alluvia. Pleistoc=e,
Cave deposits. Laterite.
Mio-Pliocene. Siwalik. Irrawaddy and Cud d a 10 r e Sandstones.
ManchharSystems. Tipam and Dihin,
I Series, Quilon beds, ~.

Standard Extt'B-Penwula Peninsula
Oligo- Murree, Pegu, Nari and Nari and Gaj

Miocene Gaj Series, Mekran Sys- BaraH and
tem; Kasauli and Dag- Series.
ahai beds.
Eocene Ranikot, Laki, Kirthat and Jaintia and &rail Series ;
Chh8t'Bt Series; Su- Coastal Eocene.
bathu beds; Burma
Eocene.
Ctetaceo- Deccan Traps and Inter-
Eocene Trappeans.
Cretaceous ... Giomal and Chikkim Se- Lametas. Bagh beds, Tri-
ries ;-Parh Limestone; chinopoly and Assam
Pab Sandstones. Cretaceous.
Juruaic Jurassic; Spiti Shales; Jurassic of Cutch ; Upper
Namyau beds. Gondwanas.
Triassic Triassic Panchet and Mahaden
Series (Gondwana).
Permian (Up. Pennian; Productus Beds Lower Gonuwanas.
Carboni- Speckled Sandstone;
ferou.) Zewan beds, Upper
Plateau Limestones.
Carboniferous Fenestella Shales Lower
Plateau Limestones.
Devonian Muth Quartzite; De,"O-
nian.
Silurian- Silurian-Otdovician
Otdovician.
Cambrian Haimanta System; Cam- (?) Vindhyan Sysrem.
brian.
Algonkian Haimanta System; Do- Vindhyan IlI)d Cuddapala
lt1'll, Attoclt and Simla Systems.
Slates; Chaung Magri
cries.
Archaean Salkhala, Jutogh and Chait DharwBr and Aranlli
Series; Gneisses. etc. Systems. Granites and
Gneisses.
CHAPTER III
THE ARCHAEAN GROUP-PENINSULA
In the Archrean Group are included all the
ancient formations which lie below the great un
(:onformity called the eparchaean unconformity. That
is to say, the Archreans include the rocks below the
base of the Cuddapah formations and their equi-
valents. They include a variety of gneisses and
schists comprising metamorphic rocks of both
sedimentary and igneous origin. They are intruded
into, and partly assimilated by, igneous masses
belonging to more than one period. Within the
Archreans are included a group of metamorphic
rocks, to a large extent of sedimentary origin, which
occur as compressed and folded strips, the synclinal
portions of which have escaped denudation. These
are referred to in South India as the DHARWARIAN
SYSTEM of rocks, named after the district of Dharwar
in Mysore. Their equivalents are found in other
parts of India and have received different local
names--Champaner, Aravalli, Iron-ore, Gangpur,
Sausar, Sakoli and Shillong series.
The Archrean rocks were formed at a time when

the crust of the earth did not support any life. Even
if living organisms did exist in the latter part of the
era, they were soft-bodied and did not possess any
hard skeletons which could be preserved in the strata.
Such impressions as were left by them must have
been obliterated by the repeated disturbances to
which the earth's crust was subjected during and
.after the Archrean times.
The original crust of the earth must have been
entirely igneous in character. It is, however, doubt-
ful whether any such primordial crust exists at the
present day in any part of the globe, for it would have
become mixed up with the later-formed materials
and transformed out of all recognition. Some of the
gneissic rocks, usually referred to as the FUNDA-
MENTAL GNEISS or BASEMENT COMPLEX, are appar-
ently the oldest rocks available, and they form the
foundation or basement on which the later Archreans
and the sedimentary systems repose. Most of the
gneisses seen at present in Archrean areas are
complex mixtures of igneous and sedimentary rocks
subjected to repeated changes including re-fusion,
igneous intrusion and assimilation.
The Archreans are found over about two-thirds
of Peninsular India. They cover the greater part
of Southern India, stretching from Cape Comorin
through Hyderabad and the Ea tern Ghats to Orissa,
Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. They are found
in Ceylon and Assam and in many parts of the Extra-
Peninsula. As a general description will not be
applicable to all the areas, we shall give short regional
descriptions and indicate, within the limitations set by
the available information, certain common features
helpful in their correlation.
SOUTH INDIA
Mysore is one of the regions where the Archaean
rocks have been studied in considerable detail.-nte
Dharwarian rocks here include both original igneous
and sedimentary types. The igneous types are
represented by hornblendic and chloritic rocks as wen
as granulites containing garnet, pyroxene, sillimanite,
staurolite, etc. The sedimentary types are various
ichistose rocks such as mica-schists, talc-schists,
THE ARCHAEAN GROUP-PENINSULA 29
chlorite-schists, quartzites, ferruginous quartzites,
etc. Some years ago, the Dharwarian rocks used to
be separated into a hornblendic and a chloritic
division, and the former regarded as the older.
Recent work by Mr. B. Rama Rao and his colleagues
of the Mysore Geological Department has shown that
the rock types are related to the intensity of meta-
morphic changes to which they were subjected and
not so much to their age. For instance, it is seen
that in the northern parts of the Mysore State the
tocks form broad belts and are largely chloritic in
constitution and associated with argillites, lime-
stones and quartzite. When followed into Central
Mysore, the chloritic rocks gradually become horn-
bJendic and the sedimentary types schistose. In the
southern parts of the State, the exposures are found
as comparatively small lenses and strips and the
rocks become granulitic, indicating a high grade of
metamorphism.
Structurally, the different strips of Dharwarians
appear to belong to one great series of folded rocks
with fold axes plunging to the north. The anticlines
hAve mostly been eroded away, leaving the synclines
exposed amidst the gneisses. The southern areas
represent parts which were originally buried deeper
than the northern and have, therefore, been subjected
to higher grades of metamorphism. They thus show
rock types containing garnet, kyanite, sillimanite~
cordierite, staurolite, etc. There are also exposures
of ultrabasic rocks, associated with chromite and
magnesite, south of Mysore city.
All the Archrean (Dharwarian) rocks of Mysore

were formerly regarded as of igneous origin,
particularly by Dr. W. F. Smooth. The hematite-
and magnetite-quartzites were thought to be altered
30 INTRODUCTION TO THE GEOLOGY OF INDU
amphibole rocks and the conglomerates to be auto--
clastic and derived from felsites and porphyries.
But it is now recognised that many of these are of
sedimentary origin.
The Dharwarian rocks occur as a series of long
and narrow, highly folded, strips traversing southern
Bombay, part of Andhra Pradesh and Mysore. Their
general trend as well as the schistosity of the rocb
is N . N . W.-8. 8 . E., which becomes nearly N .-8. in the
southern areas. The succession worked out i:a
l'.fysore is shown in Table 3.
Table 3.-Archman Succession in Mysore
... ~
Basic dykes. chiefly doJerites .

t Felsite and porphyry dykes.
Closepet granite. only occasionally foliated.
Charnockites (regarded as mainly recrystallised oWer
CS rocks) .
.!.
8 Homblendic and Norite dykes.
~ Peninsular Gneiss-Coroplex granite-gneisses.
.
8.Co Calcareous, argillaceous and ferruginous rocb aad
conglomerates, generally partly altered.
:=>
-- Granite and granite-porphyry, altered to foliated
~ :9."
gneisses.
~ Ironstones. limestones. argillaceous rocks, quartzites,
en basic and ultrabasic rocks and tuffs-altered lO
~ ~ banded ferruginous rocks, schists and crystalline
! limestones.
--
..d
Q
.. Acid volcanics including rhyolites, felsites and quart:J-
porphyry with opalescent quartz--e.Ltered to mica-
! ceous gneisses and quartz-schists.

Basic dykes and . flpwp,-altered to amphibolites.
greenst0!les, etc.
The Lower Dharwars are largely, if not

entirely. of igneous origin and consist of basic and
acidic igneous rocks associated with some siliceous
THE ARCHAEAN GROUP-PENINSULA 31
materials. The Middle Dharwars contain some un-
doubted sediments--micaceous quartzites, ferrugin-
ous rocks, slaty schists and limestones--in addition
to much igneous materials and they are invaded by
granites and porphyries. The Upper Dharwars are
mainly of sedimentary origin and include conglome-
rates, I quartzites, argillites, slates and ferruginous
rocks. Iron-ores and manganese-ores of commercial
importance are found in these.
Along the eastern edge of the Kolar schist belt,
there is a grey micaceous gneiss containing small
blebs of opalescent quartz. This is called the
CHAMPION GNEISS, which is regarded as intrusive
into the Dharwars. There are also a few other type
like granites and porphyries which contain similar
quartz, so that no clear-cut definition seems possible
in order to separate the Champion Gneiss from some-
what similar rocks.
A later group of gneissic rocks is called the
PBNINSULAR GNEISS. This consists of a mixture
of granites, granodiorites and composite gneisses,
often containing mica, hornblende and some minor
accessories. These are the result of granitisation
(intimate mixture with, and soaking by, granite) I
of earlier schistose rocks. The Peninsular Gneiss

has a wide distribution in Mysore and its equivalents
are found all over Peninsular India in the banded
and composite gneisses of other areas.
'--.,. R_
. (18-
te' )
!
Anaimalais and Shevaroys in South India and a180
in parts of the Eastern Ghats. This group is
\ characterised by the presence of the orthorhombic
pyroxene and hypersthene, in the several types which
include acid, intermediate, basic and ultra-basic
one$. The chief minerals are a waxy-looking bluish
quartz, microcline, plagioclase and an orthorhombic
pyroxene. Augite and hornblende are sometimes
found. Biotite is rare. Some types are rich in
garnet, while the basic members are norites, hypers-
thenites and pyroxenites.
The charnockite show phenomena characteristic
of igneous rocks such as contact effects, segregation
and association with tongues and veins derived from
them. Sir Thomas Holland, who studied them,
regarded them as a suite of igneous rocks. Mr. E.
Vredenburg suggested that they might be the
products of metamorphism of the Dharwarian rocks.
Studies in recent years have given rise to the opinion
that they are of mixed origin and that they exhibit
characters ascribable to plutonic metamorphism,
showing in many places phenomena similar to those
of original igneous rocks. Dr. P. K. Ghosh haa
observed that the charnockites of Ba tar State are
derived from the hybridisation of calc-granulites by
granitic rocks, while Mr. B. Rama Rao has found
that in Mysore they are of diverse origin involving
the re-crystallisation of some types of igneous,
sedimentary and mixed rocks.
Belonging to the Archreans and intrusive into
the rocks already described, are the CLoSEPIlT
GRANITES, exposed typically near Channapatna and
Closepet in Mysore. They are grey or pink biotite-
granites, coarse grained and often porphyritic.
They are associated with felsite and porphyries, and
frequently contain inclusions of older rocks. Rocks
THE ARCHAEAN GROUP--PENINSULA SS
similar to these are the Bellary Gneiss, Hosur Gneiss,
Dome Gneiss, Singhbhum Granite, MyUiem Granite,
etc.
The gneisses are traversed by numerous quartz
veins of white or blue-grey colour. Some of these
contain gold, either in association with pyrite or
sometimes as the native metal. The blue quartz
veins carry the best values and are worked in the
Kolar gold field.
\_, In the former State of Hyderabad, the Archmans
are similar to those of Mysore. The gneissic group
comprises two types-the GREY GNEISS and PINK
GNEISS. The former is a banded gneiss similar to
the Peninsular Gneiss while the latter is essentially
a granite corresponding to the Closepet granite.
These are also intersected by dykes of porphyry and
felsite. Quartz veins occur in shear zones in the
Dharwars and near their junction with the gneisses.
There are bluish and white quartz veins, some of
which are gold-bearing, the gold values being more
often associated with the bluish than with the white
quartz, as in Mysore.
Bands of Dharwarian rocks occur in the Nellore
district and in parts of Madras. The grey CARNATIC
GNEISS of Nellore has the characters of Peninsular
Gneiss and there is also a pink granite or gneissic
granite. In the northern parts of Nellore and
Guntur, the granitic rocks are rich in fluorite and
topaz, while in the southern parts there are numerous
large pegmatites containing important deposits of
mica and also some beryl, samarskite, etc.
In several districts, notably Salem, Arcot and
Trichinopoly, the Dharwarians contain banded
ferruginous rocks which have largely been meta-
morphosed to magnetite-quartzites. The Dharwars
34 JNTRODUCTION TO THE GEOLOGY OF INDIA
and associated gneisses have aN. W.-S. E. trend in
the southernmost districts of Madras, these appar-
ently continuing into south-western Ceylon.
There are also certain other interesting types
of rocks in the Arc1ueans of Madras and Mysore.
Nepheline-, corundum- and augite-syenites occur in
the Sivamalai Hills of the Coimbatore district, while
nepheline-syenites occur in Koraput in Orissa.
Anorthosites containing corundum occur at Sitham-
pundi and other places, a few miles south of Sankari-
drug in Salem district. Corundum-syenites and
felspar-corundum rocks occur near Palakod in Salem
and in parts of Mysore. Olivine rocks, altered in
places to anastomosing veinB of magnesite, occur
near Salem town and in a few other places in the
same district (Salem). pyroxenites associated with
veins of cbromite are found in Mysore and in the
Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh.
Ceylon
The geology of Ceylon shows that the island is
really a part of the Indian Peninsula. Except for a
few small exposures of Tertiary rocks on the north-
western coast, the island consists of Archrean rocks.
The regional strike of the rocks is N.E.-S.W. in the
north-eastern part, N.-S. in the central region and
N.W.-S.E. in the south-western part. The rock
groups found in the island are the KHONDALITES,
CHARNOCKITES, BINTENNE G:NEISS, WANNI GNEISS
and pegmatite and basic dykes.
The khondalites (quartz-garnet-sillimanite-
gneisses or schists often containing graphite) and
Charnocldtes occupy a north-south belt running-
through the centre of the island, while the Bintenne
Gneiss is found in the south-east and the Wanni
THE ARCHAEAN GROUP--PENTNSULA 85
Gneiss in the north-west. The Khondalites are
similar to the occurrences in the Eastern Ghats (see
below) and are associated with hornblende-gneiss,
calc-gneiss and crystalline limestones. The Char-
nocldtes include occasional micaceous types. The
Bintenne Gneiss is a banded composite gneiss associ-
ated with granite-gneiss, garnetiferous gneiss and
crystalline dolomite. It appears to be similar to the
Peninsular Gneiss of South India. The Wanni
Gneiss contains both granitic and gneissic types and
may largely correspond to the Bellary Gneiss.
Eastern Ghats
The general trend of the mountains as well as of
the rocks of the Eastern Ghats is N.E.-S.W. The
rocks which make up this region--from the Krishna
river in the south to the borders of Bengal in the
north-are the khondalites, charnockites, gneisses
and a few other types. The KHONDALITES (name
given by Dr. T. L. Walker, after the Khonds who
inhabit parts of Orissa) are highly metamorphosed
sediments containing quartz, garnet and sillimanite,
with flakes and nests of graphite, and occasional
felspar in some places. The presence of garnet
and sillimanite is attributable to high grade meta-
morphism. They are apparently intruded by the
charnockites which are similar to the occurrences in
Southern Madras. Other types found in the Eastern
Ghats are certain gneisses, calc-granulites, crystal-
line limestones, and a peculiar hybrid rock called
KODURITE. This last, named after Kodur in the
Visakhapatnam district, consists of quartz, felspar,
manganese-garnet, manganese-pyroxene and apatite
in various proportions. It is due to the recrystallisa-
tion of mixtures of varying proportions of a
manganiferous sediment on the one hand and of
igneous rocks of acid to intermediate composition,
possibly fairly rich in apatite, on the other, giving
rise to several interesting combinations of mangani-
ferous garnet, pyroxene and amphibole, with quartz,
felspar and apatite. Altered portions of these rocks
give rise to manganese-ores as in Kodur, Garbham
and other places in the Visakhapatnam and Ganjam
districts. '
Chota Nagpur
The region on the border of Bihar, Orissa and
Madhya Pradesh is called Chota Nagpur, comprising
the districts of Singhbhum, Ranchi and Sambalpul',
and the neighbouring parts of Orissa. The Archreans
of this region have been sub-divided as shown in
Table 4.
Table 4.-The Archreans of Chota Nagpur
Formations Descriptions
Newer Dolerite Quartz-dolerite and some more basic types.

Kolhan Series Shales and limestones with basal sandstone
and conglomerate.
Singhbhum Granite Granite to grano-diorite generally unfoliated.
Ultrabasic rock.a Peridotites, saxonites, etc., with chromite.
Iron-ore Series Shales and banded jaspers with iron-ore
bodies.
GangpurSeries Gondite, marbles, carbon-phyllites and
mica-schists.
Older Metamorphic Hornblendic quartzose and micaceouS'
Series. schists.
- ------...:_.------ - -_ .. _--_ ..
THE ARCHAEAN GROUP-PENINSULA 31'
In Table 4, there is an unconformity separating
each unit from the one above and below it. The
oldest rocks seem to be certain quartz-, hornblende-,
and mica-schists found in South Singhbhum. a
comparatively small lenses, known as the OLDER
METAMORPHIC SERIES. A recent view is that this
eries does not exist and that the Iron-ore Serie is
the oldest. The GANGPUR SERIES, in the Gangpur
State (now called Sundargarh District) to the west
of Singhbhum, forms an anticlinorium over which
part of the Iron-ore Series lies 'w ith a profound un-
conformity. It comprises gondites (manganiferous
rocks), marbles, carbonaceous phyllites and mica-
schists. The IRON-ORE SERIES consists of shales and'
banded hematite..quartzites (banded jaspers) associ-
ated with lavas in South Singhbhum and also with
tuffs in North Singhbhum. These banded rocks have
given rise, by enrichment, to several very important
deposits of iron-ore in South Singhbhum, Keonjhar,
Bonai and Mayurbhanj. Certain ultrabasic rocks
(dunites, peridotites and saxonites) occur in Singh-
bhum near Chaibasa, with which chromite lodes are
associated.
The above series of rocks are intruded by the
SJNGHBHUM GRANITE which is generally unfoliated
but shows banding near its contacts with the
schistose rocks. In N. Singhbhum there are some
soda-granites and granophyre (the ARKASANI GRA-
NOPHYRE) which are probably related to the Singh-
bhum Granite. There is also a granite-gneiss, called
the CHOTA NAGPUR GRANITE-GNEISS in part of
Singhbhum, Ranchi and other districts, mainly to the
north of the schistose rocks. It is intrusive into th~
Iron-ore Series, and is probably older than th
Singhbhum Granite. It used to be formerly callea
the BENGAL GNEISS, especially the banded and com-.
posite part of it. Apparently the same gnei~~
a-ranitic with little or no foliation, is called the DOME
GNEISS in Hazaribagh and Manbhum. Pegmatitic
rocks in Hazaribagh, Gaya and Monghyr contain mica
deposits of importance and also some rare minerals
like columbite-tantalite and pitch-blende. Intrusive
into the Singhbhum Granite are numerous dykes of
quartz-dolerite, some of the thick ones being of the
nature of gabbro or norite.
The Iron-ore series shows a metamorphosed
facies in N. Singhbhum, which is separated by a
thrust zone from the unmetamorphosed facies. The
major thrust zone is marked by copper deposits and
apatite-magnetite rocks. Two other, less important,
thrust zones, parallel to the major one, occur further
north. The generAl trend of the strike of the
Archrean rocks in Chota Nagpur is E.N.E.-W.S.W.
Archrean rocks occur in West Bengal, Orissa, and
Bihar where also schistose rocks and granitic gneisses
are found. Some anorthositic rocks are found in an
area in Bengal not far south of the Raniganj coal-
field.
In the Jeypore-Bastar region on the borders of
Madras, Orissa and Madhya Pradesh, there are
several different types of gneisses, schists, calc-rocks
and banded ferruginous rocks, intruded by granites
and basic dykes. Bastar and Chanda and Drug
districts contain important iron-ore deposits similar
to those of Chota Nagpur.
Madhya Pradesh
Archrean rocks cover large areas in Madhya
Pradesh parts of which have been studied in detail
by Sir i. L. Fermor and others. In the Bilaspur-
Balaghat region they are called the CHILPI GHAT
SERIES and the SONAWANI SERIES. The former
contains quartzites, slates, grits, manganiferous rocks
and greenstones. The Sonawani Series may be older
THE ARCHAEAN GROUP--PENINSULA 39
than the Chilpis. These are invaded by three groups
of granitic rocks, a schistose biotite-gneiss, a porphy-
ritic granite-gneiss and a granite. The first two
probably represent the Peninsular Gneiss and the
last the BeHary Gneiss.
The Chilpi rocks continue westwards into
Nagpur, Bhandara and Chhindwara districts where
the Archreans have been closely studied. The oldest
rocks here occur in the northern tract and comprise
quartz-schists, calc-schists Bud marbles, granulites,
mica-schists, amphibolites and manganiferous rocks.
This group of rocks has been named the SAUSAR
SERIES by Sir L. L. Fermor. The metamorphosed
manganiferous sediments constitute the GONDITES
whose essential minerals are quartz and manganese-
garnet (spessartite) together with manganese-bear-
ing pyroxenes, amphiboles and epidotes, and
manganese-ores (psilomelane, braunite, pyrolusite,
etc.)
The Sausar Series appears to be overlain by the
SAKOLI SERIES which consists of chloritic and epidotic
schists, slates, phyllites, and banded ferruginous
rocks. But in reality it may be the less metamor-
phosed upper part of the Sausars. The sequence in
this region may be summarised as shown in Table 5.
Table 5.-The A.rch;eans of Madhya Pradesh
Eastern Area I Western Area

-------------------- ._ ----
Amla Granite
Porphyritic gneiss
::I Granite
Schistose biotite-gneiss Gneisses
Cbilpi Ghat Series Sakoli Series
Sonawmi Series Suasar Series

Jabalpur
In the Jabalpur area the Archreans consist of
phyllites, mica-schists, calcitic and dolomitic marbles
and in some places manganiferous and ferruginous
rocks. These have been folded up with metamor-
phosed basic rocks. The calc-rocks are found in
the northern area while the ferruginous rocks art"
common in the south.
Rajast1uLn
Much work has been accomplished in Rajasthan
during the past two decades by Dr. A. M. Heron and
other officers of the Geological Survey of India. The
most interesting part of the area is occupied by the
Aravalli mountain system, the central part of which
if! a synclinorium. The rock groups here are shown
in Table 6.
Table 6.-The Archmans of Rajast1uLn
Fonnations Descriptions
Raialo eries Marbles and garnetiIerous mica-schists.

Aravalli System Quartzites, conglomerates, siliceous lime-
stones, composite gneisses and basic
volcanics.
Bundelkhand Gneiss Largely unfoliated granite.
Banded Gnei ic Complex. Banded composite gneisses.
The BANDED GNEISSIC COMPLEX is a group of

well foliated gneisses consisting of alternating bands
of biotite-gnei s and granite. They may contain
also metamorpho ed amphibolites and hornblende-
schists. The BUNDELKHAND GNEISS is an unfoliated
THE ARCHAEAN GROUP-PENINSULA. .4.1
pink granite with aplite veins and prominent qu,artz
reefs. It is often intersected by basic dykes. Th~
Bundelkhand gneiss occupies also large areas in
Bundelkhand in Central India. The nature of the
relationship between the Gneissic Complex and this
is not known as the two have nowhere been found in
juxta-position.
Overlying these with a distinct 'erosion un ..
conformity' is the ARAVALLI SYSTEM, which correi~
ponds to the Dharwarian System of South India.
This group of formations includes arkose, grits,
phyllites, impure argillaceous and cherty limestones
and altered basic volcanics. The formations are
dominantly argillaceous and the grade of meta-
morphism varies from place to place. The Aravallis
have now been connected up with the CHAMPANER
SERIES of Gujarat by continuous mapping and their.
identity has been established. These latter (the
Champaner Series) ' contain workable deposits of
manganese-ore. The Aravallis are intruded by bosses
and veins of fine-grained granite and by ultrabasic
rocks (converted into talc-serpentine rocks) and
epidiorites. In the Kishengarh area they are
intruded by nepheline-syenites and sodalite-syenites,
the latter forming also coarse sodalite-pegmatites.
The sodalite has sometimes a fine carmine colour when
freshly broken, but this colour fades soon on exposure
to light. Much of the sodalite is of a fine deep blue
colour.
The RAIALO SERIES overlies the Aravallis un-
conformably. It consists mainly of limestones,
typical of which are the Makrana, Rajnagar and
Bhagwanpura marbles. The M akrana marble is a
fine white ornamental marble with pale grey cloudy
streaks and patches. It has been used in the
construction of the Taj Mahal at Agra and the
42 INTRODUCTIO~ TO THE GEOLOGY OF INDIA
Victoria Memorial at Calcutta. Pink and light
blue-grey varieties of the Makrana marble are also
known.
Assam
The rocks of the Assam plater.u are apparently
continuous with the Archreans of Bihar underneath
the Ganges alluvium. The plateau comprises the
Garo, Khasi and Jaintia Hills and further east is the
detached mass of the Mikir Hills.
The Archreans occupy a large part of the plateau.
They comprise the SHILLONG SERIES of quartzites,
phyllites, mica-sohists and hornblende-schists and
banded ferruginous rocks. Folded up with them are
the KHASI GREENSTONES which include epidiorites and
amphibolites. There are also a composite biotitic
granite-gneiss and the MYLLIEM GRANITE, intrusive
into these. The last is an unfoliated granite which,
however, forms a banded gneiss near the junction
zone with the schists. The gneissic rocks contain
lenses and patches of pyroxene-granulite resembling
the charnockites.
Correlation of the Peninsular ArchlBans

The correlation of the Archreans is a matter of
g'reat difficulty because of the absence of fossils, their
complex constitution, varying degrees of metamor-
phism, the great variety of lithological types involved
and the complex structures exhibited by them.
Much work still l'emains to be done before a satis-
factory scheme of correlation can be established.
The criteria available for sedimentary formations-
stratigraphical super-position, lithology and fossil
contents-are of no avail here. For the Archreans
include a great variety of types which have a complex
THE ARCHAEAN GROUP--PENINSULA 43
history and which may be mixtures of original
sedimentary and igneous rocks, and whose final
mineralogical composition depended upon the condi-
tions of metamorphism to which they have been
subjected. The intense folding, faulting, disruption
and dislocation experienced by the formations make
it extremely difficult to unravel their structural
relationships. Nevertheless, certain facts are sug-
gestive, and a broad correlation may be attempted.
The Schistose types are now recogni ed in most
of the areas as the oldest formations. As already
lloted, they include both igneous and sedimentary
materials. It is only in Rajasthan that the Banded
Gneissic Complex and the Bundelkhand Gneiss are
regarded as older than the AravaIli schists, but this
iq subject to revision.
The schi tose rocks in several areas show two
types of association--manganiferous and calc-rocks
in one case, and ferruginous rocks in the other.
The manganese-marble association is seen in the
Sausar Series of Madhya Pradesh, the Gangpur
Series of Chota Nagpur, the Champaner Series of
Gujarat and in parts of the AravalJis, the JabaJpur
region and the Eastern Ghats. These may be
regarded as forming an older division of the
Dharwarian.
The ferruginous rocks are found in the Dharwars
of the type area in S. Bombay, in parts of Mysore
and southern Madras, the Iron-ore Series of Chota
Nagpur and Bastar, the upper portion of the
sequence in Jabalpur and the Sakoli Series of
Madhya Pradesh and in the Shillong Series. These
seem to constitute an upper division. There are, of
course, local peculiarities and differences in strati-
graphy. The Raialos of Rajasthan form a division
above the Aravallis as do the Kolhan Series of Singb-
bhum above the Iron-ore Series. In Mysore there is
a lower division composed almost entirely of meta-
morphosed basic igneous rocks, whereas in the
Eastern Ghats there are the khondalites with their
high degree of metamorphism, though these a.re
associated with manganiferous and marble rocks in
general.
The Dharwarians are intruded by two (or even
thr e) series of granitic rocks. The older group
forms composite and banded gneisses which are of
the type of the Peninsular Gneiss and the Carnatic,
(Bintenne) and Chota Nagpur Gneisses. It may be
noted here that ~ the Banded Gneissic Complex of
Rajasthan is regarded as older than the schistose
rocks.
The later intrusions are massive, unfoliated
granites together with their pegmatite and vein
Quartz systems. These are the Close pet Granite,
Bellary Gneiss, Hosur Gneiss (Wanni Gneiss),
Singhbhum Granite, Amla Granite, Mylliem Granite,
etc.
These broad suggestions are all that could be
offered at present for the correlation of the Archamns
in view of the difficulties indicated above.
CHAPTER IV
THE ARCHAEAN GROUP-
EXTRA-PENINSULA
Pre-Cambrian rocks are found in many parts of
the Extra-Peninsula but it is not always possible to
eeparate the Archrean and Algonkian formations in
these areas. Hence it appears best to deal with
these two groups here, though an attempt will be
made to indicate them separately, where possible.
North-west HimaZaya
Pre-Cambrian rocks have been noted in Gilgit,
Baltistan, Northern Kashmir, Ladakh and Zanskar.
In the Kashmir-Hazara region they are called the
SALKHALA SERIES. They include quartzites, slates,
phyllites; micaceous, carbonaceous, calc and graphitic
schists; and biotite-gneisses. The Salkhalas are
well seen in the Nanga Parbat and in the mountaine
north of the Kishenganga where they have been
granitised by intrusions of acid igneous rocks.
The Salkhalas are associated with a GNEISSIC
COMPLEX which contains muscovitic, biotitic, hom-
blendic and other types, well exposed, for instance, in
the Zanskar and Dhauladhar ranges. Both the
gneissic complex and Salkhalas are invaded by
gabbro, dolerite, hornblende-granite, tourmaline-
granite and associated pegmatite. The age of the
granitic intrusions has not been worked out but at
least the hornblende-granite is post-Cretaceous.
The Salkbalas are overlain in places by the
DOGRA SLATES which are mainly slaty rocks with
subordinate bands of quartzites and flags. They are
found in the Kishenganga valley and in the Pir Panjal
Range and are probably some thousands of feet thick.
They appear to be the equivalents of the Cuddapahs
and Vindhyans. The Salkbalas and the Dogra
Slates are probably the equivalents of the Jutogh
Series of Simla and the Attock Slates of the Punjab
respectively.
Kumaon-Garhwal Himalaya
In Hundes and in the valley of the Spiti River
north of the Great Himalayan Range, there are
highly folded and partly denuded ancient mica-
schists, phyllites and slates which have been named
the VAIKRITA SYSTEM. They are associated with a
gneissic complex. These rock groups are apparently
of Archean age. Succeeding the Vaikrita rocks is
the HAIMANTA SYSTEM whose components are
quartzites, slates and shales. Sir Henry Hayden
regarded the whole of the Haimantas as Cambrian,
though only the upper part contains Cambrian fossils
while the lower part is unfossiliferous.
Rocks of presumably Archean age, known as
the JUTOGH SERIES and the CHAIL SERIES, are seen in
the sub-Himalayan region of Simla. The Jutoghs
omprise slates, schists, carbonaceous slates and some
marbles and resemble the Salkhalas. The Chails are
mainly quartzites, limestones and slates. The two
are separated by a zone of thrust and both lie on the
SIMLA SLATES which resemble the Dogra Slates and
are regarded as of Pre-Cambrian to Cambrian age.
These rocks are intruded by the CHOR GRANITE which
is well exposed in the Chor Peak.
. In the Chakrata area norih of Debra Dun, the
chail Series is well developed and is found thrust
THE ARCHAEAN GROUP-EXTRA-PENINSULA 47
over the Deoban Limestone which may be of
Palreozoic age. Gneisses, granulites and schistose
and slaty rocks are found in Garhwal and these have
heen traced up to Badrinath.
N epal-Sikkim
In this area the Archrean rocks assume two
facies, a gneissic and a schistose. The first is the
DARJEELING SERIES, which is a group of banded
gneissic rocks. The schistose group is the DALING
SERIES which includes slates and phyllites grading
into schists and granulites containing garnet, stauro-
lite, kyanite and sillimanite. In parts of Sikkim and
Nepal there are also marbles and pyroxene-granulites.
The two series were formerly considered as two
separate entities. Recent work seems to show that
the Darjeelings are merely the granite-injected and
more metamorphosed parts of the Dalings.
Eastern Himalaya
The BuxA SERIES of Bhutan is known to contain
quartzites, slates, phyllites, mica-schists, calc-rocks
and ferruginous rocks resembling the Archrean rocks
of Chota Nagpur. Since typical Lower Gondwanas
also occur in the Darjeeling area and Bhutan, it is to
be inferred that the Peninsula extended here ;n
Archrean times and persisted up to the Gondwana era.
In the Assam Himalayas and in the Sadiya tract
in the extreme north-east of Assam, gneisses, schists
.and calc-rocks are known to occur. The little
information we possess of these regions w~s gathered
-<luring military expeditions.
48 INTRODUCTION TO 'tHE GEOLOGY OF INDIA
Burma
Granitic gneisses and schists are known to oCCllr
in the Myitkyina region of Upper Burma. In the
Mogok tract, the MOGOK SERIES consists of gneisses.
granulites, garnet-sillimanite-schists resembling the
khondalites, crystalline marbles, calc-gneisses and
calc-granulites. These are intruded by granitic
rocks, and nepheline-bearing rocks often occur in the
contact region between the acid intrusive and the
calc-rocks. There are .also intrusions of syenite,
granite and basic and ultra-basic rocks, the latest
being the KABAING GRANITE.
This region -is very interesting for its great
variety of igneous and metamorphic rocks and for
the number and variety of the gemstones it produces.
In addition to ruby for which the tract is famous.
there are sapphire, spinel, garnet, scapolite, peridot.
zircon, topaz, tourmaline, beryl, moonstone, etc.
Recently, Dr. E. L. G. Clegg has expressed the
opinion that at least a part of the rocks here may be
Palreozoic as for example the calc-rocks, which
may be the representatives of the Plateau Lime-
stone. It seems the question of the age can be
clarified only if this region is connected up with
neighbouring areas by geological mapping.
Archrean rocks occupy a large area in the Shan
States where the TAWNG PENG SYSTEM includes the
MONG LONG SCHISTS and the CHAUNG MAGYI SERlES.
The Mong Long biotite-schists are probably definitely
Archrean and they are intruded by granites. The
Chaung Magyis may be of Arcbrean or Cuddapah age.
The Chaung Magyi Series overlies the Mong Long
schists and consists of quartzites, slates, phyllites
and greywackes. These are also intruded by granites
and basic dykes.
THE ARCHAEAN GROUP-EXTRA-PENlNS'VLA 49
In Tenasserim, a group of rocks comprising
quartzites, greywackes, argillites, limestones and
agglomerates is called the MERGU! 'SERIES: These
rocks are much disturbed and folded, and intruded
by granite. The age of the Mergui Series is debated,
some taking it to be Pre-Cambrian and others
regarding it as Upper PalEeOzoic. '
Minero,l Deposits in the Archzcrn8
The Archa:mn rocks are undoubtedly by far the
most important mineral-bearing formations of India.
Numerous deposits of metalliferous ores and non-
metallic minerals occur in them.
GOLD.-Quartz veins containing gold occur in
many parts of the Peninsula, generally as veins
intrusive into the Dharwarian schists. The most
notable of these are the deposits in the Kolar gold
field of Mysore where the rich veins persist to a
depth of several thousand feet and are regarded as
of high temperature hydrothermal origin. Less
important deposits occur in Anantapur (Andhra
Pradesh), Hyderabad and Chota Nagpur.
COPPER-ORES in the form of copper stdphides,
which near the surface are found altered to carbo-
nates, occur in the Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh,
along the main overthrust zone of Singhbhum in
Bihar, in Sikkim and in Rajasthan. Copper-ores are
being worked only in the Singhbhum district. The
other occurrences have not yet been thoroughly
in vestiga ted.
IRON-ORES (hematite) of very high grade are
found capping numerous hills of ferruginous quartz-
ites in Chota Nagpur, Orissa and Madhy~ Pradesh.
Hematite ores occur also in Southern Bombay and
Mysore, while magnetite ores occar in Mysore, Salem
.and Trichinopoly. Magnetites which are titaniferous
.and vanadiferous occur in Mayurbhanj but these are
of igneous origin.
MANGANESE-ORES are associated with gondite
and kodurite in Panch Mahals and Narukot in
Bombay, in the Nagpur, Bhandara, Chhindwara,
Bilaspur and Balaghat districts of the former Madhya.
Pradesh, in the Sundargarh district of Orissa and in
I the Vizagapatam district of Andhra Pradesh. Inferior
ores, akin to laterite, occur in Mysore, Bellary, Bel-
gaum, Singhbhum and other places.
CHROMITE is found as veins in some ultra-basic
rocks of Southern Mysore, Krishna, Keonjhar and
8inghbhum districts. Ores of cobalt are known in
Nepal and Rajasthan. Though there is much, but
sparsely distributed, ilmenite and titanife1'OUB magne-
tite in various parts of India, the best source of high
grade ilmenite is the coastal sand of some parts of
Kerala. Pockets of lead-ore, 'Wolfram, and columbite-
tantalite are occasionally found but rarely in workable
.quantities. Arsenic, antimony and molybdenum
minerals occur in Burma and in some parts of India.
MICA is easily the most important mineral of
the non-metallic group produced in India. The
mica-pegmatites of Bihar, Madras and Rajasthan
yield muscovite, while phlogopite is found associated
with pyroxenites in Kerala. Magnesite deposits
are found in the ultra-basic rocks of Mysore and
Salem. Asbestos deposits, mostly of the amphibole
variety, are found in Chota Nagpur, Mysore and
Rajasthan, but they are worked only sporadically.
-Other useful mineral deposits are those of kyattite
in Chota N agpur; sillimanite in Assam and Madhya
Pradesh; corundum in Assam, Madhya Pradesh and
Madras; graphite in parts of Orissa, Eastern Ghats
THE ARCHAEAN GROUP-EXTRA-PENINSULA 51
and Kerala; garnet in some schistose areas, and
steatite and talc-schist (potstone) in many places.
Some of the Archrean granites have given rise to
kaolin deposits in Kerala, parts of Madras and
Bihar. Some paint pigments (red oxide, ochres and
carbonaceous phyllite) occur in many parts of India.
and their use is expanding.
A large variety of gemstones is derived from the
Archreans. The most important gems from the
Mogok area in Burma have already been mentioned.
Amongst the others are sapphire in Kashmir;
aquamarine in Kashmir, Rajasthan and Madras;
garnet in Rajasthan, tourmaline in Kashmir, Nepal
and the Shan States.
The Archreans are a rich store-house of a..
variety of excellent building and decorative stone.".
Porphyritic and gneissic granites and charnockites.
have been used, especially in South India, in the
magnificent temples, forts and palaces, and in the
construction of bridges, culverts, etc. Many of the
crystalline limestones and dolomites are of high
decorative value. Such rocks are found in Rajasthan.
Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Madras.
Many of the less durable and architectllrally indiffe-
rent-looking stones, such as quartzites, slaty schists
and gneisses find considerable use for building-
purposes in the vicinity of their occurrences.
CHAPTER V
THE CUDDAPAH (KADAPA) SYSTEM
The close of the Archrean era was marked by
in~nse earth movements and intrusions of granitic
rocks on a grand scale. Then followed a period of
~omparative quiescence during which the land
surface was denuded by atmospheric agencies and
edirnentation became active. This denudation pro-
duced a great discordance which is spoken of as the
.e1}archl.8an 'ltnconfonnity.
The sediments which were laid down in the suc-
ceeding era are those of the Cuddapab System, named
after the district of Cuddapah in Andhr9. Pradesh.
'The Cuddapah rocks comprise quartzites, shales,
slates, limestones and some banded jaspers. They
have undergone folding and comparatively low grade
of metamorphism. Except in Rajasthan, these rocks
do not show the high metamorphism and schistose
type which are found in the Archreans. They are
Apparently devoid of recognisable fossils though
orne of th~ argillaceous rocks are suitable for the
preservation of organic remains.
Rocks of this age are found in Cuddapah and the
neighbouring districts. There is a large basin in
Chhattisgarh (a part of Madhya Pradesh) and in
Jeypore and Bastar. The Delhi system of Rajasthan
is also of the same age.
Andhra Pradesh
The Cuddapah basin of Andhra Pradesh was
studied by W. King about 1870, but the work has not
been revised since. We shall therefore adopt King's
Tn. CUDDAPAH SYSTEJ( 58
classification, which is given in Table 7. The total
thickness of the formations is estimated at 20,000
feet.
Table 7.-The Cuddapah System
Srisailam quartzites
Kistna Series (2,000 ft.) ... KolamnBlB slates
{ Irlakondo quartzites
.S . f { Cum burn slates

Nallamalai efles (3,400 t.) Bairenltonda quartzites
Pullam pet (Tadplltri) Slates

Cheyair Series (10,500 It.) { Nagari (Pulivendln) quartzites
Vempalle slntes and limestones

Papaghni Series (4,500 ft.) { Gulcheru (Guvvalacheruvu) quartzites
Archaeans.
Each of the major divisions of the Cuddapahs

is sub-divided into two or three stages. The lowest
division, named the PAPAGHNI SERIES after a river
of that name in Cuddapah, consists of basal quartz-
ites and conglomerates succeeded by slates and
limestones. The lower stage is a quartzite forming
the hills of the border of the CUddapah basin south
of Cuddapah. The upper stage, called the Vempalle
limestones and slates, is important as it contains
deposits of barite and chrysotile asbestos.
The CHEYAffi SERIES occurs in two areas separat-
ed by a strip of the rocks of the younger Kurnool
system. The prominent quartzites near Nagari
north-west of Madras and the shales near Tadpatri
in Anantapur district belong to this division. The
NALLAMALAI SERIES is well developed in the hills
bearing that name and include some good slates
(Cumbum slates) worked near Markapur on the
border of Kurnool and Nellore districts. Some lime-
stones of this division contain pockets and veins 'of
lead-ore. The KISTNA SERIES, named after the
Kistna (Krishna) River, forms plateaux on the north-
western and northern sides of the Cuddapab basin.
The Cuddapahs contain numerous sills of dolerite
which are of post-Cheyair age but not later than the
Nallamalai Series.
Southern Bombay
The Upper Cuddapahs are represented in the
area between Kaladgi and Belgaum by the KALADGI
SERIES. It is divided into two groups: the lower one
consists of conglomerates, quartzites, slates, lime-
stones and hornstones, while the upper one is restrict-
ed in extent and contains quartzites, shales, limestones
and hematite-schists. The aggregate thickness of
the Kaladgis is around 13,000 feet.
It has recently been noted that the Kaladgis
have been intruded by granite which has produced
metamorphic effects on the sediments.
Godavari Valley and Madhya Pradesh
Along the Godavari valley, in Hyderabad, Dr.
King described a group of rocks as the PAKHAL
SERIES, comprising sandstones and slates with some
limestones. Recent work by Dr. Mahadevan seems
to show that the Pakhals, as mapped by King, contain
phyllites, crystalline limestones and ferruginous
rocks resembling the rocks of parts of Chota Nagpur.
They may therefore really be of Archrean age.
The PENGANGA BEDS in the valley of the
Pranhita, a tributary of the Godavari, consist of
limestones and shales.
Patcbes of Cuddapah rocks are also found in the
Jeypore-Bastar region where the eastern exposures
THE CUDDAPAH SYSTEM 55
show more folding and disturbance than the western
ones.
The RAIPUR LIMESTONE and some shales and
sandstones in the Chhattisgarh region of Madhya
Pradesh are also probably of Cuddapah age.
Central India
The BIJAWAR SERIES, found in the former Bija-
war State of Central India, includes basal sandstones
and quart7.ites overlain by limestones and ferruginous
sandstones. They are associated with lava flows,
dykes and sills of basic rock. These basic rocks,
though supposed to be the original home of the
diamonds now found in the conglomerates of the
succeeding Vindhyan (and Kurnool) System, have
not so far yielded any diamond. But it has now been
shown that the occurrence at Majhgawan near Panna
is really a volcanic pipe of ultrabasic rock containing
-diamonds.
Raiasthan
The equivalent of the Cuddapahs in Rajasthan
is the DELHI SYSTEM. The rocks of this system
extend from Delhi to Idar and are best seen in the
synclinorium in Ajmer and Western Mewar (Udaipur
State). They overlie the Raialo Series unconform-
ably and are in turn overlain by the Vindhyans. The
Delhi System is seen to have undergone much disturb-
ance and folding and intrusion by later granite.
The chief divisions of this are the lower ALWAR
SERIES of quartzites, grits and conglomerates, and
the upper AJABGARR SERIES of phyllites, biotite-
schists, calciphyres and schistose calcareous rocks.
The Delhis are intruded by the ERINPURA and
!DAR GRANITES in Central and Southern Rajasthan
and by the Malani igneous rocks in Western
Rajasthan. These latter include the JALOR and
SIWANA GRANITES and MALANI RHYOLITES, felsites
and acid tuft's. There are also basic igneous rocks
and some ultrabasics (now seen as talc-serpentine
rocks) intrusive into them.
The GwALlOR SYSTEM of the neighbourhood of
Gwalior city may be the equivalent of the Cuddapahs
and Delhis, though it also resembles the unmetamor-
phosed Aravallis. Its lower division, called the PAR
SERIES, consists of sandstones, quartzites and shales;
the upper division, the MORAR SERIES, contains shales,
limestones, hornstones, jasper and contemporaneous
basic traps. -
Mineral Deposits
The rocks of the Cuddapah System yield a few
useful mineral substances. Slates are quarried at
Markapur in the Kurnool district (Andhra Pradesh)
and at Kund in Rajasthan. Some sandstones are
worked in the Alwar State. The limestones find only
local use. The banded jaspers of the Bijawas are
good decorative stones and have been used in the Taj
Mahal in inlaid decoration.
In the Vempalle limestones (dolomitic), intrusive
traps have produced veins of good ChMJsoti~e asbesto8
at the zone of junction. Such asbestos is workad
near Pulivendla in the Cuddapah district. To the
effect of the same traps must be attributed the barite
(barytes) veins worked in several places in Cudda-
pah, Anantapur and Kurnool districts. The barite
occurs as veins both in the limestones and in the traps
near the junction zone. The Alwar quartzites in
Alwar district near Delhi also contain veins of barite.
THE CUDDAPAH SYSTEM 57
In a few places in Cuddapah and Kurnool there
are small deposits of lead-m'e. They. are apparently
not of much importance.
As a curiosity, may be mentioned the ftexible
.sandstone from Jind in Rajasthan. The arrangement
'()f the inter-locking grains in the sandstone, which
may be due to the removal of part of the interstitial
amenting material, allows of a slight bending of the
pieces of the sandstone.
CHAPTER VI
THE VINDHYAN SYSTEM
The rocks of the Cuddapah System were folded.
lifted up and denuded before the deposition of the
succeeding Vindhyan System began. There is there-
(ore a well marked unconformity between these two
systems. The Vindhyan System derives its name
from the Vindhya Mountains and occupies a large
area stretching from Dehri-on-Son to Gwalior and
Hoshangabad and from Chitorgarh to Agra. The
area covered by the system is about 40,000 square
miles.
The greater part of the exposures consists of

the Upper Vindhyans which often rest directly on
the Cuddapahs or older rocks. The Lower Vindhyans
llre developed in the Son valley where there is a
pronounced unconformity between them and the
Upper Vindhyans. There are also unconformities
!':eparating the major divisions of the Vindhyans.
The Vindhyans are unfossiliferous. The only
fossils found are some small discs named FeT7noria,
about the nature of which there is a difference of
opinion and some microscopic plant fragments.
Table B.-The Vindhyan Sydtem
Bhander Series Calcareous and arenaceous.

Upper ... Rewa Series Arenaceous
{ Kaimur Series Arenaceous
Lower ... Semri Series Calcareous.
THE VINDHYAN SYSTEM 59
The main divisions of the Vindhyans are shown
in Table 8. Each of these is about 1,000 feet to
1,500 feet in thickness, except the SEMRI SERlES
whose total thickness may be 3,000 feet.
SEMRI SERIEs.-The lower Vindhyans are
~posed underneath the scarp of the Kaimur sand-
stones, from Sasaram westwards for over 200 miles.
They consist of basal conglomerates, limestones,
porcellanites, glauconitic sandstones and alternating
limestones ahd shales. The last~mentioned are the
Rhotas limestones which are used for lime and
<:ement making in the Son valley. The Semri Series
is intruded by dykes of dolerite and basalt.
In Karauli and in Chitor areas in Rajasthan the
Semris are represented by grits, sandstones, shales
and limestones, lying unconformably over the Ara-
vallis.
KAIMUR SERIES.-The Kaimurs are mainly
arenaceous formations with interbedded shales with
which are associated carbonaceous shales and bands
of siderite (iron carbonate) and pyritic matter. The
arenaceous members include quartzites, conglome~
rates and grits. They are named after the Kaimur
range.
REWA SERIEs.-These rocks are separated from
the underlying Kaimurs and the overlying Bhanders
by zones of diamond~bearing conglomerates. The
Rewas consist of rather coarse sandstones and flag-
stones showing current~bedding.
BRANDER SERIEs.-The Bhanders comprise sand-
stones and subordinate limestones and shales. The
sandstones are light red and soft, with small white
specks and patches. They are frequently used as
building stones. In Bome parts of Rajasthan there
are veins of gypsum in the Bhanders. The preval-
ence of red tints and the presence of gypsum show
that they are deposits laid down under arid
conditions.
The Vindhyans form a plateau region, the
and stones giving rise to scarps and the shales t&
the intervening plains or gentle slopes. They are
horizontal or gently dipping over large areas b~t
show signs of disturbance near some of the margins.
In Rajasthan they are faulted against the Aravallis,
the prominent fault there being known as the Great
Boundary Fault, which can be traced fol' a distance
of some 500 miles. They are also invaded by tha
Malani igneous rocks and some basic dykes in
Rajasthan.
A ndhra Pradesh
The Cuddapah basin in Andhra Pradesh contains
rocks belonging to the Vindhyan System which are
here called the KURNOOL SERIES and are regarded as the
equivalents of the Lower Vindhyans. They occur in
the valley of the Kundair River and in the Palnad
tract of the Guntur district.
Table 9.-The Kurnool Series
f
Kundair Series ... Shales and limestones
PBDiam (panem) Series. Quartzites
i
Kumool
System ... Jwnmalmadugu Series. Shales, Rags and lime-
stones
Banganapolli Series ... Sandstones
The sub-divisions of the Kurnools are given in

Table 9. The BANGANAPALLI SANDSTONES are shaly;
'l'RE VINDHYAN SYSTEM 61
gritty or conglomeratic. The grits and conglome-
rates are sources of diamonds and were formerly
worked extensively. .
The JAMMALMADUGU SERIES consists of lime-
stones (NARJI LIMESTONES), shales and calcareous
slaty shales. The Narji limestones are fine grained
and include some fine coloured varieties-fawn, buff,
blue, grey, red and varicoloured-which are used as
building stones. The slaty rocks yield excellent slaty
flagstones which, though calcareous, are durable and
are used extensively in Madras and Andhra Pradesh
for building, paving, roofing, etc.
The PANIAM SERn;s compri es sandstones an~
quartzites which are well developed around Panem in
Kurnoa!. The KUNDAIR SERIES is composed of lime-
stones and shales.
Bhima and Godavari Valleys
In the Gulbarga and Bijapur districts, in the
valley of the .Bhima River, are found some formation~
which are referable to the Kurnools. These artt
called the BHIMA SERIES and compris~ three divisions.
The lower division is mainly arenaceous, the middle-
calcareous and the upper shaly. The rocks lie over
the Archreans and are horizontal and undisturbed
except near some faults and at their junction with
the Deccan Traps.
The SULLAVAI SERIES, of sandstones, quartzites
and slates, is found near Sullavai and in the Dewal-
mari Hills. It overlies the Pakhals and is considered
to be of Kurnool age.
The Vindhyans contain marine deposits which
are seen in the lower portion. The upper part seems
to have been deposited in an arid region, the deposits
being red sandstones and shales with occasionaT
gypsum. The Upper Vindhyans are lithologically \
.,2 lNTRODUCTION TO THE GEOLOGY OF INDIA
similar to the Purple Sandstones of the Salt Range
which are Cambrian in age. Hence it is probable
that a part of the Upper Vindhyans is also Cambrian
in age.
The Kurnools, Bhimas and Sullavais are refer-
able to the lower Vindhyans. They are all marine
formations.
Mineral Deposita
DIAMONDs.-The Vindhyan and Kurnool for-
mations have been, for centuries, worked for
diamonds. Diamond pebbles are found in the
Banganapalli grits and conglomerates and in the
conglomerate beds separating the Kaimur, Rewa and
Bhander Series from each other. The conglomerates
are worked in the Panna area of Madhya Pradesh at
the pr sent day- and stones :re so occasionally
recovered from the neighbourhood of Wajra Karur in
Anantapur district. Golconda in Hyaerabad was
'form rly a famous mart for the trade in diamonds.
No diamonds have yet been found either in the
vo canic neck at Wajra Karur or in the Bijawar traps
which have been suggested as the source rocks.
But in recent years it has been proved that the
circular area at Majhgawan near Panna, in which
diamonds have been worked, is of the nature of a
volcanic pipe. It is composed of a dark brecciated
. rock rich in olivine, of deep-seated origin, resembling
the kimberlite of South Africa to some extent. Near
the surface it has been altered to a spongy tufaceous
rock of calcareous nature. There are indications that
careful search in this region will reveal the existence
Qf other similar volcanic pipes.
LIMESTONES AND SLATES.-Vindhyan limestones
8.re extensively used for the manufacture of lime and
~ment, especially in . the Son valley, Jabalpur and
THE VINDHYAN SYSTEM 63.
in the Bhima valley. The Narji limes~ne.!' in the
Cuddapah basin yield -e3Ccenent buildmg stones _!nd
marbles for decorative building. The calcareou I
slaty flagstones (called 'Cuddapah slabs') of the :-

J ammalmadugu gro up are quarried near Yerraguntla
and Jammalmadugu in the Cuddapah district and
near Betamcherla in the Kurnool district. They are
used as paving stones, as roofing slabs, for fencing
and for general building purposes. Slabs measuring
6 feet by 4 feet and from 1;2 inch to 4 or 5 inches in
thickness can be obtained. They take a fairly good
polish and have been used as table-tops, tomb-stones,.'
mile-posts, etc. The shales in the Jammalmadugu
formations contain China-clay, fire-cla,y and ochres.
BUILDING STONES.-In addition to the Narji
limestones and 'Cuddapah slabs', there are also other-
Vindhyan rocks used for building purposes. The
Nimbahera limestones have been used in Chitorgarh
and some limestones showing spherulitic structures,
obtained from Sabalgarh near Gwalior, have been
used in the Taj Mahal in inlaid work. The limestones
of the Palnad region in Andhra Pradesh have also
been used in the Buddhist sculptures at Amaravati on
the Krishna River.
Vindhyan sandstones have been extensively used
for centuries in northern India. Their uniform
grain, pleasing colours and easy workability have
made them adaptable to a variety of purposes, as
building stones, flagstones for paving and roofing,
fence posts, milestones, telegraph poles, etc. Many
buildings of the present and past-such as the forts
Bnd palaces at Chunar, Agra, Delhi, Lahore ana
Jodhpur, almost the entire city of Fatehpur-Sikri
near Agra and the Buddhist stupas of Sarnath,
Barhut and San chi-have used Vindhyan sandstone-
in their construction.
CHAPTER VII
THE PALAEOZOIC GROUP
CAMBRIAN TO CARBONIFEROUS
THE CAMBRIAN SYSTEM
Marine fossiliferous rocks of Pabeozoic age are
absent from the Peninsula except for a small patch of
LOwer Permian age near Umaria. They are well
developed in the Extra-Peninsula.
The Salt Range

The Punjab Salt Range offers one of the most
instructive groups of geological sections. The Salt
Range extends between the Jhelum and the Indus
Rivers, the eastern portion showing Cambrian rocks
overlain by successively younger strata as we travel
from east to west. The northern slopes show
Tertiary strata which merge gradually into the Pot-
war plateau which are covered by the Siwalik forma-
tions of Upper Tertiary age. The top is formed of
Eocene limestone and the scarp side on the south
exposes Eocene and Permian limestones. The south-
ern slope shows the rocks overfolded and thrust to
the south. The Cambrian succession is shown in
Table 10.
SALT MARL.-The Salt Marl (or SALINE SERIES)
is an unstratified calcareous clay or marl, of red and
purple colours, impregnated with grains of salt,
gypsum and calcium or magnesium carbonate.
Sections in the mines show occasional bedding and
signs of flow due to pressure, marKed by streakiness'
THE PALAEOZOIC GROUP 66
~nd contortion of layers. It contains beds of solid
rock-salt and gypsum in places and also beds and
lenses of bituminous shale and bedded dolomite.
Table lO.-The Cambrian of the Salt Range
Formations. Description.
Salt Pseudomorph Shales Red and greenish shales with casts of
salt crystals.
Magnesian Sandstone Cream coloured dolomitic sandstone.
eobolus Beds Grey shales containing the brachiopod
NeoboLru.
Purple andstone Fine-grained purple sandstones and
some shales.
Salt Marl Bright red and maroon marl with salt
and gypsum.
At Khewra, in the eastern part of the Range,

the Salt Marl attains a thickness of 500 feet. The
'ock-salt is colourless to pink and contains impure
~ayers called kallar. Intercalated layers of kallar,
gypsum and sulphates and chlorides of alkalies and
alkaline earths are found in the Upper Marls. The
gypsum in some places contains small but perfect
crystals of doubly terminated quartz, which are locally
known as 'Mari Diamonds'.
T'he rock-salt beds are generally massive and
may attain a thickness up to 100 feet. They are
worked at Khewra, Warcha and Kalabagh. The
massive beds may show patches and streaks of grey
colour, probably attributable to bituminous matter
and other impurities. The masses of gypsum may
be found either in a pure condition or may show
gradation to dolomite. The gypsum is generally
white or grey and sometimes bluish grey and pink.
Some layers of potash salts are also occasionally
associated with the rock-salt.
Various views have been put forward to account
for the origin of the Salt Marl. One of these regarded
the marl as an intrusive rock; a second view was that
acid vapours attacked some calcareous rocks and
produced salt and gypsum, mixed with earthy
materials; a third held that the series was sedimentary
and was thrust into its present position by earth
movements. It is, however, generally agreed now
that the Saline Series is of sedimentary origin and
that its structure is the result of disturbance to which
it was subjected.
The age of the marls and associated salt is still

a debated question. Some authorities consider them
to be in their normal position and their age to be
Cambrian. It may be added here, parenthetically.
that Cambrian salt beds are known in Persia. Others
hold that they are Eocene in age, as in the case of the
salt and associated beds in the Trans-Indus region,
and that they have been brought into their Cambrian
or infra-Cambrian position by earth movements.
Salts and marls are known to possess a high degree
of plasticity and the above explanation is therefore
in consonance with facts. It is also known that the
Saline Series occupies different stratigraphical posi-
tions in different sections in the Salt Range.
The ait Range has recently been re-mapped by
E. R. Gee who now regards the salt in the Punjab
S.t1t Range as Cambrian. Since the salt in the
Trans-Indus region is generally taken to be of Eocene
n.ge, we have the interesting phenomenon of the
presence of salt beds of two different ages in adjacent
areas lying on either ide of the Indus.
PURPLE SANDSTONE.-This is a fine-grained
sandstone of purple colour overlying the Salt Marl_
It shows current-bedding and ripple marks, charac-
teristic of shallow-water deposits. The lower beds
()f this formation are red to maroon coloured shales.
NEOBOLUS BEDs.-The dark grey shales with
intercalations of dolomite, overlying the Purple Sand-
stone, are fossiliferous and contain species of the
primitive brachiopod N eobolus. Other fossils in this
are Lingula, Ptyc/Loparia and Redlichia.
MAGNESIAN SANDSTONES.-These are cream
coloured dolomitic sandstones and arenaceous dolo-
mites with thin shale bands. They form well marked
scarps in the Eastern Salt Range.
SALT PSEUDOMORPH SHALES.-Conformably
()verlying the Magnesian Sandstones are red and
variegated shales containing pseudomorphs or casts
of cubic salt crystals. The casts are found at the
junctions of layers and are therefore shared by the
upper and lower surfaces of the bedding planes.
The Cambrians are overlain by boulder-beds
()f Talchir age in the Salt Range. The same type
'()f Cambrian succession is also seen in parts of the
Trans-Indus region.
Kashmir
In the Hundwara basin there are clay slates,
'Quartzites, blue-clays and limestones which are
fossiliferous and contain the trilobites Conoco11Jphe
.and Agnostu8 and some brachiopods. These indicate
11 Cambrian age.
Spiti
The Cambrians are represented here in the
HAIMANTA SYSTEM which is over 5,000 feet thick
l1nd is composed of quartzites, slates and shales.
The upper part of the Haimantas shows several
fossiliferous zones containing the trilobites Agnostus,
Redlichia and Ptychoparia and the brachiopods
IJingulella, Acrotreta and Obolella, these indicating a.
Middle to Upper Cambrian age. The lower part may
be of Lower Cambrian and late Pre-Cambrian ages.
Burma
In the Tawng Peng State (Shan States), there
are sandstones, shales and rhyolitic tuffs overlying-
the Chaung Magyis. The tuffs and associated
rhyolites constitute the Bawdwin volcanics. These
rocks are considered to be of Cambrian age.
PLATE 1.
CAMBRIAN FOSSILS.
a
~
~ ..
I. Ntobolus wart/Ii (x 4). 2. Lingula roarthi (x 5). 3. Rtdlichia

nOtllingi (x 3/2). 4. Hyolithes wynne; (x 4). 5. Olmus haima"tmm
(.\! 4). 6. Ptychoparia strachtyi (x 4).
Lead-zinc-silver o'res occur in shear-zones and
faults in the tuffs at Bawdwin as a result of replace-
ment. The average ores of the lodes are rich,
containing over 20 per cent. lead and 14 per cent. zinc
with high silver, some copper and nickel. The ores
were probably formed during the igneous activity in
the Mesozoic era.
THE ORDOVICIAN SYSTEM

Spiti and Kashmir
The Ordovician System in Spiti overlies the
Haimantas and consists of quartzites, grits and
sandstones with limestones in the upper part. The
succession is highly fossiliferous, containing trilo-
bites, cystids, brachiopods, corals, etc. The trilobites
are represented by Calymene, Illaenus and Asaph1/,s
and the brachiopods by Orthis, Leptama, Stropho-
1nena, etc.
In Kashmir the Ordovician is seen in a few
places but does not contain good fossils. It may be
present underneath the Silurian iIi the Lidar valley
anticline.
Burma
The Ordovician in Northern Shan States is
represented by the NAUNGKANGYI STAGE, HWE-
MAUNG SHALES and NYAUNGBAW LIMESTONES. Trilo-
bites, brachiopods, crinoids and bryozoa occur, the
most important fossil being Asaphus, CaJymene,
Cheimr'lls and Phacops (Trilobites), and Orthis,
Leptllma, Strophomena and Rafinesquina (brachio-
pods) .
In the Southern Shan States the MAWSON
SERIES, ORTHOCERAS BEDS and PINDAYA BEDS are of
Ordovician age. They contain brachiopods, grapto-
lites and other fossils.
THE SILURIAN SYSTEM

Spiti and Kashmi?
The Silurian of Spiti is continuous with the
Ordovician and is characterised by brachiopods and
corals. It passes upwards into the Muth Quartzites
the lower portion of which is also Silurian in age.
In Kashmir, the Silurian is exposed in the Lidar
valley anticline and contains Ortli.is, Strophomena,
crinoids and corals. The fossils in the Shamsh Abari
syncline are generally much crushed. In other areas
in Kashmir, the Cambrian is overlain by the Muth
Quartzites of upper Silurian and Devonian age or by
the Agglomeratic Slates of Permo-Carboniferous age.
Burma
The Silurian rocks of the Northern Shan States
include the GRAPTOLITE BEDS and the NAMSHIM
(NAMHSIM) BEDS. Numerous graptolites (e.g., Dip-
lograptu8, ClimacograptUR, Monograptus) characte-
rise the former, whereas trilobites and brachiopods
are abundant in the latter-{Trilobites) Calymene
and Cheirurus; (Brachiopods) Orthis, Atrypa,
Leptl1Jna, Strophomena, Pentamerus, etc. The
ZEBINGYI STAGE, comprising fossiliferous limestones
and shales, is apparently partly Silurian and partly
Devonian.
72 INTRODUCTION TO THE GEOLOGY OF INOlA
THE DEVONIAN SYSTEM
ChitraZ
In Chitral State, on the Afghan frontier, the
Devonian rocks are limestones with corals and
brachiopods. The rocks underlying these are un-
fossiliferous. Amongst the brachiopods are Spirifer,
Athyris, Pentameru.s and Orthothetes,
Spiti and Kashmir

The Silurian rocks in these areas are succeeded
conformably by the MUTH QUARTZITES which are hard
white unfossiliferous quartzites, 'fhese are found
also in Kumaon. The Muth Quartzites are partly
Silurian and partly Devonian in age. Devonian
fossils are found in some limestones in Byans and
Kanaur, including Atrllpa, Cama1'opho'ria and
Wilsonia,
Burma
The PLATEAU LIMESTONES occupy a large area
in the Shan States, They are calcitic and dolomitic
lime tones with a few arenaceous and argillaceouo
intercalations, The typical rock is light grey, fine-
grained and granular, The lower part is Devonian
and the upper part Carboniferous to Lower Permian.
Fossiliferou patche occur near Wetwin, called the
PADAUKPIN LIME TONE and WETWIN SHALES. The
former are rich in corals (Cyathophyllum, Calceola,
Fa'Vosites, Zaph1'entis ), and brachiopods (Leptuma,
Chonetes, AthY1'is, Atrypa, etc,), whereas the latter
are rich in moUu ca, There is a difference in facies,
the Padaukpin limestones being marine deposits and
the Wetwin shale lagoonal.
THE PALAEOZOIC CROUP 78
PLATE III.
DEVONIAN FOSSII..5
1. Cyathoph;t[/um caespifosum (5). 2. Calceola sanda/ina (I).

3. Chonetes subcancellata (2). 4. Pentamerus (Gypwltla) breviroltril.
S. Orthot/ute5 Ilmbraculum (2/3). 6. JUlieia birmanica (3/4).
7. Athyris chitralensis (I).
THE CARBONIFEROUS SYSTEM
The Carboniferous rocks of Spiti are called the
KANAWAR SYSTEM, comprising limestones, shales and
quartzites. They are sub-divided as shown in
Table 11.
Table 11.-The Carboniferous System of Spiti
po. Series .. . Fenestella Sbales with Fenesttlla
Kanawar System Tbabo Stage with plant fossils
{ Lipak Series. With Syringothyrn cuspitkta.
The LIP AK SERIES consists mainly of limestones

containing corals and brachiopods. The important
fossils are P1'odu,ctus cora, P. Semireticulatus, Cho-
netes, Syringothyris C'L('spidata, Athyris roysii, and
the trilobite Phillipsia.
The Po SERIES contains two divisions. The
lower one is the THABO STAGE containing plant fossils
(Rhacopte'ris; and Sphenopteris). The upper one is
the FENESTELLA SHALES characterised by the bryo-
zoan Fenestella and some brachiopods.
Kashmir
The Carboniferous strata here include the
SYRINGOTHYRIS LIMESTONE with Syringothyris cuspi-
data, and the FENESTELLA SHALES with Fenestella,
some brachiopods and lamellibranchs.
Burma
The UPPER PLATEAU LIMESTONE in the Shan
States is a finely crystalline, bluish grey, calcitic
limestone with Fusulina elongata (foraminifer). Fene-
stella (bryozoa), Lonsdaleia indica (coral), Spi1'if81'
striatus, Reticlllaria lineata, Spirig81'ella derbyi, P'f'O-
ductus cora, etc. (brachiopods). The cephalopod
X enaspis carbonaria is also found. The fauna indi-
cates a Permo-Carboniferous age.
The MOULMEIN LIMESTONE in Tenasserim over-

lies the Mergui series and encloses a fauna amongst
which foraminifera, corals and brachiopods are founrl.
UNFOSSILIFEROUS P ALAEOZOICS
The Sub-Himalayan zone contains sedimentary
strata which are unfossiliferous and may be of
Palreozoic age. In Kashmir they are called the
TANAWAL SERIES which are mainly quartzites,
quartz-schists and phyllites, and are overlain by
the Tanakki conglomerate which is regarded as the
equivalent of the Talchir boulder-bed.
In the Simla-Garhwal region, the JAUNSAR

SERIES is probably of Palreozoic age. It includes
quartzites, phyllites, slates, limestones, lavas and
tuffs. Above it comes the Blaini boulder-bed which
is similar to the Tanakki bed of Kashmir.
CHAPTER VIII
THE GONDWANA SYSTEM
GENERAL.-The name Gondwana was introduced
in 1872 by H. B. Medlicott in an unpublished report
but was used by O. Feistmantel in a paper published
in the Records of the Geological Survey of India,
Volume IX (Part 2, Page 28) in 1876. It originated
from the Gond kingdom of the Madhya Pradesh
where these formations were studied. The name
has later been extended to the land mass in which
similar sediments have been found.
Peninsular India experienced a period of quiet
af.ter the post..Vindhyan earth movements. In the
Upper Carboniferous period, a new series of changes
was initiated by the mountain building movement
called the Hercynian 'revolution which affected all
part!!. of the globe and brought about a redistribution
of land and sea. The Karakorum, Kun-Lun and other
mountains of Central Asia were formed during this
period. It was also responsible for an extension of
the marine basin then occupying the Himalay~n
region, and the new sea e:ll..'tended from the Western
Mediterranean area to China. This sea has been
called the Tethys. A large land mass, forming a
southern continent, existed at the time and the
change produced on its surface initiated fluviatile
and estuarine deposition. This land mass, the
Gondwana-land, included India, South Africa, South
America, Australia and Antarctica and the deposits
laid down on it constitute the Gondwana System
which comprises the chief coal-bearing formations of
the present day Southern Hemisphere and India.
THE GONDWANA SYSTEM 77
CLIMATE.-The Gondwana era commenced with
.a cold climate with the deposition of some boulder-
beds at the bottom, and these were succeeded' by
greenish shales and sandstones which gave evid-
nce of formation in a cold climate. The succeeding
age witnessed a warm moist climate during which the
-coal-bearing strata were laid down. This age sup-
ported a luxuriant vegetation, the assemblage of the
plants being known as the Glossopte1'is /lom. Later
on, the land area became gradually drier and the
climate hotter, for we find the deposits of a conti-
nental type, red sandstones and shales predominating,
-enclosing remains of reptiles and amphibia and some
arthropods. Again came a period of mild and wet
-conditions during which a new flora, the Ptilophyllwn
tiM'a, established itself. The change from the G108-
-sopteris to the Ptilophyl1url't /lora occurred duril1g the
dry period, roughly about halfway through the
Gondwana era.
The earliest Gondwana formation, the Talchir
boulder-bed, was of Upper Carboniferous age. The
dry period coincided roughly with the Triassic.
The period of the later normal conditions was
Jurassic to Lower Cretaceous.
DISTRIBUTION.-The Gondwana rocks are deve
loped mainly along two sides of a triangular area,
the third side of the triangle being the eastern coast
of the northern part of the Peninsula. One of the
'Side corresponds roughly to the Damodar, Son and
'Upper Narmada valleys, trending roughly E.W,
while the second runs along the Godavari valley. A
subsidiary belt follows the Mahanadi valley, within
this triangle. A few exposures are also found in the
Sub-Himalayan zone of Darjeeling, Bhutan and
Assam, which marked the northern border of the
land.
78 INTIWDUCTION TO THE GEOLOGY OF INDIA
Lower Gondwana rocks are also found in
Kashmir and Afghanistan, while Upper Gondwana
rocks occur in a series of outcrops along the east
coast of India and in Ceylon.
DIVISIONs.-The Gondwana System is divided
into two major divisions, based on palreontological
evidence. As already remarked, the lower portion is
characterised by the Glossopteris flora and the upper
by the Ptilophyllum flora. The line of separation is
taken as the junction between the Panchet and
Pachmarhi Series. This two-fold classification is
the one now adopted by the Geological Survey of India
and it has been supported by Sir C. S. Fox in his
monogra.phs on the -coal-fields of India.
A three-fold classification was suggested by

Feistmantel, and later adopted by E. Vredenburg in
hl.s "Summary of tht Geology of India" (1910),
particularly as the Lower, Middle and Upper
Gondwanas in this classification are approximately
oquivalent to the Permian, Triassic and Jurassic
Systems. Though this is supported by the prevalence
of a dry climate roughly during the deposition of
rocks of the middle division, evidence based on the
flora points only to a two-fold divislt')n. Table 12
gives the sub-divisions of this system and their age on
the standard scale.
The Gondwana strata are formed of alternations

of sandstones and shales. If the coal beds are
included, each minor cycle of sedimentation is seen to
have begun with sandstone and proceeded through
shale to coal. The sandstones at the present day
form hills, the shales forming the valleys. The
Talchir and Barakar rocks are comparatively soft,
the sandstones often containing undeeomposed grains
' ;:
'"
..::
U
~
..-5....
o
,5
:J
'C
en
.
of felspar. The Xamthl, Panchet and Mahadeva
sandstones are hard and ferruginous and often form
prominent topography ]ike the Mahadeva hills.
STRUcTURE.-The Gondwana rocks are found in
faulted troughs but the magnitude of the faults is
different on the two longer sides, this producing a
tilting of the strata near the more faulted boundary.
In the Damodar vaJIey, the major faults run E.-W.
and the strata are tilted towards the more faulted
southern boundary. More or less similar conditions
may be seen along the other groups of outcrops. It
is also of interest to note that the fault lines are
roughly parallel to the foliation of the adjacent meta-
morphic terrain.
There seems to be some evidence in many of the
basins that the faults formed early and that they
d~veloped further during the period of sedimentation.
Some of the basins may not have been any Jargar
than they appear at present; that is, they are not, in
all cases, to be interpreted as faulted remnants of
larger basins. The faults are mostly of the ordinary
type but some sag and tear-faults are also known.
Practically all the faults are earlier. than the
igneous aykes found in the Damodar valley coal-fields.
Faulting probably took place in two periods, one pre-
JHahadeva and the other post-Rajmahal.
The Gondwanas are generally not affected by
folding. But those of the Eastern Himalayas have
been involved in the folding and overthrust of the-
Tertiary times. sometimes causing an inversion of the
normal sequence of strata. The coal in these strata
is crushed and friable, and in some cases almost
devoid of volatile matter and graphitic or anthracitic
in composition.
Talchir Series
The lowest division, the TALCHIR SERIES, consists
of a BOULDER-BED at the base and the TALCHm STAGE
above. The boulder-bed contains pebbles and boulders
striated by glacial action, these being mixed with
finer materials. The glaciers of the upper Carboni-
ferous age seem to have radiated from the Rajasthan
highlands, for rocks from Rajasthan have been
identified in the boulder-beds of the Salt Range
region.
The shales and sandstones overlying the boul-
der-bed are generally green in colour. The shales
sometimes break into long thin fragments and arc
therefore called 'needle-shales.' The sandstones con-
tain grains of uooecomposed felspar, decomposition
having been prevented by the cold climate then
prevailing.
In the upper part of the Talchirs there are plant
fossils indicating that the climate was gradually
becoming warmer. The plant-bearing beds seen at
Rikba in the Karanpura field and in a few places in
other fields have yielded Glossopteris indica, Ganga-
71topte1i.~ cyclopteroides, Vertebraria indica (rhizome
of Glossopteris ) all being Pteridosperms; and N oeg-
gerathiopsis lzislopi (Cordaitales).
The Talchirs have a fairly wide distribution,
and are found in several of the areas where the
Lower Gondwanas are exposed.
Da'muda (Damodar) Series
KARHARBARI STAGE.-The lowest stage of the
Damuda Series is the Karharbari Stage which is often
regarded as a part of the Barakar Stage. It is
typically developed in the Giridih coalfield where it
forms the lower part of the Barakar sequence, and
also contains two coal seams. It is present in the
Son-Damodar valley fields. TYPical fossils of this
stage are:
Equise.tales Schizonetlra gondwanensis.
Pterido pennie Gkmopteris indica, Gangamopteris cyclop-
teroUUs, G. angustijolia, Gondwanidium (Nt!UTo-
pkridillm) validum.
Cordaitales Noeggerathiopsis hislopi and other species.
Coniferales Buriadia (Voltzia) luterophylla.
GANGAMOPTERIS BEDS.-The Karharbari stage is

represented in Kashmir by the Gangamopteris beds.
Besides plants they contain amphibians and fishes.
UMARIA MARINE BED.-Near Umaria in the former
Rewa State, a fossiliferous marine bed, barely ten feet
thick, was discovered a few years ago. It overlies the
Talchirs unconformably and grades up into the
overlying Barakars. The chief fossils are species of
Productus, Sprifer and Reticularia with local
characteristics, but indicating clearly that the beds
are of the same age as the Karharbari stage.
BARAKAR STAGE.-This stage consists of sand-
stones, pebble-beds, grits and shales. The sandstones
often ontain felspar grains, more or less decomposed.
The Barakars of the Jharia coalfield contain more
than 24 coal seams, each of over 4 feet thickness.
The proportion of coal to the total thickness of the
strata in this field is as high as 1 part in 10.
The Barakars are the chief coal-bearing strata

in the Gondwanas and contain coal in aU the areas
where they are developed. But the best seams are
those in the Bengal and Bihar coalfields. There are
THE GONDWANA SYSTEM
several workable seams, ranging in thickness all the
way from 4 feet to as much as 100 feet, as in the
Bokaro coalfield. The coal appears to have been
formed from drifted vegetation accumulated under
quiescent conditions. So far as known at present~
there is no evidence in any of the Indian Gondwana
coalfields of the formation of coal in situ.
Some of the important plant fossils in the-
Darakars are:
Equisetales Schizotfl!llTa gondwanmsis, Phyllothtca grits-

I
bachi.
Sphenopbyllales S pllenophyllum speciorum.
Pteridospermlll Glossopteris indica , G. communis, etc.
Cycadophyta Tcmiopteris f~i.
Cordaitales Noeggtrathiopsis hislopi, Daaol.ylon indicum.
BARREN MEASURES.-Barren sandstones inter-

vene between the Barakar and Raniganj stages. In
the Raniganj field these are represented by the IRON-
STONE SHALES containing clay ironstone nodules
which were formerly worked for the manufacture of
iron. In the western fields of the Damodar valley
they are not easily distinguished from the overlying-
Raniganj (Kamthi) Stage which is also barren of
coal seams there.
RANIGANJ STAGE.-ThiS stage contains workable>
coal seams only in the Raniganj field of Bengal. The-
sandstones are generally finer than those of the-
Barakars. The Raniganj coals are richer in volatiles
and moisture than the Barakar coals and are at best
only semi-coking, but some of them are excellent gas-
coals and steam-coals. Some of the typical plant
fossils of this stage are:
Equiaetalet Schizoneura gondwanensis, PhylJothtca indka.
phenophyllaJes Sphmophy/Jum sptciowm.
Pteridospertn~ Glo$lopttris iJtdka, G. broum;ana, G. ,.elijera,
Gangamopzuis whittiana, Vertebraria indica,
Sphenoptms polymorpha.
<:ycadophyta Toeniopttris jeddmi.
Cordaitales Noeggeralhiopsis hislopi.
.coniferales Buriadia heter()phylla.
The equivalents of the Raniganj stage are the

KAMTHI BEDS in Madhya Pradesh, PALl BEDS in
.Rewa, HIMGffi BEDS in the Mahanadi valley and the
CHINTALPUDI SANDSTONES in the Godavari valley.
The BIJORI BEDS in the Chhindwara district of
Madhya Pradesh contain, besides plant fossils, the
labyrinthodont GondUJanosauTUs bijoriensis.
Panchet Series
A slight unconformity separates this from the
underlying Raniganj Stage. It is well developed in
the Panchet hill south of the Raniganj coalfield. The
Tocks are mainly sandstones of a greenish, brown or
buff colour and some shales.
They are represented in the Wardha valley
by the MANGLI BEDS which contain the remains of a
labyrinthodont called Bmchyops laticeps.. The DEOLI
BEDS near Deoli in the Raniganj coalfield have also
yielded Gonioglyptus and Pachygonia (labyrintho-
donts ) Dicyuodon and Epicampodon (reptiles), and
Esthert"4 (cru tacea). The PARSORA STAGE, named
-after a village in South Rewa is also of about the
same age or slightly younger, as it overlies the Pali
beds (Raniganj age) and is separated from them by
several hundred feet of barren strata. The Pars ora
beds contain a flora which is distinctly younger than
the Damuda. flora., since the chief fossils are Noegge-
1'athiopsis hislopi, Danaeopsis (Thinnfcldia) hughesi
and Thinnfeldia odontopte1'oides which possess a
distinct Trias ic character.
Mahadet'a Sel'ics
Named after Mahadeva hill , this series com-
prises the Pachmarhi Stage (lo...ver) and the Maleri
Stage (upper),
The PACHMARHI STAGE is mainly a sandstone
series with shales tow:lrds the bottom and top, It
forms the fine scarp of the hill on which the town of
Pachmarhi is situated. The sandstone is locally used
as a building stone. The 'Supra-Panchet' rocks of
the Raniganj field may be of this age. The Durbraj-
pur Sandstones of the Rajmahal area in Bengal may
represent one of the division of the Mahadeva Series.
THE MALERI STAGE developed around Marweli in
the northern part of the former Hyderabad State,
consists of red clays and sandstones resting on the
Kamthis. The beds have yielded coprolites and
reptilian and fish remains. The same stage is known
~s the TIKI BEDS in South Rewa. The fossils found
are reptilian (Hypcradap edon, Belodon, Parasuchus)
and fish remains ( pecies of Cemtodus).
THE DENWA AND BAGRA STACES.-These corres-
pond to the Maleris, The Denwas are brown and
red mottled clays with sandstone layers, containing
animal remains (Mastodon sau1'as). The Bagras are
conglomerates and coarse sandstones which are
~hallow-water deposits probably slightly younger
than the Denwas.
Rajmahal Se1'ies
RAJMAHAL STACE.-The traps of the Rajmahal
hills contain some intercalated layers of carbonaceous
shales which are only about 100 feet thick on the
aggregate, though the traps are nearly 2,000 feet
thick. The shales contain lamellibranchs, fossil wood
and plant remains. The plant remain include:
Filicales Marattiopris macrocarpa, Glekhmita glei-
chtnoidts, Spht"JIOPltrU hulopi, tIC.
Cycadophyta Ptilophyilum acuti/olium, Oto::amius bDl/1al-
msis, Tatniopleris lata , Niusorria prirrcep~
and othu specia.
Coniferales Elatocladus (Pa/issya) conjt'rla, Rttinospor-
ittl jrrdicus, Brachyphyllum I!A'/Iansum.
KOTA STAGE.-Sandstones with red clay bands
constitute the Kota Stage, developed at Kota near
Sjroncha in Madhya Pradesh. They appear to be
younger than the RajmahaJ Stage. Besides plant
fossils, they contain remains of Estheria (crustacean)
and Lepidosteus and Depedius (fishes).
THE CHIKIALA STAGE overlies this and contains
some unimportant coal seams. It may possibly
represent part of the Jabalpur Stage.
Jabalpur Stage
CHAUGAN AND JABALPUR STAGES.-The Jabalpur
eries is divided into a lower CHAUGAN STAGE and an
upper JABALPUR STAGE, consisting of white clays and
soft sand tones. The Chaugan stage may represent
part of the Kota bed. Amongst the fossil plants in
the J abalpur Series are:
FilicaJes Glekhtmius gleicltmoitks, Cladophkbis medli-
cottimw.
Cycadophyta Ptilophyllum aeuti/olillm, Oto::amites hislopi.
Coniferales Elatocladus (Palissya) jabalpUTtmsis, E. plana,
Retinosporites indica, Araucaritts eutchtmsis.
The Rajmahals are regarded by Dr. Spath as
{reo omian and the JabaJpurs as Aptian and post-
Aptian.
THE GONDWANA SYSTEM 8'1
PLATE I
LoWBR GoNDWANA FOSSILS .
1. ScJW:oneura gotuiwanmsis. 2.
.
Notggerathiopsis hillopi.
3. Gangamopteril cycloptmodes. 4. GloJSopttm indica.
88 INTRODUC'!'IO:N TO THE GEOLOGY OF INDIA
PLATE V.
UPPER GoNDWANA FOSSIl.8.
,I. PtilopeyUuf1I acuti/olin",. 2. Dictyo::wnites falcata. 3. Nilssollia

prinstj)s. 4. Elatocladus (Ta.~tes) tt'~r1'irtlQ. S. Araucarites cutchensis.
Gondwanas in the Coastal Regions
Several patches of Upper Gondwanas occur in
the coastal regions of Saurashtra, Orissa, Andhra
Pradesh, Madra and Ceylon. These may now be
briefly described.
Saurashtra and Kutch

A large area in Dhrangadhra and Wadhwan is
covered by horizontal sandstones. The DHRANGADHRA
SANDSTONES are equivalent partly to the Jabalpur and
partly to the Umia Series as determined with the help
of their fossil content.
Plant-bearing strata are intercalated with
marine beds at the top of the Jurassic rocks in Kutch.
The plant beds amongst whose fossils are Ptilophyl-
lum, Treniopte?i.9, Brachyphyllum, Araucarites, etc.,
are probably low down in the Cretaceous. They are
()verlain by marine beds of Aptian age.
Orissa
Upper Gondwana rocks, called the ATHGARH
DEDS, are found near Cuttack. They comprise sand-
stones, grits and clays containing plant fossils of
Rajmahal age. The sandstones are good building
stones.
Andhra Coast
In the Godavari district, rocks of this age are
found south-west of Rajamahendri (Rajahmundry).
They comprise three stages, the GOLAPILLI SAND-
STONES below, RAGHAVAPURAM SHALES in the middle
and the TIRUPATI (TRIPETTY) SANDSTONES above.
They are respectively the equivalents of the Raj-
mahal, Kota and Chikiala stages. The intercalated
marine beds in the Tirupati sandstones have yielded
species of Trigonia, Lima, etc.
Further south, in the Guntur district, there are
similar beds, namely, the BUDAVADA SANDSTONES,
Vl!:MAVARAM SHALES and PAVALUR SANDSTONES,
respectively equivalent to the three divisions in the
Godavari area. Here also there are marine intercala-
tions in which some badly preserved ammonites and
other fossils were found. The ammonites are said
to indicate a Lower Cretaceous (Neocomian) age.
Madras Coast
There are two occurrences a few miles north-
west of Madras. The lower beds, called the SRI-
PERUMBUDUR BEDS - after Sriperumbudur 25 miles
N.W. of Madras, have yielded plant fossils and some
mollusca. Their age is the same as that of the
Raghavapuram Shales (Kota). The upper, SATYA-
VEDU BEDS are sandstones and conglomerates with
fragmentary plant remains. They are probably of
Chikiala age.
In the district of Tiruchirapalli, three or four
patches of Gondwana sediments intervene between
the Archean basement and the clays of the Uttatur
Stage of Lower Cretaceous age. The Gondwanas
onsist of soft sandstones and shales. The pJant
fos ils found in them indicate that the strata are of
the same age as the Vemavaram shales.
Ceylon
TABBOWA SERIES.-Rocks consisting of sand-
tone, conglomerate , shales and limestones of
Upper Gondwana age, occur about 8 miles north-east
of Puttalam near the Tabbowa tank. They are
called the Tabbowa Serie . The plant fossils obtained
from them resemble tho e of the Gondwanas of
Madras and Andhra Pradesh and are referable to the
Rota or a slightly younger age.
I gneous Rocks in the Gond'Wanas

Most of the Lower Gondwana coalfields are
traversed by dykes of dolerite and basalt; ultra-basic
dykes and sills occur in the Gondwanas of the
Damodar valley, Giridih and Eastern Himalaya.
The basic rocks are mostly later than the faults.
They are generally found as dykes, but sills are not
uncommon. These are comparatively rare in the
fields of the Mahanadi and Godavari valleys. It
would appear that the basic intrusives of the
Damodar valley and areas north of it are related to
the Rajmahal traps and those of the Satpura area ill
Madhya Pradesh to the Deccan Traps.
The ultra-basic rocks are of the nature of phos-
phatic and mica-bearing peridotite. These are found
as sills and anastomosing veins which have caused
much damage to the coal seams with which they have
come in contact. This is due to the high temperature
and fluidity of the intrusive. The affected coal is
found to have been changed to a friable coke known
in the Bengal and Bihar coalfields as jhama.
Mineral Deposits
The Gondwanas contain useful deposits of sand-
stones, clays, iron-ore and coal.
SANDSToNEs.--Sandstones useful for building
purposes occur in the Barakar, Raniganj and Pach-
marhi Stages. Though these are not comparable
in quality to the Upper Vindhyan sandstones, they
find application locally. Some of the Upper Gond-
wana sandstones, e.g., the Athgarh Sandstones in
Orissa, are excellent building stones. The Barakar
sandstones have been used also as grindstones.
CLA YS.-Good fire-clay is associated with some
coal seams in many of the coalfields. Other types
such as pottery and brick-making clays are also found
in different Gondwana areas.
IRON-ORE AND OCHRE.-The Iron-stone Shales of
the Raniganj field have yielded iron-stone for iron
smelting in the past though they are not being used
at present. For several years until about 1910 these
were smelted in the works of the Bengal Iron Co. Rt
Kulti.
Pockets of limonite (iron-stone) and ochre are
found in sandstones of the Kamthi and Mahadeva
ages.
COAL.-Coal seams are found in practically all
the area of Barakar rocks. The Raniganj stage
contains good coal seams only in the Raniganj field.
The Upper Gondwanas do contain occasional seams
but they are generally too poor in quality to be worked
uccessfully.
Coal of Raniganj age is higher in moisture and
volatiles than Barakar coal. Good coking coal is
practically confined to the Barakars, and even here
to only the eastern coal-fields of the Damodar valley
and one or ~vo other fields in Bihar (Giridih and
Juinti). Gondwana coal is generally high in ashy
averaging around 10 to 15 per cent. Excellent steam-
c(lal occur in some of the seams of the Raniganj
field. The coal in the rocks of the foot-hilI zone in
Eastern Himalaya and Darjeeling is generally much
disturbed and even crushed by earth movements.
The coalfields of India can be divided into several
groups according to their location-Himalaya, North
Bengal, Damodar Valley, Mahanadi Valley, Satpura
and Wardha-Godavari Valley. Of these the best and
most productive fields are those of the Damodar
valley, but some fields in Madhya Pradesh have
also been actively developed because of their proxi-
mity to lines of communication.
The reserves in the workable seams of Gondwana
coal are probably of the order of 25,000 million tons,
of which only 6,000 million tons are estimated to be
of good quality. About a third of this is coking coal
of good quality. Coal mining in India is stilI being
done rather wastefully, though recently steps have
been taken to ensure proper working and to minimise
losses due to spontaneous fire and other causes.
Some of the fields, especially in Madhya PrELdesh
and the Godavari Valley, have not yet been thoroughly
investigated. Appreciable extra reserves may be
added if all the areas are carefully investigated and
drilled.
~O' ./' CHAPTER IX
~...(I' jj
. ,:: --!="'\, . THE PERMIAN SYSTEM

'IEll 'J'~.
As mentioned already, the Hercynian revolution
in the Upper Carboniferous introduced great changes
on the surface of the globe. A great ocean basin
extending from China westward to Spain took its
shape at this time and the deposits laid down in it are
now found along the present Alpine-Himalayan belt.
To its north, in Asia, lay Angaraland while to the
south was the Gondwanaland.
The sea which had receded from the Peninsular

margin in the Devonian and early Carboniferous
times advanced again in the Upper Carboniferous.
In Kashmir, however, land conditions prevailed for
a time and lavas were poured out accompanied by
the deposition of tuffs and pyroclastics.
The deposits of the Upper Carboniferous com-

mence with a conglomerate in the Tibetan zone. The
unconformity beneath this conglomerate varies in
magnitude in different places. In Spiti, the Po Series
(Middle Carboniferous) is succeeded by Permo-
Carboniferous and Permian deposits. In Kumaon,
the Carboniferous is missing since there was no
deposition after the Muth Quartzites. In some parts
of Kashmir the Fenestella Shales lie below the
Agglomeratic slates, while in others, the Tanawal
Series underlies the Permo-Carboniferous. In the
Salt Range a boulder-bed of Talchir age succeeds the
Salt Pseudomorph hales.
THE PERM.IAN SYSTEM 95
Spiti and Kumao,l,
'The Po Series of Spiti is overlain by Permian
(and Permo-Carboniferous) deposits commencing
with a conglomerate. The Permian strata constitute
the KULING SYSTEM. the earlier member of which are
calcareous sandstone and quartzites containing
Permian brachiopods. Then follow the PRODUCTUS
SHALES which are dark carbonaceous and siliceous
shales. They enclose Permian fossils and a horizon
containing cephalopods. The fossils of the Productus
Shales are:
Brachiopods Productul purdoni, Spirif~r rajah, Spirigl!l'Q

guardi, Marginifera hinliliayensu, ChOMtes
lusarmsis.
Cephalopods Xnwspis carbonaria, Cye/olobus oldhami.
The Productus Shale facies continues eastwards

into Kumaon (Painkhanda and Byans) and shows
the same group of fossils. They apparently continue
into Nepal, Sikkim and Assam Himalayas.
Hundes
In the region of Malla J ohar there are blocks of
various sizes, of a limestone facies different from that
of the Himalaya, which are associated with and often
partly enclosed in volcanic rocks of Cretaceous age.
It is thought that these blocks were floated off by
advancing lava flows and brought into their position
from some region of Tibet. An alternative hypothesis
is that these are parts of a nappe or thrust-sheet.
These blocks, which vary in size from ordinary
boulders to almost hillocks, are known as exotic
blocks. The exotic blocks in the hill called Chitichum I
show the presence of a rich Permian fauna includ-
ing numerous brachiopods, some trilobites (Phillipsia
PLATE VI.
PIlRMO-CARBONll'EROU5 FOSSILS.
, ,
111
1. Productus cora (2/3). 2. Productus indicllS (112). 3. Spirifer

T~ah (2/3). 4. Eurydlmna globonnn (1/2). S. Spirifer fascigllr (2 13).
6. Comuarilw'arthi (1/3). 7. MarginiJuo himahymsu (2/3). 8. Fmes-
Ulla fossula (4). 9. Syringothyris cuspidata (2/3). 10. Protoreteporo
4mpla (6). 11. Chonetlls lumrmsis (3/2).
THE PERMIAN SYSTEM 97
t'ILiddlemissi) , cephalopods (Cyclolobus oldhamti and
Xenaspis carbonaria) and corals (Lonsdaleia indica,
Zaphrentis beyrichi and Amplexus coralloides).
Mount Everest
The top of Mt. Everest shows a massive are-
naceous limestone which dips to the north and
continues laterally into northern Sikkim. It is the
EVEREST LIMESTONE whose age is Carboniferous and
possibly partly Permo-Carboniferous. It is under-
lain by the EVEREST PELITIC SERIES of shaly and slaty
rocks injected by granite. This series may be older
than the Carboniferous.
The Everest Limestone is overlain by the LACHI
SERIES composed of limestone and calcareous sand-
s tones. These contain Permian brachiopods such
as Pl'oductus pur-doni, Spirife7' rajah, S. musalchey-
lensis and Marginifem himalayensis and also bryozoa
and mollusca.
Kashmir
The Permian rocks of Kashmir are the PANJ AL
VOLCANICS which include the AGGLOMERATIC SLATES
and the PANJAL TRAP. The earlier products were
tuffs and agglomerates and the later ones lava flows.
We find also marine Permian sediments, called the
ZEW AN BEDS, in a part of Kashmir.
THE PANJAL VOLCANICS are best developed in

the Pir Panjal but are seen also in Hazara, Ladakh
4
and Baltistan. Volcanic activity commenced in the
Upper Carboniferous and continued up to the Upper
Triassic. The traps therefore underlie the Zewan
and Gangamopterig beds in some places, while in
others they overlap beds of various ages and are inter-
calated with Permian and Triassic sediments.
THE AGGLOMERATIC SLATES vary from gritty to
slaty rocks containing fragments of quartz, granite,
quartz-porphyry and other rocks. The devitrified
glass fragments show that they are of pyroclastic
nature. At a few places, marine fossils of Permo-
Carboniferous age have been discovered in them.
Bryozoa Protoretepora ampla, Fntestello.
Brachjopoda Spiriter nitinuis, S. fasciger, Syringothyris
cuspidata, Produetus cora and other species.
THE PANJAL TRAP comprises bedded lava flows

of green, dark grey and purple colours and varying
textures. They are basaltic to andesitic in the main,
but acid and ultra-basic varieties have also been
observed.
THE GANGAMOPTERIS BEDs.-The pyroclastics
llre in some places intercalated with beds containing
plant fossils such as Glo8sopteris indica and Ganga,-
mopteri.s kashmirensis. Near Nagmarg on the Wular
lake, the plant beds are underlain by marine sediments
containing a typical Upper Carboniferous to Lower
Permian fauna (see above). The plant beds contain
also Arcitego aU-tm ornatU8, Actinodan risinensis
(amphibian) and AlIl,blypterus kashmirensis {fish}.
]n one pJace they are clo ely associated with Eut'Y-
des rna bearing beds. They are regarded as of
Karharbari age.
ZEWAN BEDS.-At Zewan and Barus there are

marine limestones and shales containing numerous
bryozoa (Protoretepora ampla) and typical Permian
brachiopods and corals. The fauna resembles that
of the Chitichun Hmestone and the Productus lime-
stone.
Salt Range
OLIVE SERIES.-In the Eastern end of the Salt
Range the Salt Pseudomorph beds are overlain by a
glacial boulder-bed of the same age as the Talchir
Boulder-bed. Above this comes a horizon contain-
ing species of Eurydesma and other bivalves and also
F enesteUa. At other places the boulder-bed is over-
lain by beds containing Conula1'ia (gastropod) and
other mollusca, and also brachiopods. The EURYDESMA
AND CONULARIA HORIZONS are of Lower Permian age.
The beds above these zones are olive-coloured and
spotted sandstones called the OLIVE SERIES.
SPECKLED SANDSTONE.-Further west, the place
of the Olive Series is taken by the Speckled Sandstone
group which comprises the BOULDER-BED, SPECKLED
SANDSTONES AND LA VENDER CLAYS. The Speckled
Sandstones are brown sandstones with green and
purple patches exhibiting small concretions. The
upper part of the sequence is made up of lavender
coloured shales with some sandstones. The Olive
S eries and the Speckled Sandstone group are merely
different facies of rocks of the same age (Lower
Permian).
Table lB.-The Permian 01 the Salt Range
Division Stage
Chidru Sandstones and marls.

Upper JoObi Do. with Cepbalo- Thuringian.
pods .
..~ Kundghat Do. with Btlkrophrm .
.
rn
Kalabagh Limestones and marls
with crinoids, etc. Saxonian.
l'l Middle
~ Virgal Siliceous limestones.
~
:;:I
'0 Katta Calcareous sandstones
e
Il.. and limestones.
Lower Amb Calcareous sandstones Artinskian.
and limestones with
Fusulinoe.
Speckled Sand- Lavend" Clay, Sptck.ltd Sandstone, Lower Permi-

stone Group. Eurydesma and Conularia beds, an to Ura-
Boulder-bed. lian.
THE PRODUCTUS LIMESTONE SERIES.-This series

is one of the best developed marine Permian sequences
in the world. The sub-divisions are given in Table 13.
rhe Middle Productus beds are sometimes referred
to as the Productus limestone proper. They form
the towering crags of the outer escarpment in tbe
Salt Range. They contain abundant fossils but some
of the fossils are obliterated by dolomitisation. The
best fossils are obtained from the marl intercalations.
Their equivalents are the Chitichun Limestone and
the Productus Sbales. The Upper Productus beds
THE PERMIAN SYSTEM 10)
PLATE VlI.
PBRJ-UAN Fossu.s.
1. Belluophonj()1lesid1l71S(1/2). 2. Stachello bifr()1ls (1 /2). 3. Richl-

hofmia'lawrcncul1la (1 /3). 4. Cyclolobus oldham; ( 1/4). 5. Xenaspis
carbonaria (1/2). 6. Euphnnus indicus (I). 7. Productul lineatus
(1/2). 8. Dielasmn biplex (2/3). 9. L()1Isdaleia indiJ:Q (6). 10. Spirifer
tnusakJJeylensis (1/2). 11. Spirigerella derbyi (2/3). 12. Athyris Toysii
(I). 13. Oldhamina decipiens (1/2). 14. Entalis herculea ( 1/10).
are largely arenaceous. The Kundghat beds contain
abundant BeUeropon and Euphemus and many other
fossils. The Chidru Stage consisting of marls and
some limestone, shows a change in fauna; it contains
numerous lamellibrancbs whereas the earlier beds
are rich in brachiopods. The marly and sandy
passage beds at the top form a transition to the
Triassic.
The fauna includes numerous species. A few
of the important genera are Productus, Marginilera,
Dielasma, Spiriler, Spirigerelia, Athyris, Orthis,
Oldhamina, Richtholenia, Lyttonia (brachiopods);
Xena8pi8, Xenodiscus, Episageceras (cephalopods)
and also several moUusca.
Kashmir-Hazara
The Tertiary zone of Kashmir contains inliers of
dolomitic limestone, called the GREAT LIMESTONE,
which are unfossiliferous and are regarded as the
upper part of the Infra-Trias.
. THE INFRA-TRIAS BEDS lie over the Tanakki
conglomerate and comprise a thick series of sand-
stone, shales and dolomitic limestones. As they
underlie Triassic rocks, their age is Permian.
Simla-Garhwal
THE BLAINI BEDS, named after the Blaini River,
are younger than the Simla Slates. They are composed
of boulder-beds and limestones, the boulder-beds being
considered to be of glacial origin and of the same
age as the Talchir boulder-beds.
The Blaini beds are overlain by slaty shales and
thin quartzites which form the INFRA-KROL SERIES.
These are succeeded by the KROL SERIES, well deve-
loped in the Sirmur area. They consist of brown
sandstones and several beds of limestone intercalated
with some shales. The shales and limestones seen
around Mussoorie belong to this series. Two well
marked overthrusts are found in this region, bringing
older rocks over younger ones-the Jaunsars over the
Krols, and the Krols and older rocks over the Subathu
beds. The SHALl LIMESTONES of the Simla neighbour-
hood may be of the same age as the Krol Beds. The
Arols are shallow-water deposits containing rare
fragmentary fossils which are unidentifiable. The
Infra-Krols and Krols may probably be of Permian
age.
Typical Lower Gondwana rocks are developed in
the Eastern Himalaya where they are often thrust
over the Siwaliks. Marine Permian rocks, containing
characteristic fossils, are found in the valley of the
Rangit in Northern Sikkim and in the Subansiri
valley in the Assam Himalayas.
CHAPTER X
THE TRIASSIC SYSTEM
FAUNA.-The close of the Permian is marked
in several parts of the world by a marked change
in fauna. The trilobites disappear completely as
also many species of brachiopods some of which
took peculiar lines of development as in the case of
Richthofenia and Lyttonia. The brachiopods and
mollusca are well represented by several genera and
species, some of which occur in the Triassic strata ill
enormous numbers, e.g., RhynchoneUa griesbachi,
Spi1'iferina stracheyi, Daonella indica, Halobia
comata and Monotis salinaria. Amongst the cepha-
lopods, the Goniatites are characteristic of the
Permian, their place being taken by the Ceratites in
the Triassic. They are eminently useful for the
classification and sub-division of the strata, as the
species have well defined characters, with a small
time range.
DISTRIBUTION.-Triassic rocks are particularly
well developed in the northern Himalayan Zone of
Spiti and Kumaon which have been studied in some
d tail. They also occur in Kashmir and the Salt
Range and in parts of Baluchistan and Burma. A
l' d andstone facies, believed to have been deposited
in an arid region, prevails in parts of South-West
China. The Himalayan rocks bear a close resem-
blance to tho e in parts of the Alps in Europe.
Spiti
Magnificent ections of the Triassic are to be
seen in Spiti where the rocks constitute the LILANG
SYSTEM and attain a thickness of 4,000 feet. The
THE TRIASSIC SYSTEM 105
rocks are limestones with shale intercalations. The
uppermost division consists of massive limestones
containing only a few fossiliferous horizons, a part
being Triassic and the rest Lower Jurassic.
The rich fossiliferous horizons have proved
useful for dividing the beds into stages and zones,
which are shown in Table 14. The LOWER TRIAS is
divided into four zones with characteristic cepha-
lopods. The MUSCHELKALK and the LADINIC STAGB
constitute the Middle-Trias, while the Upper Trias
comprises the CARNIC AND NORIC STAGES sub-divided
into zones. The massive limestone at the top, called
the KrOTo or MEGALODON LIMESTONE grades into
the Lower Jurassic, though there is no lithological
change; of its total thickness of 2,500 feet, the greater
part appears to be Triassic. The upper portion
uppears to be Liassic in age.
The Lower Trias is characterised by several
species of cephalopods including Otoceras 'WoodwQ,rdi,
Ophiceras sakuntala, M eekoceras varaha, Flemingt'tes
rohilla and Hedenstroemia; the Middle Trias by
MonophyUites hara, Sibirites prahlada, Ptychites
,,'ugiter, Ptychites gera1'di, Spiriferina strachllei,
DameUa indica and Daonella lommeli; the upper
Trias by Joannite.~ thanamensis, Tropites sub-
bullatus,' Rhllnchonella himaica, Dielasma julicum,
Spiriferina g1-iesbachi, Halobia comata; Lima serrati-
costa and Megalodon ladakhensis.
KU1naon
Excellent sections of the Triassic rocks have
been studied in the Bambanag and ShalshaI cliffs, in
Painkhanda and in Byans close to the Nepal border.
PLATE VIII.
TluA.ssIC Fossl1.8.
1. OIOCtras woodwardi 0 /4). 2. OphictrQS sakuntala (I/2).

3. MtckoCtras ooraJuz (1 /3). 4. Hedmstroemia mojsisO'lJicsi (1/3).
S. Fkmingiut rohili.a (1 /3). 6. Fkmingitcsjkmi1lgianus (1/8). 7. Cera-
tites subrolmstus (1 /5). 8. Sibiritts prahlada (1). 9. Gymnites joUyanus
(1/3). 10. Pt chitts gtrardi (1 /4). 11. Halorites procyon (1/4). 12.
Tropitts subbuOotus (1/2). 13. Joannites cymbiformU. 14. p/aciJn
polydactylus (1/3). 15. PinacOCtrQS pamuz (1/2).
The Painkhanda succession is similar to that of
Spiti but is only about 2,500 feet thick. The LADINIC
STAGE becomes in ignificant (only 20 feet) while the
KIOTO LIMESTONE is 2,000 feet thick, of which the
greater part is assigned to the Trias ic. Daonella
lommeli is absent. The lowest bed of the Carnic
Stage are the TRAUMATOCRINUS LIMESTONES contain-
PLATE IX.
TRIASS IC FOSSI LS.
za
~
~
'!I
zb
~ ~
W 'b 7~
~Qt~~.
1. Stephanites superbru (116) . 2. GyronitesjreqlUfU (1 /2). 3. Daa-
mila lomrrUli (1/2). 4. I!ao~lla indiea (1 /2). 5. Halobia. comata (1 /2).
6. M.~alodtm ladakhnIsU (1/6) . 7. Anodontopho,a gri.abodri (1 /2).
8. DUiasma}julieum (2/3). 9. Spi,i/erina stracheyi (2/3).
ing abundant crinoids and cephalopods. The rest of
this stage is represented by the HALOBIA BEDS. The
Lower Noric Stage is characterised by Halorites
procyon and Spiriferina griesbachi. The Middle
Noric comprises ANODONTOPHORA BEDS and the
QUARTZITE SERIES, succeeded by the Kioto Limestone
which is mainly of Rhretic age.
Table H.-Triassic Succession in Spiti
Divisions I Beds Description Thickness

(feet)
LIAS Megalodon Limestone and Dolomite

(Kioto)
RHAETIC Limestone
- Limestone and Dolomite
(Mel/alodorl ladakhen-
sis, Spirigera rI(HItlingi). 2,500
I Quartzite
Series
Quartzites with shale
and limestone layers
(Spirigera mDniensis). 300
NORIC Monotis shales Limestones and Shales

(Manotis salinaria). 300
Cornl Limestone Limestones (Spirijerina
grinbachi and corals). 100
Juvavites beds hales. limestones and
andstones (Juvavitts
angulatus). 500
Tropites beds Dolomitic limestone
(Dielasma julicum).
hales and limestones
(Tropites subbullatus). 500
CARNIC Grey beds Grey hales and lime-
stones (Jommitu CYrll-
biformis). 500
Halobia beds Dark limestone (HaJo-
bia comata, Jaannitu
140
I tluma1M1Uis near base).
Divisions Thickness
Beds D scription (feet)
Daonella Dark Limestone (Dao-

Limestone ntlla indica). 150
LAD I IC
Daonella Shales Black limestones and
shales (Daontlla lom-
meli, Pt)lchitts gerardi). 160
Upper Mus- Limestones with shale
chelkalk bands (Ptychitts rugi-
Itr). 20
Lower Mus- Dark shales and lime-
chelkalk stones (Sihiriti1s prah-
lada, Spirijerinfl stra-
cheyi). 6
MUSCHEL-
KALK ' odular Lime-
stone
Hard nodulor limestone
(Niti Limestone) with
II
f w fossils. 60
Basal Muschel- Shaly Limestone (Rhyn-
I
kalk I ,hotlc/[a griesbachi). 3

I
Hedenstroemia Limestones and Shales
beds (Hedetlstroemia moj-
sisO'Vics-i , Flelllingites
rohilla). 34
I
Meekoceras Limestones and Shales
Zone (Meekoceras varaha). 3
BUNTER
Ophiceras Zone Grey Limestone (Ophi-
cuas sakuntala). I
Otoceras Zone Brown limestone (010-
I I ceras woodwardi).
2
Permian Productus Shales with Permian

shales fossils
. -
In Byans the Triassic System is only about 1,800
feet thick and shows a dominant limestone facies.
The Lower Trias is a chocolate-coloured limestone
in which the Hedenstroemia bed is represented by
the SIBIRITES SPINIGER ZONE. The Muschelkalk is a
grey limestone without shales. The Ladinic stage is
practically absent. At the top of the MuschelkAlk is
a 3-foot zone, the TROPITES ZONE, which is extra-
ordinarily rich in fossils and which represents an
accumulation of fossils faster than sediment. This
zone contains a mixture of Carnic and Noric types.
The Noric is, however, well developed and is repre-
sented by 1,000 feet of limestones and shales, overlain
by the Kioto Limestone having a thickness of 1,500
. feet of which the greater part is of Rhretic (upper-
most Triassic) age and which resembles the Hallstatt
marble of the Alpine region. The Tropites zone is
of great interest as it is very rich in fossils, a good
proportion of which i identical with those found in
the Hallstatt marble of the Eastern Alps, the rest
(nearly two-thirds of the species) being peculiar to
Byans. SOme of the more important fossils of this
zone are Tropit.es subbullatus, Pinacoce1'as pa?-ma,
Placites polydactylus (very abundant), Bambanagites
krajJti, Carnites fioridlls, Halorites procyon.
The 'exotic blocks' of Johar on the Tibetan

frontier are of a different facies from the Himalayan
Trias but resemble orne rocks in the Eastern Alps
in lithology and faunal characters. The Kioto Lime-
I stone is entirely absent here, being represented by a
grey dolomitic limestone which is unfossiliferous.
THE TRIASSIC SYSTEM III
Kashmir
Triassic rocks are found in the Pir Panjal, Sind
and Lidar valleys, Central Ladakh and N.W. Kashmir.
Some of these are ea ily accessible, though they havl::
not been studied in detail. The LOWER TRIAS (300
feet) shows the OPHICERAS, MEEKOCERAS and HUNGA-
RITES BEDS; the middle Trias (900 feet or more)
comprises limestones and Shales with the GYMNITES,
CERATITES, RHYNCHONELLA TRINODOSI and the PTY-
CHITES BEDS; the Upper Trias is several thousand feet
thick, with the LAMELLIBRANCH BEDS at the base,
SPIRIFERINA STRACHEYI BEDS above, followed by thick
massive limestone the upper portion of which resem-
bles the Kioto Limestones though the characteristic
fossil M egalodon has not been found in it.
The Himalayan Trias shows progressive change
when followed from one area to another. The Lower
Trias in Spiti is 40 feet thick and becomes thicker
when followed eastwards. In Byans it is calcareous
and attains a thickness of 150 feet. It is also quite
thick in Kashmir (over 300 feet).
The Muschelkalk is 900 feet thick in Kashmir
and thins down eastwards, being only 100 feet in
Painkhanda. The Ladinic differs widely in different
areas, being 300 feet thick in Spiti, barely 20 feet in
Painkhanda and absent in Byans; but it is apparently
thick in Kashmir. The same type of variation is seen
in the Carnic Stage, namely, a thinning down east-
wards, the Tropites zone of Byans showing a mixture
of Carnic and Noric faunal types. The Noric is
calcareous in all the areas, but with much shaly
material in Byans. It is practically unfossiliferous
in Kashmir. The Upper. Norie and Rhretic are
represented by the Kioto Limestone in all areas, this
becoming gradually thinner when followed eastwards
from Kashmir.
Salt Range
The Cis-Indus Salt Range shows the Lower Trias
and a part of the' Middle Trias, but a fuller succession
is found in the Trans-Indus region. Table 15 shows
the sequence.
Table 15.-Tms of Salt Range
Thickness
Division Fonnations
I (feet)
Carnic Crinoidsl dolomite

I 250
Middle Trias Bivalve ~8 100

-
Upper Ceratite Limestone (Stephanites
luperbus, Sibirites chidrumsu). 20
Ccratite Sandstone (Fkmingites fltmin-

gianus, F. radiatus, StacMlla 1jJ., Cel-
tites fallax). 30
Lower Trills
Ceratite Marls (Prionolobus rotundntm). 6()
-
Lower Ceratite Limestone (Gyronites
jrequms). 10
Pl'nruan Upper Productus Limestone (Chidru

Stage).
The Chidru Stage becomes sandy at the top and

there is a distinct unconformity at the base of the
'1'rins. The LoWER CERATITE LIMESTONE is the
equivalent of the Ophiceras beds.
These limestones are followed by the CERATITE
MARLS, which are conspicuous because of their
greyish green colour and the rounded form of their
outcrops. The CERATITE SANDSTONE contains a
middle calcareous division rich in Stacheila, a genus
THE TRIASSIC SYSTEM Hit
allied to Bellerophon. The upper division corresponds
to the Flemingites rohilla zone of the Himalaya.
The Ceratite Sandstone is overlain by the Upper
Ceratite Limestone, the fauna of which indicates that
it may represent the Sibirites spiniger zone of Byans.
The BIVALVE BEDS, composed of calcareous sand tones
and limestones, are of Middle Triassic age and
contain abundant lamellibranchs. They are succeed
ed by the CRINOIDAL DOLOMITE which may be cor-
related with the Carnic Stage.
A ttock District
The Attock Slates are overlain here directly by
the Kioto (MEGALODON) Limestone which is partly
Upper Triassic and partly Liassic. Good sections are
seen in the Kala Chitta Hills.
Hazara
In the southeastern part of Hazara the Infra-
Trias is overlain by felsitic lavas and these in turn by
grey limestones of Upper Triassic age. The sequence:
extends from Upper Triassic to Eocene. The Upper
Triassic fossils from here resemble those of Spiti.
Baluchistan
A great thickness of greenish slaty shales with
limestone intercalations is found in the Zhob-Pishin
area, containing characteristic Upper Triassic fossils.
including Monotis salinaria and species of Halorites,.
Didymites, etc.
Burma
The AxIAL SYSTEM in the Arakan Yomas includes
Triassic rocks in its lower portion, with Halobia
lommeli and Monotis sp. It seems to be represented!
:also in Manipur State and in the Minbu and Pokokku
-districts.
In the Northern Shan States, the Plateau Lime-
stone is succeeded by the NAPENG BEDS of Rhretic age.
'They comprise sandstones, shales and limestones,
.containing several molluscan fossils and some corals.
- The KAMA WKALA LIMESTONE of Amherst dis-
-trict, close to the frontier of Thailand, contains fossils
which are referable to the Upper Trias.
''] '- ...._. __,
I ~ 1
CHAPTER XI _;...-
THE JURASSIC SYSTEM

DISTRffiUTION.-The Jurassic System is developed
in the Tibetan zone of the Himalaya, in Kashmir.
Hazara, Salt Range and Baluchistan in the Extra-
Peninsula; and in Kutch, Rajasthan and parts of the
eastern coast in the Peninsula. In Baluchistan the
facies is marine calcareous and the area of its deve-
lopment is called the Calcareous Zone. In the
Himalaya a shaly facies prevails whose typical re-
presentative is the well known Spiti Shales. Liassic
rocks of the 'exotic blocks' in Johar are earthy red
limestones which are different from either of the
ahove, but resemble the Hallstatt marble in the
Eastern Alps in Europe.
An important unconformity, marking the Callo-
vian age, is seen in the Jurassic succession in the
Extra-Peninsula. In the Himalayan region of Spiti
and Kumaon the unconformity ranges from Callovian.
to Oxfordian, while in Baluchistan it extends up to
the Neocomian (Lower Cretaceous). On the other
hand, Lower Jurassic rocks are absent in the Penin-
sula but deposition begins in the Bathonian and
continues through the Callovian into the Cretaceous_
An estuarine to fresh-water facies characterises.
the Upper Gondwanas with their P tilophyUum flora,
developed along parts of the eastern coast and in
Madhya Pradesh. Volcanic phenomena were wit-
nessed in the Rajmahal area.
FAUNA AND FLORA.-The Jurassic is the era of
best development of the typical ammonite group of
the cephalopods and many forms show a high and
complicated development of the sutural lines.
Lamellibranchs and gastropods are also prominent
and are represented by numerous species. Amphi-
bians and reptiles attain great importance during
this era, as in the Triassic. Amongst the plants,
ilicales . and Pteridosperms lose their importance
while the Cycads and Conifers attain great promin-
Ence.
PLATE X.
JUJWlSIC FOSSILS.
1. Holcothy,u subotJalis (1/2). 2. Trigonia smeei (1/S). 3. Stepho.-

ftouras corona tum (1/4). 4. Macroupho.Jitumauocephalus (1/6). S. Ptl-
touros at/Jato (1 /3). 6. SuplJ(nlOCuas (Indocephalitu) diadematum
(1/4). 7. Pmspltincttl (Virgato.sphinctu) frequens (1 /3). 8. Peris-
phinctu (Rrinackl!ia) rthmamri (1/6). 9. HoJcosupllanus (Spiticuas)
Spitii!nsis (1/3). 10. BtiemniUt guard; (1/3).
THE JURASSIC SYSTEM 117
Spiti
The upper part of the Kioto Limestone may bE.'
{)f Liassic (Lower Jurassic) age as already indicated.
At Laptal. the Lias is represented by the LAPTAL
BEDS, but this may really be a representative of the
Upper Kioto Limestone. There is often a marked
unconformity between this and the Callovian SULCA-
<CUTUS BEDS, which are so named after the characte-
ristic fossil Belemnites (Belemnopsis ) sulcacutus.
In the Niti Pass, this bed consists of sandstones and
eontains other Belemnites and several pelecypods; but
in some other places it is a ferruginous oolite, con-
densed to a thickness of 6 or 7 metres but containing
Callovian ammonites.
There is almost everywhere an unconformity
above the Callovian, marked by a conglomerate. The
succeeding beds are the well known SPITI SHALES
which extend from the Upper Oxfordian into the
lowermost Cretaceous. The Spiti Shales contain
three divisions as shown in Table 16. The BELEM-
NITES GERARDI BEDS, which are black friable shales
eontain Belemnopsis gerardi, Inoceramus and Maya-
ites. The Middle division, called CHIDAMU BEDS, are
lustrous black shales with concretions containing
characteristic ammonites of the genera Pe1isphinctes.
Phyllocems, Ifijtoceras and Oppelia, etc. They are
Kimeridgian to Portlandian in age. The upper beds
are the LOCHAMBAL BEDS, which are similar to the
middle division but contain the ammonite genera
Spiticeras, Blanlordiceras, HimaZayites, Berriasella,
Neocomites, etc. They are therefore, Upper Tithonian
to Neocomian in age. The Spiti shales have a very
wide distribution, from Hazara and north-western
Himalayas to eastern Himalayas and eastern Tibet.
Similar formations are also found in Indonesia.
Table 16.-Jurassic succe8sion in Spiti
Divisions Stages
Lochambal beda Up. Thithonian and

lowest cretaceous.
Spiti
Chidarnu beds L. Tbithonian.
Shales
Belemnites gerardi beds Oxfordian .
.. . ................... ........ Unconforrnity ...... .. . :
Sulcacutus beds Callovian.
Kioto
Tagling Stage Lias.
Limestone
Para Stage U pper Trias.
Kumaon and Nepal Himalaya

The succession in the region of the Niti Pass.
Shalshal cliffs and Byans is similar to that of Spiti
though the thiekness of the beds varies. The Callo-
vian unconformity is marked either by a thin
conglomerate or a zone of laterite underlying the
Spiti. Shales.
In Ngari Kborsum, the 'exotic blocks' are seen tQ

include earthy nodular limestone of Lower Jurassic
age containing species of PhyUoceras, Schlotheimia,
Arietites, etc. recalling the facies and fauna of the
Eastern Alps.
Jurassic rocks, mainly shales and limestones.

are found also in the region north of Mt. Everest,
containing crinoids, belemnites and ammonites.
They are overlain by Cretaceous and Eocene strata.
Kashmir
As in Spiti, the upper portion of the Kioto Lime-
stone is of Liassic age here also. This is succeeded
by Spiti Shales in Ladakh and in the Zanskar range,
but lhe strata have not been studied in detail.
Jurassic rocks occur also in the Pir Panjal.
Huza1'a
Hazara shows the development of two facies
which lie side by side. The strata trend in a N J': : .-
S.W. direction. The north-western zone shows the
Spiti type of succession with MEGALODON LIMESTONF)
and SPITI SHALES. The south eastern side shows the
calcareous facies of the Baluchistan type in which
there is a gap between the Callovian and the
Neocomian.
Attock District
In the Kala Chita hills of the Attock district, the
KIOTO LIMESTONE is overlain by Spiti Shales which
grade upwards into th& Giumal Series of. Cretaceous
age. The Spiti Shales contain Macrocephalites
(Epimayaites) polyphemus, Mayites maya, Peris-
phinctes indogermanus, Spiticeras, Hibolites and
other fossils.
Salt Range
Middle and Upper Jurassic rocks are developed
both in the Punjab Salt Range and in the Trans-
Indus region. They are sandstones and limestones
which are only 100 feet thick at Amb in the Salt
'Range, but gradually thicken westwards to 2,000 feet
in the Surghar Range beyond the Indus. The facies
resembles that of Kutch. The lower part of the
succession, which is of Lower to Middle Jurassic
age, is called the VARIEGATED SERIES, comprising
varicoloured sandstones, argillaceous limestones and
pyriwus shales. Amidst these are bands of hematite
and thin layers of 'golden oolite' similar to the golden
oolite of Kutch, their warm orange-yellow to red
colour being due to a thin coating of iron. The
Variegated Series is overlain by Upper Jurassic
Limestones and Shales. The carbonaceous layers in
the Variegated Series contain Ptilophyllum and
other plant fossils of Upper Gondwana affinities.
while the limestone beds contain cephalopods, lamelli-
branchs and brachiopods similar to those of the Chari
beds of Kutch. The Salt Range was probably
connected by a sea with Kutch, through Jaisalmer.
Jurassic rocks containing brachiopods and
cephalopods occur in the Bannu district of the N.W_
Frontier Province and in the Samana Range.
Baluchistan
The Liassic in Eastern Baluchistan is 3,000 feet
thick and shows affinities with similar strata in the
Mediterranean region. It is overlain by thick massive
limestones the uppermost part of which is called the
POLYPHEMUS BEDS and contains Macrocephalitc8
polyphemus, M. macrocephalus, Perisphinctes and
other fossils including Terebratula.
Raja.sthan
Jura sic rocks occur in Western India, in Kutch
and in parts of Rajasthan. They have affinities with
the Salt Range strata, and all were apparently
deposited in different parts of a connected marine
basin. They are of rather shallow facies, but from
the fact that they attain a thickness of 6,000 feet in
Kutch it is inferred that the basin of sedimentation
sank gradually as deposition proceeded.
Outcrops of Jurassic rocks are found in Bikaner
and Jaisalmel'. They are composed of alternating
layers of light brown to buff limestones and grey
or brown sandstones. The limestones are good
building stones and include some shell-limestones.
The succession of beds is as follows.
Table 17.-Jurassic Succession in Jaisalmer
Strata Description Age
Abur beds 1 Limestones and shales Upper Jurassic.

Parihar Sandstones Felspathic sandstones (un-
fossiliferous).
Badasar beds Ferruginous sandstones Katrol.
Jaisalmer Limestones. I Sandstones and limestones Chari.

in tercalated.
The fossils found in the J AISALMER LIMESTONES are

Stephanoceras fi~sllm, Reineckeia reissi, etc. which
indicate a Middle to Upper Chari age. The BADASAR
BEDS contain Virgatosphinctes oppeZi and Pachy-
sphinctes bathyplocus which are of Katrol age. The
MOO BEDS are high up in the Jurassic.
Kutch
Jurassic rocks are found in Kutch on three
anticlinal ridges trending E.-W. The northern ridge
runs through the islands of Patcham, Karrir, Bela
and Chorar in the Rann of Kutch, the midd1e ridge
through Lakhpat and the southern ridge through the
Katrol hill and south of Bhuj. They range in age
from Callovian to Lower Cretaceous. The topmost
beds contain fossils which indicate an Aptian age.
They are covered by the Deccan Trap or by Eocene
strata. The general sequence of the strata is shown
in Table 18.
PATCHAM SERIES.-The lowest rocks form the
PATCHAM SERIES, consisting of yellow limestones and
sandstones containing Trigonia, CO'I'bula and other
lamellibranchs, followed by white limestones and
shales with Macrocephalites 'macrocephalus, Sivaji-
ceras congener, Montlivaltia, Stylina, etc. They are
of Callovian age.
THE CHARI SERIES consist of five main stages.
The lowest stage, the MACROCEPHALUS BEDS, contains.
a middle zone of 'golden oolite' which is characterised
by Indocephalites diadematus and is therefore known
as the 'DiadematuB Zone'. Above this stage are dark
~hales and sandy shales with calcareous nodules~
which form the REHMANNI BEDS. The ANCEPS BEDS
and ATHLETA BEDS are limestones, while the DHOSA
OOLITES are brown and green oolites very rich in
fossils.
THE KATROL SERIES is composed of sandstones
and shales, part of the Upper Katrol beds being
barren of fossils. There are some interstratified
plant-bearing beds in this series.
The UMIA SERIES consists of conglomerates,
shales and sandstones. The lower portion is upper-
most Jurassic in age. Further up come the TRIGONU
DEDS followed by 1,000 feet of barren sandstones and
by the UMIA PLANT BEDS of Aptian age. These last
are aJso regarded as the highest series of the Gond-
wana rocks. Further up are marine strata which
are referable to an age slightly later than the Aptian.
Table 18.-Jurassic Succession in Kutch
Age Sub-divisions Chief fossils
Aptian and later Marine sand- Colombiceros tOalIgerU.

stones.
Umia plant beds WilJiamsonia, Ptilo-
,_
phyl/um, Elatoc/n-
dIU, Cladophlebis.
~::: Aptian Ukra beds No fossils.
Neocomian Trigonia beds Trillonia f)enlrieoJO,
::s
~
~
- Portlandian Ammonite beds
T. ercusa.
Virgalosphi"ctts !r,.-
quem, V . dt'nse-
plicntus.
Portlandian U. Katrol shales [Jildolllochicercu leo
bt!/Ii.
Portlandian Gajnnsar beds Phylioceras plicatius,
S,trtblites gaJamartm
$U .
U. Kimeridgian Upper Kateol Aulacosphinctes me
...J"':' ndionnlis .
O.:=: M . Kimeridgian {Middle Katrol Katrolieeros ka troleme
~ L . K imeridgian Lower Katrol
Aspidocercu ltrtnst
Torquatisphinctts si-
::z:::::' milis, Taramtlii-
cercu km:hhense.
U. Oxfo rdian Kantkote Sand- Epimayaitts spp., Tor
stone. qualUphinetts lor-
quatw.
L. Oxfordian
__- Trigonia Smui.
Taramtllicercu juma
Dhosa oolite
rtnt t Mayaitt
maya , Epimayaitt
polyphemul.
U . Callovian
-. ,_
a:'::: M. Callovian
Athleta beds
Anceps bed.!!
Ptltoceras athIela, Pel
lOCeras ponderosum
Perisphinctts anceps
lndosphincles calf)w
-<8
::tN_ M . Callovian Rehmanni beds Rtintcktill rehmanni,
-
~ I diocycloceras sin
gulare.
L. Callovian Macrocephalw )l{oerocephalitel mac
beds roc~halus, I
cep alites diadt
matul.
-
Series I Age I Sub-divisions Chief fossils
Patcham coral Sivajicnas cong_,

beds Pro:erites hyans,
Montlivaltia.
Patcham sheLl- Macrocephalites tri-
limestone angularis Corbula
lyrata, TrigonifJ
pulius.
Bathonian Pstcham basal . Mtgateuthis.

limestone
Andhra Coast
Plant-bearing beds, associated with marine
strata, occur near Ongole in the Guntur district.
The plant fossils are generally regarded as Upper
Jurassic in age. Some badly preserved ammonites
from the associated marine beds are regarded by
Dr. L. F. Spath as of Upper Neocomian age. In fact
Dr. Spath regards the Rajmahals as Neocomian.
Burma
The N apeng beds of Northern Shan States are
. overlain by the NAMYAl! BEDS consisting of sandstones,
conglomerates and shales with a few limestone bands.
The enclosed fossils are lamellibranchs and brachio-
pods (Bttrmirhynchia, Holcothyri8 etc.) which indi-
cate a Bathonian age. These beds extend into the
provinces of Yunnan and Szechuan in China.
The LoI-AN-BEDS of Southern Shan States are
considered to be of Jurassic age. They contain some
coal seams in the upper portion. The plant fossils
found in them include Cladophlebis denticttlata.
Brachyplly7ltlm (lxpansmn and Ginkgoites digitata.
CHAPTER XII
THE CRETACEOUS SYSTEM
DISTRIBUTION.-The Cretaceous System is one of
the best developed marine systems of India, showing
a variety of facies and having a wide distribution.
There are large areas covered by this system in the-
Himalayas exhibiting the geosynclinal facies. The
Calcareous Zone of Eastern Baluchistan presents a
calcareous facies while in Western Baluchistan is.
developed an arenaceous and generally unfossiliferous.
facies, resembling the European flysch formations.
The Arakan region of Burma shows similar rocks.
Marine incursions in some areas of the Peninsula
have left strata of this period in the Narmada valley,
in Assam, and in the Trichinopoly-Pondicherry area
of Madras. Of these the Narmada area shows.
affinities with Mediterranean region while the other
two are related to formations in the Indo-Pacific
region. There are also estuarine and lacustrine
deposits which either underlie, or are intercalated'
with, the lava flows of the Deccan Traps.
IGNEOUS ACTIVITY.-The end of the Cretaceous.
was a period of great igneous activity. Basic
intrusives of this age are found in the Himalaya,
Baluchistan and Burma, and lava flows of great
magnitude covered a large area in the Peninsula.
estimated at half a million square miles, and possibly
even extended to the west of what is now the Bombay
coast.
MARINE TRANSGRESSION.-In the Extra-Penin-
sular areas there is generally a stratigraphical gap
between the Lower and Upper Cretaceous, indicating
a marine regression during that period. But the
Peninsular areas show a well marked marine trans-
gression at about the same period, i.e., Albian-
Cenomanian.
The eastern coast of India had apparently taken
more or less its present shape during the Jurassic.
The Assam plateau and Trichinopoly-Pondichen'y
.area were invaded by arms of the Bay of Bengal in
Middle Cretaceous times. The western coast was
probably not formed till at least the end of the Eocene
1\\'hen great changes were initiated, resulting in the
formation of the Alpine Himalayan mountain
~ystems. The final shape of the western coast, at any
. rate the northern and north-western part of it, was
;not acquired untfl the Miocene or Pliocene times.
Spiti
Cretaceous rocks are seen at Giumal, Chikkim
..and other places in the Spiti area. The Lochambal
beds (Upper Jurassic) pass upwards into brown
sandstones and thin-bedded quartzites called the
IGIUMAL SERIES. The uppermost parts of the Loch-
ambal beds are themselves considered to be partly of
Lower Neocomian age; the Giumal sandstones are
therefore slightly younger. These latter contain
(!ephalopods (Holcostephanus, Hoplites) and lamelli-
branchs ( Ca1dium gieumalense, Pseudomonotis
.superstes) .
The white and grey limestones and shales over-
lying the Giumal sandstones constitute the CHIKKIM
ERIES. The limestones contain Belemnites. HipP'lt-
'rites and several foraminifera which indicate an age
above the Middle Cretaceous. The Chikkim shales
are unfossiliferous and are followed by arenaceous
-beds of the flysch type. In some areas the flysch type
THE CRETACEOUS SYSTEM 127
appears even at the beginning of the CretaceouSr
indicating that the marine basin was already be-
coming quite shallow.
Kumaon and Tibet

In Johar, the Giumal Sandstones are well-
developed. They are followed by greenish and black
shales, the latter containing Belemnites. Then comes
a thickness of flysch sediments resembling the Pa\).
Sandstones of Baluchistan, succeeded by tuffs and
volcanic breccia. The volcanic breccias and flows are
associated with blocks of sedimentary rocks (exotic.
blocks) ranging in age from the Permian to Creta-
ceous, including the flysch strata above referred to_
The 'exotic blocks' are regarded either as materials
torn up by lava flows from some part of Tibet and
transported to their present position, or as remnants
of 'nappes' (thrust-sheets) which have travelled some-
distance from their original site.
CHIKKIM LIMESTONES are found in the Niti Pass

area. The neighbouring Tibetan region shows:
Cretaceous volcanics and early Eocene sedirnents_
In Western and Central Tibet, Mesozoic rocks.

are met with, including Giumal sandstones andl
Cenomanian limestones.
A fairly complete Cretaceous sequence is seen

near Kampa Dzong north of Darjeeling. The
Cretaceous and associated early Tertiary rocks of
this region have been called the KAMPA SYSTEM.
Ka,shmir
Cretaceous limestones are known to occur in
Rupshu, in Ladakh and in the Burzil region. In the
last-mentioned area, the strata are intercalated with
volcanic rocks and intruded into by granites and
ultra-basic rocks.
Hazara
The north-western geosynclinal zone of Hazara
contains Giumal sandstones which pass upwards into
Albian Strata containing lIyellicera,s lyeUi, Douvillei-
ce-ras mamillatum, etc. These are followed by a gl'ey
limestone which has a laterite layer at the top indi-
eating a break in sedimentation before the Eocene
was laid down.
Samana Region
The Jurassic rocks (Samana Suk Limestones)
are overlain by glauconitic sandstones of Lower
Cretaceous age and these by the MAIN SANDSTONE
SERIES of Albian age. The top beds of this series
have yielded cephalopods and other fossils, They
~re' 'followed by the LOWER AND UPPER LITHOGRAPHIC
LIMESTONES which are of Middle to Upper Cretaceous
age.
Baluchistan-Sind
The Calcareous Zone of Baluchistan and Sind
frontier shows a good deve]oplI,lent of the Cretaceous
(See Table 19). Here the Neocomian strata uncon-
formably overlie the Callovian. They consist of the
BELEMNITE BEDS below and PARH LIMESTONES above.
The Belemnite beds contain belemnites and Duvalia
(a flattened form of Belemnites), They sometimes
pass into a flysch type of sediment. The Parh Lime-
stones are fine-grained, white and purple lime tone ,
mostly unfossiliferous, but occasionally yielding
Hippurites and Inoceramus.
The Neocomian strata are succeeded by the
HEMIPNEUSTE~ BEDS of Senonian age containing
cephalopods, lamellibranchs and echinoderms. The
last are represented by H emipneustes compreSBU8,
Echinola'tnpas gigas, Hemiaster blanfordi, etc. Above
these come the CARDITA SUBCOMPLANATA BEDS and
the PAB SANDSTONES. These are, in places, overlain
by beds containing Gardita beaumonti with which are
associated lava flows correlated with the Deccan Traps.
The CARDITA BEAUMONTI BEDS are of Danian (upper-
most Cretaceous) age.
Salt Range
The Neocomian is represented by the BELEMNITE
BEDS, seen near Kalabagh and in the Chichali and
Sheik Budin Hills. They contain belemnites and
ammonites including Holco8tephanu8, Himalayaites,
Neocomites, Sarasinella and Hibolites, as well as
reptilian and fish remains. The beds overlying them
range up to the Albian in age and are succeeded by
Eocene limestones with the intervention of a bed of
ferruginous marl.
Western India
The AHMEDNAGAR SANDSTONES of the Ida!' State
are thick, red and brown, horizontally bedded sand-
stones thought to be partly of Wealden age because
<>f their containing the plant fossils Matonidium and
Weich..,elia. They may be of the same age as the
Nimar Sandstone underlying the Bagh beds and the
Dhrangadhra Sandstone of Kathiawar.
Table lB.-Mesozoic Succession in Baluchi8tan
(A/teT E. VRENDENBURG)
Aae Sub-divisions and description
Danian CARD ITA BEAUMONTI BED-Associated with basic

lavas and agglomerates.
Maestrichtian PAB SANDSTON1!&-Massive, coanle, sandstones with
volcanic materials.
Ma strichtian OLIVE SHALES-Rich in fossils, occasionally inter-
calated with volcanic ash.
Senonian? JisM1PNEUsTES DEDs-Limestones and shale!, with
echinoid! and cephalopods.
- - - - - - Unconformity - - - - -
Senonian LI11J01..A BEDS-Flaggy limestones with small Fora-
to minifera mainly of the genus LituoW.
Cenomanian
PARR LIMESTONES-White porocellanic limestcnes.
Neocomian BBLBMNITE BEDS-Black splintery shales \vith B,!em-
nites and Hoplittt.
- - - - - - - - - - - Unconformity - - - - - -
Callovian POLYPHBMUS BEDS-Limestones and shales containing
Macrouphalites polyphemw.
Bathonian Massive grey limestone, several thousand feet thick.
Lias Dark, well-bedded limestone with rare fossil horizons.
TrillS Greenish grey slaty shales with limestone layers

(Marrotis salinaria, Halorites, Didymites, lite.)
Permo-Carbon i- Limestones ,vith Producws and other fossils.

ferous
Narmada, Valley
THE BAGH BEDS of the Narmada valley are seen
in a eries of outcrops between Wadhwan in Kathia-
war and Bagh in Gwalior. They are well developed
in the Panch Mahals of Gujarat, resting on the
metamorphics and being overlain by the Deccan
Trap. The Lower beds, called NIMAR SANDSTONES,
consist of a basal conglomerate, sandstones and some
shales. They yield good building stones which are
quarried in the former Baroda State.
The upper beds consist of three divisions, all
calcareous-the NODULAR LIMESTONE, DEOLA MARLS
and CORALLINE LIMESTONE. The Deola Marls are
highly fossiliferous and have yielded numerous
cephalopods, lamellibranchs, gastropods and echino-
derms.
Cephalopods Placenticnas minto;, Namadocnas scindiaJ.

Lamellibranchs ... Pecten quadricostata, Osfrea arcOlensis, Protocardium
pondicherriense, TrachYCllrdium incomptum. Gro-
triana jugosa.
Gastropods Lyria granulosa, Fascio/araia rigida, Tllrritelia
multistria la.
Echinoderms Cidaris namadicus, Salmia Iraasi, Hemiaster U'tlO-
manensis.
The fauna is regarded as indicating an age rang-

ing from Upper Cenomanian to Senonian (i.e .,
mainly Turonian).
Trichinopoly-Pondicherry Area
The Cretaceous rocks in this region are seen in
three large patches separated from each other by the
alluvial valleys of the Pennar (Ponnaiyar) and Vellar
Rivers.
Table 20.-The Bagh Beds
Divisions Description
Eocene to Up.
Cretaceous Deccan Traps.
Coralline Limestone.
Bagh Upper Deala (or Chirakhan) Marls.
{
Bed, Nodular Limestones.
{
Lower Nimar Sandstones.
Archaean IMetamorphics
The largest of these occupies about 250 square
miles in the north-eastern part of the Trichinopoly
district. The Cretaceous rocks lie for the most part
directly on Archrean gneisses or charnockites which
are found to be highly weathered and calcified near
the margins. In some places on the western margin,
small expo ures of Upper Gondwana plant-bearing
beds intervene be1:ween the Cretaceous and the
Archreans. To the south and north they are covered
by alluvial deposits and to the east by the Cuddalore
Sandstones of Miocene age.
THE UTTATTUR STAGE.-The lowest strata belong
to the UTTATTUR STAGE. They have a length of some
20 miles, in a N.E.-S.W. direction, with a maximum
width of 4 to 5 miles. They contain ferruginous and
calcareous nodules which often enclose fossils. Veins
of gypsum, celestite and calcium carbonate as also
phosphatic and calcareous nodules are found in them.
In some places they contain abundant Belemnites.
The basal beds are grey fossiliferous limestones
weathering brown. The strata dip gently sea-ward
at low angles. They are rich in fossils, particularly
cephalopods and other mollusca and corals.
THE TRICHINOPOLY STAGE.-The next stage is

named the TRICHINOPOLY STAGE which is probably
separated from the Uttatturs by a slight uncon-
formity, marked occasionally by grits and conglo-
merates. This stage contains some gypsum veins
and silicified tree trunks. In some places there are
hell-limestones capable of being polished and used
as an ornamental building stone, though the strata
are in general arenaceous. The majority of the
f ossils are lamellibranchs and gastropods though
ammonites are also present.
THE ARIYALUR STAGE has a greater extent than

the other two. The upper portion is unfossiliferous.
The fauna of the lower portion resembles that of the
Trichinopoly Stage, but has several new species.
Some reptilian and fish remains have been obtained
from these strata. The Ariyalur Stage also occurs
in the Vriddhachalam and Pondicherry areaS.
THE NINIYUR (NANNIYUR) STAGE overlies the

Ariyalur Stage and is restricted in extent. In this
stage there are banks of cherty and flinty rock which
often contain algae. No ammonites occur in this
stage but the presence of Nautilu,s (Hereoglo8sa)
d~niCU8 fixes the age as the uppermost Creta.ceous.
The Ariyalur Stage is exposed in an area

immediately to the north of Vriddhachalam in the
South Arcot district. The strata are marls and clays
with local limestone banks.
Table 21.-Cretaceous Succession in Trichinopoly
Age Stage Det.cription
Danian NINlYUR Sandy Limet.tones and marl -Nauti-

lus danicw, Lyria formosa, Slylina
porvu/a.
Mteltrichtian ARIYAL\J1\ UPPER : Saody strata without fossils.

LoWER : Sands and Clays-Pachy-
discus ~gertoni, Brahmaites brahma,
Baculius vagina, corals and lamelli-
branchs.
.....
Senonian
UPPER : Sandstonet. and Clays-Pla-
c~ liceraf lamulicum, Schloenbachia
dravidicum, Fasciolnria rigida.
TRICHINO-
POLY
LoW1!B : Sandstones, Clays and hell
limestone-PachydisClls ~ramplus,
Schl~bachia serraticarinatus.
Turonian
UPPBR : Sandy beds-Acanthoeeras
newbold;, Mammil~s cunci/.iatus.
MIDDLE : Clays-Acanthoeeras r/w-

tomagms~ A. manf~Ui, A. cok-
Cenomanian UTTA1TUR roonmse, Turrilit~s costatw.
1:0 uppermost
Albian LoWER : Coral limestone and clays-
SchloenbaclUa inflata, stolic.rrJeaia
dispar, Turrilit~s bergen.
Further north, in the Pondicherry area, the

Ariya)ur and Niniyur Stages emerge again out of
the alluvium and consist of sandy and argillaceous
PLATE XI.
CRETACEOUSFo n.s.
I. Nautilus
~o . .
bouchardianus (1/6). 2. Nautilus tLmicus (I/S).
Hamitu (Anisoceras) indicus (J /3). 4. Bacu1ittl vagina (1/3).
limestones and marls and occasional banks of shell-
limestone. They are overlapped by the Cuddalore
Sandstones on the east and west and thin down and
disappear when followed northwards.
Recent work seems to show that these beds are

a~sociated with Eocene strata which have yielded
foraminifera of Eocene age.
A ssam
Marine Cretac~ous rocks occur in the Shillong
pJateau and are composed of sandstones with occa-
sional shales and carbonaceous layers. They have a
thickness of up to 1,000 feet. They have gentle dips
on the plateau but dip steeply on the southern flanks
towards the plains. The fossils that have been
obtained from a locality near Therria Ghat show a
great resemblance to the fauna of the Trichinopoly
Cretaceous, especially to that of the Ariyalur Stage.
The fauna belongs to the Indo-Pacific life province
and is closely allied to the Cretaceous fauna of Natal
in South Africa, but only slightly to that of the Bagh
beds.
5. Tttrrilitts (Heurocuas) indicus (1 /2). 6. SchilH!nfHu;hia inflata (1 /4).

7. Acantltoceras amnillgtoni (1 /5). 8. Hoplitts (lVeocomites) walkui
(t/3). 9. Lytocum (Goudrycuas) varagurmse (1 /4). 10. Cypraea
Kayei (2/3). 11. Actaeontlla cylindrica (2/3). 12. Braltmmtts brahma
(1 /3). 13. 1'urrittlla (Zaria) multistriata (1). 14. Alectryonia W!gulata
(1/3). IS. Cyclolitesjilammtosa. 16. GTotrianajugosa (2/3). 17. Car-
dUtm (Trach),cardillm) incomptum (2/ 3). 18. Trogonarca ga/drina (2/3).
19. Vola guinquecostata (1/2). 20. Cardita (Vmericarllia) beaumonti
3/4. 21. Fasciolaria rigida (2/3). 22. Hemipnnutes compress-us (1/2).
Burma
Cretaceous rocks are known along the Arakan
Yoma and in the Ramri Island. Part of the AXIAL
GROUP is of this age as it contains Ca1'dita beaumonti
and other fossils. The NEGRAIS SERIES on the flanks
of the Yomas near Cape Negrais is also thought to
bE: mainly of Cretaceous age.
Cretaceous rocks occur in the Jade mines tract

and in the first and second defiles of the Irrawaddy.
The limestones and hale here have yielded Orbito-
lina and some other Cretaceous fossils.
Igneous Rocks
Igneous rocks of different compositions and of
both extrusive and intrusive phases are associated
with Cretaceous rock~ in several areas.
Volcanic rocks and breccias are seen in close .

association with Cretaceous rocks in Johar. In the
Burzil-Dras region of Kashmir, volcanic flows are
intercalated with Cretaceous rocks and there are also
acid, basic and ultrabasic rock type intrusive into
the sedimentaries. But the intrusive rocks are
probably of Eocene age.
Basaltic lavas. pyroclastics and intrusive ser-

pentinised ultrabasics are found in Baluchistan.
They are probably of Upper Cretaceous age. The
chromite of Zhob-Quetta area is found in these
erpentines.
Late Cretaceous and early Eocene activity is also

recognised in the Arakan-Andaman belt. Basic and
ultra-basic rocks are here intruded into Cretaceous
138 INTRODUCTION TO THE GEOLOGY OF INDlA
and. early Eocene sedimentaries. In some places
chromite is found in the ultrabasic rocks. The jadeite
of the Myitkyina region is found in albite rocks in
association with olivine-rocks and amphibolites which
are apparently of late Cretaceous age.
Lastly, there are the Deccan Traps which cover

a large area of Peninsular India, and which are
regarded as of Upper Cretaceous to Eocene age.
These are dealt with in the next chapter.
CHAPTER XIII
THE LAMET AS AND DECCAN TRAPS

THE LAMETA BEDS
Beneath the Deccan Traps in parts of the
Western India and the Narmada valley, there occurs
a group of limestones with subordinate sandstones
and clays. These beds take their name from the
Lameta Ghat near JabaJpur where they are well
exposed. They vary in thickness from 20 to 100 feet.
The individual beds are liable to change in thickness
and character laterally and the whole sequence is not
found in anyone section. The limestones are usually
siliceous and gritty and contain lumps and segrega-
tions of chert. The Lametas rarely contain good
determinable fossils though fragmentary fossil
remains are quite frequently seen. Amongst these
fossils are:
Gastropods Jl.f~l(lnin , Pallldina nom,alis, Physa (Bulli",lS)

prinsepii.
Fishes ~idost~, Eourranus, Pycnodu$.
Dinosaurs LatlUtasaurus, Titanosaurus, AlItarctosaul'US,
Jubbulporia .
The Lameta beds are of fluviatile or estuarine

origin. They are probably of the same age as the
Bagh beds or slightly younger, that is, Upper
Cretaceous.
In several places, the Deccan traps are also
underlain by irregular beds of limestone. Though
resembling the Lameta limestones to some extent,
they are unfossiliferous. They have been derived
from the calcification of the rocks underlying the
Deccan Traps (generally Archrean rocks) by lime
contained in the waters descending down from the
Deccan Traps. They are therefore not of true
sedimentary nature.
Infra-Trappean Beds
In some areas, and particularly in the neighbour-
hood of Rajamahendri (Rajahmundry), Andhra
Pradesh, there occur some beds of sandstone and thin
limestones. The beds at Dudukuru, some 12 miles
N.N.W. of Rajamahendri, are typical of these. From
their position just below the Traps, they are called
Intra-Trappean beds. They contain lamellibranch and
gastropod remains {including Turritella dispassa and
Ca1'dita beaumonti) which are said to have affinities
to the Ariyalur and Niniyur beds of the Trichinopoly
Cretaceous.
THE DECCAN TRAPS

General
'The Deccan Traps are basaltic lava flows which
now occupy some 200,000 square miles of Western
and Central India and which may originally have
occupied more than twice this area. Basaltic lavas
are often called tra.ps because the flows produce step-
like topography. On account of their tendency to
form plateau-like features they are called plateau
basalts. It is surmised that they issued out of several
11 sures in the earth's crust with a high degree of
super-heat which enabled the lavas to spread out far
and wide into horizontal sheets. Such eruptions are
c~~lled fis u1e-erltptions in contrast to central-erup-
tions which produce cone and crater. Evidences of
the exi tence of this latter type in the Deccan Trap
area ha a]so been recorded from a few places in
THE LAMETAS AND DECCAN TRAPS 141
Vi estern India in recent years, the eruptions in such
cases being accompanied by some differentiated rock
type of acid, intermediate and ultra-basic composi-
tion.
Distriblttion
The Deccan Traps occupy large areas of Bombay,
Kathiawar, Central India and Madhya Pra.desh,
with outlying patches in Bihar, Madras and Kutch.
It would appear that they extended for some distance
west of the present Bombay coast, but this portion
has been faulted down and is now covered by the sea.
The straightness of the continental shelf of the
western coast and the large thickness of the traps
here, estimated at over 7,000 feet, go to support this
idea.
The traps are divided into three groups as
follows:
Upper Traps Bombay; contain numerous layers of volcanic

(1,500 ft.) ash and inter-trappean beds.
Middle Traps Central India; numerous Bsh-beds in the
(4.000 ft.) upper portion but few mter-trappeans.
Lower Traps Madhya Pradesh and further east; several

(500 ft.) inter-trappeans. but few ash-beds.
Structural Features
The traps have been poured out in a series of
flows, the individual flows in different areas varying
in thickness from a few feet to as much as 100 feet.
The average of a large number of flows is probably of
the order of 50 feet. The flows have a great areal
extent, and a few individual flows have been traced
for distances of 50 or 60 miles.
Some of t.he flows are compact. but. may show
variation in coarseness as bet.ween the cent.re and the
top and bottom surfaces. In thick flows, the bottom
may be coarser than the other portions. Amygda-
loidal flows are common, t.he amygdular cavities being
often filled with secondary minerals such as calcite,
variet.ies of silica (quartz, chalcedony, agate, jasper,
carnelian, etc.), zeolites or 'green earth.'
Ash beds are common in t.he Upper Traps.
Columnar joint.ing is seen only in a few places, e.g .
in the Salsette Island and Malwa.
The Traps occasionally show slight undulations
and folding, attributable to some earth movement
subsequent to their formation. Some faults have
also affected them as in the Chhindwara district,
Madhya Pradesh.
Dykes and sills of Trap have been noted in
restricted parts of the Trap area, especially in
Bombay and Madhya Pradesh. The dykes may be
regarded as occupying the fissures through which the
lava issued out. Sills are to be seen in the Upper
Gondwana strata of Madhya Pradesh and in the
Jura sic strata of Kutch.
Petrology and Pet1ograpity

The Deccan Traps are surprisingly uniform in
mineralogical characters. They are of t.he nature of
dolerite or basalt with a specific gravity around 2.9.
In colour they are dark grey, dark greenish grey and
sometimes purplish.
In a few places in Western India the Traps are
een to be associated with a variety of differentiat.ed
t.ypes--rhyolite, obsidian, granophyre, trachyte,
porphyrite, andesite, nepheline-syenite, monzonite,
olivine-gabbro, lamprophyre, etc. Such types are
seen in the Girnar Hills of Kathiawar, in the neigh-
bourhood of Bombay, and in the Pavagad hill in
Gujaral
The common type of the Trap is composed of
labradorite and enstatite-augite with some intersti-
tial -glass and gran ules of titaniferous magnetite.
The enstatite-augite (pigeonite) is richer in iron and
magnesia and much poorer in lime than common
augite, and is characterised by a low optic axial
angle.
In fine-grained types, glassy matter is present
but it is liable to alteration to palagonite or other
material. The coarser types show good ophitic
texture, the felspar being mostly the earlier mineral
to form. Granophyric or micrographic texture is
fairly common. Quartz and biotite are rare. Some
types are of the composition of olivine-dolerite.
In chemical characters also the Traps tend to
gnat uniformity of composition. The silica percent-
age is around 50; ferrous iron is high and lime low
in comparison with ordinary basalts.
Alteration of the Traps

The weathering of Traps gives rise to a deep
brown soil or to 'black cotton soil' (regur) . The
conditions of formation of the black soil are not well
understood, but it may be said that rainfall and
climate have a definite role in its formation. The
black soil has the property of swelling when wetted,
and drying up with numerous large cracks on drying.
A peculiar product of tropical weathering of the
71'aps in a monsoon climate is laterite in which the
oxides of alumina, iron and manganese are concen-
trated while the alkalies. alkaline earths and silica
are leached away. Laterite may be ferruginous,
aluminous or manganiferous, depending on the con-
centration of the particular constituent.
Inter-Trappean Beds
Sedimentary beds of fluviatile and lacustrine
origin are found intercalated with the trap flows in
some places. They must have been formed in the
lake and drainage valleys of the Deccan Trap area
during the intervals of time between successive
eruptions of lava. They are up to 1 or 2 feet in
thickness and of small extent and have been recorded
in the Godavari, Chhindwara, Nagpur and Jabalpur
districts. The fauna found in these beds includes
Corbicula ingens, Ce1ithium stoddat'di, Physa prin-
sepii, Paludina nonnalis and Lymnaea subulata. etc.
They are regarded as having more affinities to the
Cretaceous than to the Tertiary.
Foraminifera and fossil algae have been found
in the beds near Rajamahendri, the latter including
the Charophyta, Neomeris and Acicularia. These are
said to indicate early Tertiary affinities.
The Age 01 the Deccan Traps

The Infra-Trappeans at Dudukuru near Raja-
rnahendri are, as noted above, to be regarded as being
Cretaceous in age. The Inter-Trappeans have, in
recent years, yielded some foraminifera, algae and
palms which are said to point to an Eocene age for
the associated Traps.
There is a slight unconformity between the Bagh
beds and the overlying Traps. But the magnitude
THE LAM ETAS AND DECCAN TRAPS 145.
o()f the unconformity cannot be judged precisely in
terms of geological time.
In Surat and Broach the basal Eocene is said to
be distinctly unconformable to the Traps. In Kutch
.also a similar unconformity is said to be present
between the Traps and the overlying Nummulitic
beds.
In the Bor Hill near Ranikot in Sind, flows of
contemporaneous basalt have been described as
.occurring below and above the Cardita beaumonti
bed. This bed also contains a Nautilus, some corals,
.echinoids and gastropods which appear to indicate an
Upper-Cretaceous age.
There is thus some conflict of opinion regarding
the age deduced from stratigraphical and palaeo-
zoological evidence 9n the one hand and from palaeo-
botanical evidence on the other. In the present state
~f our knowledge, there is not enough evidence to
regard the Inter-Trappeans and the associated Traps
.as entirely Eocene in age. Much work is still neces-
sary to determine with precision the age of the lowest
Traps. In the meanwhile it would be safest to follow
R.D. Oldham's conclusion (expressed in his 'Manual
()f the Geology of India,' Second edition, 1893) that
the eruption of the Deccan Trap began in the upper-
nlOst Cretaceous and continued for some time. The
upper limit of the age of the Traps may extend well
into the Eocene or even later; for we know that the
Traps have a large thickness in Bombay and that
some phases of volcanic aetivity were later than the
pouring out of the main mass of the Deccan Traps.
Economic Geology of the Traps

The Deccan Traps are excellent for use as
building stone and road-metal, though their sombre
colour make them unattractive. Some light-coloured
trachytic rocks found near Bombay have been used
in that city for building but they contain small
amounts of pyrite and calcite which are liable to be
sources of weakness.
The rock crystal, amethyst, agate and other
forms of silica found in the amygdaloidal Traps are
used as senti-precious stones and cut into beads and
ornamental objects in Rajpipla, Cam bay and Ratna-
girL
The Traps contain large and important deposits
of bauxite in Bombay, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar.
This has been used in petroleum refining and very
recently as an aluminium ore. The ferruginous
laterite is a good and cheap building stone and may
possibly find use in future as a source of iron.
CHAPTER XIV
THE EOCENE SYSTEM
GENEKAL.-The transition from the Mesozoic to
the Kainozoic group is marked by abrupt lithological
.and faunal changes in many parts of the world. In
India this period witnessed igneous action on a very
large scale.
Gondwanaland which had already begun to
break up was separated into the present-day conti-
nents during the Tertiary era, partly by the drifting
.away of land masse and partly by the sinking of
some portions of the crust under the sea as a result
()f faulting.
FORMATION OF THE HIMALA"YAB.-At the same
time, the mediterranean sea called the Tethys was
shallowed up and its basin was folded up by great
mountain-building movements. The mountain
systems that were formed include the Himalayas,
Iranian mountains, Caucasus, Carpathians, Alps and
the Pyrenees. Four or five distinct periods of
upheaval have been noticed. The first is of Upper
Cretaceous and the second of Upper Eocene :age.
The third occurred in the Middle Miocene after the
deposition of the Nari, Gaj, and Murree Series,
entirely obliterating the remnants of the Tethys. At
this time, a shallow trough was formed in front of
( outh of) the Himalayas in which the Siwalik sedi-
ment of the subsequent period were laid down. The
next upheaval occurred at the end of the Pliocene.
Thi and the incoming Ice-age were responsible for
the destruction of the rich mammalian fauna of the
Miocene and Pliocene times. The last important
movement took place in later Pleistocene, for we find
THE EOCENE SYSTEM 149
the Pir Panjal rai ed up into high mountains as a
result of this.
FLUVIATILE .AND MARINE FACIES.-The earlier
'Tertiary rocks are all marine, and include both
shallow and deep-water deposits. As the marine
basins became shallow, estuarine and fluviatile
deposits gained in importance and the newly raised
land masses also contributed sediments to them. We
see, for instance. that in the North-west the Eocene
iR marine in character, the Murree rocks estuarine
and the Siwaliks fluviatile. We see also a progressive
change from fluviatile to marine facies from north to
south in Sind and in Burma.
ORGANIC REMAINS.-By the beginning of the
Tertiary, the flowering plants had established them-
selves and increased in importance. Some impor-
tant groups of animals, like the giant reptiles and
amphibians and the ammonites, became extinct at the
nd of the Mesozoic. The mammals attained their
greatest development in the Siwalik period but they
too suffered greatly with the advent of the Pleistocene
Ice-age.
Amongst the marine fauna the mollusca are of
particular importance in the classification of the
Tertiary deposits. As we go back to the older strata,
it is noticed that they contain less and less of the
species living at the present day.
DISTRIBUTloN.-Tertiary deposits are win ely
distributed in the Extra-Peninsular region and they
can be traced practically continuously from the
Mekran coast of Baluchistan through the Himalayas
to Eastern Assam and the Arakan region. In the
Peninsula they are confined to portions of the coastal
tract.
The Eocene System shows three facies. A
marine facies is developed in Western Sind and the
neighbouring parts of Baluchistan, as also further
north in the N. W. Frontier Province, Hazara.
Kashmir and along the northern zone of the Hima-
laya. A coastal facies is seen in Jammu extending
thence to Naini Tal, and also in Western India. A
fresh water facies is found in Upper Burma.
Sind and Baluchistan

The hill ranges on the border of Sind and
Baluchistan show a good development of Eocene
strata. They are divided into the Ranikot, Laki.
and Kirthar Series.
THE RANIKOT SERIES consists of soft sandstones
and shales resting on Cretaceous rocks or the Deccan
Traps. Gypsum and carbonaceous matter are fre-
quently found in the Lower Ranikot beds. The
Upper Ranikot beds consist of limestones with
intercalated sandstones and clays. Nummulites ap-
pear in the upper part of this division, the charac-
teristic species being Nummulites planulatus and
MisceUa:nea miscella. Corals (Montlivaltia, Tham-
nastraea. Stylina). Echinoids (Salenia blanfo-rdi .
Cyphosoma abnormale, Eurhodia morrisi, Schizaster
alveolatus) lamellibranchs and gastropods also occur
in large numbers.
THE LAKI SERIES succeeds the Ranikots and
sometimes rests directly on the Cretaceous. The
Laki beds are the chief oil-bearing formations in
North-west India. Near Kohat they contain coal
seams al o. The characteristic fossils are Numm'lJr
lites atacicus, Assilina granulosa and Alveolina.
oblonga. The middJe division of the Lakis contains
PLATE XlII.
LoWER TERTIARY Fossll,s.
(I}, ..
..
1.
1. Echinolampas rotunda (1/2). 2. Schizaster alveolatus (1/2).

3. Salenia blanfordi (I). 4. Conoclypeus declivis (1/3). 5. Mont-
livaltia ranikoti (I). 6. Nummulius atacicus (4). 7. Assilina granulosa
(4). 8. Miscellania miscella (10). 9. UiJidocyclina punjabenm (6).
(10) Operculinsa subsalsa (8). J I. Eurhodia morrin (I). 12. Amblypy-
gus subrotundus (1/2).
numerous ec'hinoids amongst which are Leiocidaris

ca,naliculata" Echinolampas rotunda, Conocl1JPe1UJ
alveolatus, Hemiaster nobilis and Meta,lia, sowerbyi.
THE KmTHAR SERIES consists of three divisions,
the lower one being sbaly, the upper one calcareous
and the middle one transitional between the two.
The shaly division is mostly of the flysch facies and
attains a thickness of several thousand feet. There
is a distinct stratigraphical break between the Lakis
and Kirthars. The Kirthars are characterised by
N'ltmmult'teB laevigatus, N. gizehensis, N. compla-
ro.atUB, Discocyclina javana and Assilina exponens.
Salt Range
THE RANIKOT AND LAKI SERIES are well deve-
loped in the Salt Range. They lie over the Jurassic-
rocks, or on a bed of ferruginous pisolite. The
Ranikots are characterised by Miscellanea misceUa,
Operculina canalifera, Lockha1tia coruiiti, LepidoC1j-
clina punjabensis and several other species, whereas
the Lakis contain Operculina patalensis, NummuliteB
atacicus, Assilina dandotica, etc. The characteristic
member of the Laki Series in the Salt Range is the
SAKESAR LIMESTONE which forms imposing cliffs over
the scarp and weathers in characteristic fashion. The
Laki Limestones are in some places converted into
gypsum.
Koha't District
Salt and gypsum, the latter derived from Laki
limestone are seen in the Kohat district. Kirthar
rocks are also noticed here, containing Nummulites
and Alveolina.
Samana Range
In the Samana Range, the Eocene beds consist of
some quartzitic sandstones and highly fossiliferous
shales (HANGU SHALES). These are of Ranikot age
and contain corals and mollusca. The overlying beds
are massive limestone (LOCKHART LIMESTONE) and
Limestone breccia (HANGU BREcCIA) followed by
shales and limestones of Upper Ranikot age. The
Lockhart Limestone and the succeeding beds have
yielded foraminifera (Dictyoco'ttoide sp., Nummu-
lites thalicuB. Operculina canalifera) and several
corals (Feddenia jacquemonti, Astrocoenia blanfordi,
etc.).
Potwa1' Plateau and Attock District
The Eocene commences with a ferruginous
pisolite associated with shales. These are overlain
by massive limestone called the HILL LIMESTONE
representing the Ranikot and Laki Series. The
Hill Limestone is followed by the CHHARAT SERIES,
eonsisting of limestones and shales which have
yielded Discocylina javana and some Numm'ulites.
They are the representatives of the Kirthars.
Hazam, Kashmi1' and Simla
The south-eastern side of the Hazara mountains
~hows Eocene strata lying on a band of ferruginous
laterite. The basal strata are sandstones and shales
eontainin$ seams of poor quality coal. Above them
are massive limestones with shale intercalations,
referable to the Lakis. The shales and the marly
strata following them are of Kirthar age and resemble
the Chharats to some extent. Overlying these there
are some marly and shaly strata called the KULDANA
BEDS which are also of Kirthar age. They are
succeeded by the Murree beds of Miocene age.
The southern flanks of the Pir Panjal in Kashmir
exhibit limestones similar to the Hill Limestone,
overlain by pyritous, carbonaceous and ferruginous
shales which contain Laki fossils. Above them is a
thicknes of variegated shales referable to the
Chharats. The whole sequence is over 1,300 feet
thick.
154 INTRODUCTION TO THE GEOLOGY OF [NDIA
Near Riasi and Jammu, there are pyritous and
carbonaceoue shales and Nummulitic limestones,.
l'esembling the Subathu beds of the Simla Hills.
They are underlain by aluminous (bauxitic) and
ferruginous lateri.te. The shales contain some coal
seams but these are generally crushed, having thereby
become graphitic. The Nummulitic limestones are
of Laki age as they contain Nummulites atacicus and
Assilina granuJo8a.
The Eocene belt of Jammu continues into the

Himalayan foot.hills of Simla and Garbwal to the
neighbourhood of Naini Tal. The deposits are of
coastal facies and gradually become thin eastwards.
At their base also there is a bed of laterite. The
strata comprise gypseous shales with thin sandstone
and lenticular limestone layers. They are called the
SUBATHU BEDS and are regarded as the equivalents of
Kirthar and part of the Laki beds.
Tibet
Eocene rocks have been found along the northt'rn
zone of the Himalaya, from Ladakh eastwards. They
contain Nummulitic limestones and felspathic grits
and shales, the strata having been folded and intruded
by igneous rocks.
In the region of Kampa Dezong and Southern

Tibet, there occur limestones and shales forming the
upper part of the Kampa System, and belonging to
th Ranikot and I..aki Series. They contain foramini-
fera having a great resemblance to those of tt.e
Salt Range, and also several lamellibranchs and
gastropods.
Asso,m
The prominent Haflong-Disang fault cuts across
a large part of Assam. In Upper Assam, to the south
and south-east of this fault, occurs the DISANG SERIES
which ranges from Upper Cretaceous to Middle
Eocene in age. The Upper Eocene and Oligocene are
represented by the BARAIL SERIES which is found on
both sides of the Haflong-Disang fault. The Upper
part of the Barail series shows important coal seams
east of Dhansiri valley in N. E. Assam, the best
development being in the Ledo neighbourhood. The
Nazira, Makum, Namdang, Ledo and Tikak coalfields
()CCur in these rocks. Some oil seepages also occur
in the middle part of the Barails.
Along the southern border of the Shillong
Plateau and in North Cachar and Mikir Hill, is
developed the J AINTIA SERIES of Laki and Lower
Kirthar age. It consists of a lower THERRIA STAGE
of Paleocene age, a middle SYLHET LIMESTONE STAGE
consisting of Nummulitic limestones and some sand-
stones, and an upper KOPILI STAGE consisting of sand-
stones, carbonaceous shales and local limestones. The
Sylhet Limestone is used in parts of Bengal and
Assam for lime and cement making. In the Khasi and
Jaintia hills the CHERRA SANDSTONES intervene
between Upper Cretaceous rocks and the Sylhet Lime-
stone. They are represented in the Garo Hills by the
TuRA SANDSTONES. These latter contain two impor-
tant coal seams, 6 feet and 4 feet thick respectively,
estimated to contain 1,000 million tons within a depth
of 1,000 feet from the surface.
Burma
Eocene rocks are found in a belt stretching from
Upper Burma, through the Arakan Yomas, Andaman
and Nicobar TRlands, to the Indonesian islands. In
the Andaman and Nicobar Islands the Lower beds are
sandstones and contain fossils of Laki age. They
rest on rocks similar to the Axials.
The eastern foothills of the Arakan Yorna show
Eocene sandstones and shales containing some plant
fossils and coal seams. Limestones occur in the
upper beds and contain Nummulites.
When followed from Lower into Upper Burma,
the Eocene rocks (and also other Tertiary rocks)
gradually take on an estuarine and fresh-water
character, indicating that there was a deltaic region
in the north which gradually gave place to a marine
basin which became progressively deeper to the south.
The succession represents a full Eocene sequence
which is divided into six stages.
Table 22.-Eocene of Burma
Stage Description Age
Yaw sbale Blue hales, mainly marine. Bartonian.

Pond8ung sandstones Conglomerates, sandstones, Auversian.
clays with mammalian
fossils.
Tabyin clays Clays and sandstones with Up. Lutetian.
coal.
Tilin Sandstones Greenish sand tones, poor L. Lutetian.
in fossils..
Laungshe hales Blue Dummulitic shales, often Ypresian.
gypseous.
P8lDlggyi Con glome- Conglomerates, grits and Thanetian to
rates sandstones. Danian.
THE EOCENE SYSTEM: 157
The earliest rocks are the PAUNGGYI CONGLO-
MERATES which are referable to the lowest Eocene.
The LAUNGSHE SHALES correspond to the Lakis as
they contain Nummulites atacicus and Operculina.
canalifera. The Tn.IN SANDSTONES contain several
mollusca and are thicker in the northern fluviatile
facies than in the south. The T ABYIN CLAYS show
the presence of some coal in the Pondaung Range
and their marine development encloses the Middle
Kirthar fossil Nummulites vredenburgi. The PON-
DAUNG SANDSTONES have yielded moUusca from the.
marine facies and several mammalian remains from
the fresh-water strata, the latter including Pon-
daungia cotteri (Primate), Sivatitanops birmanicu1n
(Brontotherid), Indolophus guptai, Deperetella.
(Tapirs), AlIthracothema pangan, Anthracokp-ryx
bambusae (Anthracotherid), Indomeryx cotteri (Tra-
gulid). The Yaw Shales contain coprolites and fish
remains and also foraminifera and mollusca (Num-
mulites lIawenesis, Orthophragmina omphalus, Velate8
schmideliana, Athleta 1osalindae).
Peninsular Areas
The Eocene strata of Rajasthan are referable t<>
the Lakis as they contain the characteristic Nummu-
lites. The lignite deposits of Palana in Bikaner and
also the fuller's earth deposits belong to the same
age.
Laki and Kirthar series are represented' in Kutch
and the fossils include Nummulites and echinoderms.
They are overlain by marls and shales of Gaj age.
In Gujarat, Eocene rocks occur in the area
between Surat and Broach. The lower beds have
yielded foraminifera of Ranikot age and upper beds
those of Kirtbar age.
168 INTJtODUCTION TO THE GEOLOGY OF INDIA
Lower Eocene foraminifera have recently been
discovered in the Pondicherry area. Some borings
here have also revealed the presence of Upper Eocene
strata. The Inter-trappeans of Rajamahendri
contain several alga? which seem to have Eocene
affinities.
CHAPTER XV ~-
OLIGOCENE AND LOWER MIOCENE

SYSTEMS
The close of the Eocene was a period of orogenic
activity, when the Tethyan sediments were raised Up'
and folded. Sedimentation still continued during-
the Oligocene. The deposits indicate shallow-water
origin but they are quite thick in places, being com-
posed of calcareous sandstones and greenish shales'
of the flysch facies. Another upheaval occurred in
Middle Miocene times and hence the Upper Eocene to-
Lower Miocene deposits constitute one stratigraphic
unit. This is represented by the Nari and Gaj Series
of Sind, the flysch' of Baluchistan, the Murree Series
of N. W. India and the Pegu Series of Burma. These
beds also show different facies, viz., coastal and
lacustrine.
Sind-Baluchistan
The marine calcareous facies is developed in the
hills of Sind and Baluchistan to the east of the Eocene
strata. The two divisions of these deposits are called
the NARI AND GAJ SERIES, both being mainly
calcareous. Northward, the strata become more
arenaceous.
The NARI SERIES comprises a lower dh~i8ion of
white limestones with shale and sandstone intercala-
tions. The Upper Nari reaches a thickness of 6,000
feet and is composed mainly of sandstones and sub-
ordinate shales. The age of the Nari Series covers
the greater part of the Oligocene and the strata
contain the large foraminifera Lepidocyclina dilatatrt
and Nummulites intermedius. Other important fossils
found in these beds are Montlivaltia vignei (coral),
Breynia multituberculata, Echinolampas and Clllpe-
aster (echinoids) and also lamellibranchs and
gastropods.
THE GAJ SERIES overlying the above, consists of
brown limestones with arenaceous and argillaceous
layers and sometimes gypsum beds. The character-
istic fossils of the Lower Gaj are Lepidocyclina
marginata, Ostrea angulata and Pecten labadyei,
and those of Upper Gaj Ostrea latimarginata, O.
gajensis, Area peethensis and some other species.
The Gaj series is of lower Miocene age.
Baluchistan (Flysch)
In the interior of Baluchistan is developed a
large thickness of sandstones, sandy shales and shales
which are conspicuous in the Zhob and Pishin valleys
and in a large part of the Mekran province. This
series of rocks is known as the KHOJ AK SHALES
which resembles the Oligocene flysch strata of Europe.
Fo il are rare, the best known being Nummulite3
intermedius, N . vasC1tS, Lepidocyeiina diZMata and
some other foraminifera. They are the equivalents
of the Nari Series.
Large masses of sandstone with shale intercala-
tions overlie the Oligocene strata. They are seen in
the outer hill of the Mekran coast, the Hinglaj
Mountains and in the peninsula of Ormara and
Gwadar, and are known as the HINGLAJ SANDSTONES.
The fo sils found in them are Ostrea gingensis, O.
'Virleti, O. digitalina, Area burnesi, A. divaricata,
Pecten va.C1seli, Turritella javana, T. angulota,
Clementia papyracea. They indicate a Miocene age
and their equivalents are found in the Lower
Manchhars.
OLIGOCENE AND LOWER MIOCENE SYSTEMS 161
N. E. Baluchista:n
In the Bugti Hills of Baluchistan there is a smalJ
thickness of marine limestones containing Nummu-
lites. These are succeeded by fluviatile sandstones
which enclose some characteristic Gaj species of
Ostrea at the base, and several vertebrate fossils in
the upper portion (Anthracotherium bugtiense, Acera-
therium bugtiensis, Amphicyon shahbazi, Rhinoceros
gajensis). These beds are unconformably overlain
by the Siwalik strata.
Potwar, Jammu and Salt Range
THE MURREE SERIES overlies the Chharat Sel'ies
here, with an intervening unconformity marked by a
bed of conglomerate. The basal part of the Murrees
is the FATEHJANG ZONE, containing the remains of a
'Vertebrate fauna. It is of Lower Miocene (Burdi-
galian) age.
The Lower Murrees are purple shales and hard
sandstones of brackish water origin. while the Upper
Murrees are softer and paler coloured sandstones of
fluviatile origin. The Murrees are lower to Middle
Miocene in age and are the equivalents of the Upper
Pegu Series. They are the reservoir rocks of petro-
leum now obtained in the Khaur oil field in the
Potwar plateau.
Simla Hills
The Murrees, which attain a thickness of 8,000
feet in the Murree hills, become thinner when followed
eastwards. In the Simla region they are represented
by the DAGSHAI and KASAULI BEDS which are roughly
the equivalents of the Lower and Upper Murrees.
The Dagshai beds consist of red clays in the lower
part and hard purplish brown sandstones in the upper
162 INTRODUCTION TO THE GEOLOGY OF INDlA
part. They pass upwards into the Kasauli beds
which consist of greenish grey sandstones which are
coarser, softer and more micaceous than the Dagshai
sandstones. There is, in the Kasaulis, an absence of
bright clays, the argillaceous bands being gritty and
splintery.
Assam
THE BARAIL and SURMA SERIES of Assam are of
Oligocene.Lower Miocene age. The BARAlLS have
been described already under the Eocene system and
their upper limit is in the Upper Oligocene (Chattianj.
There is a universal unconformity above the Barails
wherever they are }ound in Assam.
The overlying SURMA SERIES is developed in the
Surma valley, North Cachar Hills and in parts of
Upper Assam and Manipur. The strata are mainly
sandstones but very different from those of the over
lying Tipam Series. They are poor in carbonaceous
material, contrasting thus with coal-bearing Barails
and the lignite-bearing Tipams. Fossils are occa ion-
ally found and indicate the correlation of the lower
strata with the Upper Pegus and the Lower Gsj.
Burma
THE PEcu SERIES.-Rocks of this age, constitu-
ting the PEcu SERIES, are found in the Pegu Yomas,
in the tract between the Irrawaddy and Sittang rivers
and al 0 to the west of the Irrawaddy. They are
marine in the south and fluviatile in the north.
The Pegus have been divided into six stages.
The Lower half is Oligocene and the upper half
Lower to Middle Miocene. Most of the fossils are
mollusca. The lower beds contain Lepidocyclina.,
Ampullina and species of Ostrea. The upper beds
OLIGOCENE AND LOWER MIOCENE SYSTEMS 168
contain Ostrea latimarginata, O. gingensis, Area.
burnesi, TllrriteUa acuticarinata, Conus literatus, etc.
and also some fossil wood.
The Pegu rocks are of considerable economio
importance as they are the chief petroleum-bearing'
rocks in Burma. It seems probable that the oil
migrated from older beds and found suitable resting
places in the anticlinal structures of the Pegu sand-
stones. Most of the oil-fields of Burma are situated
on the first anticlinal ridge east of the main syncline
which runs along the Chindwin-Irrawaddy valley.
The chief oil-fields are Indaw in Upper Chindwin.
Yenangyat in Pakokku, Singu and Myingyan and
Yenangyaung in Magwe. Less important are the
Lanywa field near Singu, and the Minbu, Palanyon,
Yethaya and Thayetmyo fields.
Peninsular Areas
Nari and Gaj beds are found in Kutch, Kathiawar
and Gujarat. The BARIPADA BEDS in the Mayurbhanj
State of Orissa comprise limestones and clays contain-
ing Ostl'ea and Rotalia which indicate a Miocene age.
The DURGAPUR BEDS occurring to the east of the
Raniganj coalfield in Bengal are most probably of
the same age. The QUILON BEDS found near Quilon
in Kerala are limestones containing lamellibranchs,
gastropods and some corals. They are of Burdigalian
(Lower Miocene) age. The JAFFNA BEDS of Ceylon
at the northern end of the island are also of the same
age.
CHAPTER XVI
THE SIWALIK SYSTEM
MmDLE MIOCENE TO LoWER PLEISTOCENE
The third orogenic upheaval left a trough in
front of the Himalayas in which the sediments o~
the Mia-Pliocene period accumulated. They con-
stitute the SIWALIK SYSTEM, a group of fluviatile
sandstones with subordinate clays, having a great
aggregate thickness amounting to over 16,000 feet.
The Siwalik strata and their equivalents are
found along the foot-hill zone of the entire length of
the Himalayas, and in Sind, Assam and Burma.
They are known as the Manchhar Series in Sind, the
Mekran Sp.ries in the Mekran province of Baluchistan,
the Dihing series in Assam and the Irrawaddy
System in Burma.
The Siwalik rocks are mainly arenaceous in
constitution and seem to have been laid down bY'
rivers in lagoons and fresh water lakes. Coarse
materials predominate. The earlier beds seem to
have been deposited in brackish environment but the
later ones are fresh-water deposits.
Fossils are found in these formations only occa-
sionally and they include plants, mollusca, fishes and
a rich variety of mammals. The last are of great
interest as they afford material for the study of their
evolution and migration.
The Siwalik strata are divided into three major
divisions comprising several stages ' as shown in
'l'abJe 22. The mammalian fossils are of consider!l.ble
help in classifying them and determining their age.
THE srwALIK SYSTEM 165
Most of the stages contain mammalian fossils,
the Chinji, Dhok Pathan and Pinjor stages being
particularly rich in them. Several of the earlier
Proboscidea and Rhinoceratids are not found in the
Siwaliks. The Bovidae and species of the Giraffidae
make their appearance in the Middle Siwaliks. The
Upper Siwaliks contain species which may be regard-
ed as the immediate ancestors of the present-day
ones. Some of the Siwalik genera are:
Primates Dryopith~cus, Sivapith~C'Us, Simia.
Carnivora Amphicyon, Mellivora, CrocuUl, Hymnictil,
Felis.
Proboscidea Dinothmum, Trilophodon , Synconoiophus.
Sugodon, SUgolophodon. Archidiskodon.
Equidae Hipparion, Equus.
Rhinoceratidae Gaindathmum, Aurathmum, Rhinoceros.
Suidae Conohyus, Listriodon, Hippohyus, Potamo-
choenu, Sus.
Anthracotheridae Hemimeryx. Telmatodon .
Giraffidae Sivathmum, Vishnuthmum, GiraJfa.
Bovidae Bosewphus, Tragotaurus, Ujltobol, Buba-
Ius, Capra, Bos, Bison.
Sind
THE MANCHHAR SERIEs.-The equivalents of the
Siwaliks in Sind are the MANCHHAR SERIES, consist-
ing of sandstones and subordinate clays. They are
Table 2S.-The Siwalik System
Divisions Stages Ap
BOULDBR_CONGLOMBR"TB: Lower Ple.iato-

Coarse conglomerates, cene.
sands and clays.
Upper (8,000 ft.) PtNJOR : Coarse grits and Villafranchian.
sands.
{
TATROT: Soft sandstones and Astian.
drab c1aya.
DivUionl Staget Age
Middle (8,000 ft.)

{DoC' p.,.....,,, B_ .....
Itonet, gravels, drab and
Pontian.
orange clay.
NAORJ ; Hard grey aancbtones. Sarmatian.
Lower (5,000 ft.)

{"H"'l" Bri...........,~
and aandatones.
U.Tortonian.
KAMLlAL ; Hard red aand- L. Tortonian.

stonea and purple aha lea.
NOTB.-Tortonian and Sarmatian are Miocene, Pontian and Astian

are Pliocene. Villafranchian is Pleistocene.
:fluviatile, but when followed southwards, become

estuarine and then marine. In southern Baluchistan,
the Mio-Pliocene rocks are called the MEKRAN SERIES
and consist of grey shales with intercalations of
sandstones and shell-limestones. They are divided
into the TALAR STAGE (L. Siwalik) and GWADAR STAGE
(U. Siwalik) both of which contain rich molluscan
faunas.
Assam
The Siwalik System is represented in Upper
Assam by the TIPAM SERIES of Upper Miocene age
and the DIHING SERIES of Pliocene age. The Tipams
are dominantly arenaceous and contain lignite and
fossil wood. The Dihing beds are composed of coarse
sands, pebble-beds and clays which overlie the Tipam
Series unconformably. They are exposed in the
Dihing-valley, Nag&. Hills and Sylhet district.
THE SIW ALlK SYSTEM 16'1
Burma
Fluviatile sandstones of large thickness un-
conformably succeed the Pegu Series. Owing to
their frequently containing fossil-wood, they were
originally called the FOSSIL-WOOD GROUP, but are now
generally known as the IRRAWADDY SYSTEM. They
are found along the valley of the Irrawaddy river,
mvered here and there by Pleistocene rocks and
alluvium. The formations are sandstones and
conglomerates with concretions of ferruginous,
calcareous and siliceous nature. In some places they
contain abundant silicified fossil wood and mammalian
fossils. The Irrawaddians are the equivalents of the
Middle and Upper Siwaliks.
Kathiawar and Kutch

Rocks of Siwalik age are found in Kutch and
Kathiawar overlying the Gaj series. The Siwaliks
of the Piram Island near the coast of Kathiawar have
yielded several mammalian remains.
Borings put down at Karikal on the coast of the
Tanjore district have revealed the presence of strata
(KARIKAL BEDS) containing a rich molluscan fauna of
Pliocene (Post-Pontian) age, slightly younger than
the Jaffna beds of Ceylon and equivalent to the
Gwadar stage of Baluchistan.
The WARKALLI (VarkaIa) BEDS exposed at

Varkala and the neighbourhood in Kerala are
current-bedded sandstones and variegated clays con-
taining some thin lignite seams. They also contain
ball clays and refractory clays. In some places they
are underlain by kaolinised gneiss yielding good
China clay.
The CUDDALORE SANDSTONES and the RAJA-
MAHENDRI SANDSTONES are somewhat similar sand-
stones exposed in a broad and continuous stretch from
Rameshwaram to Pondicherry and also in Nellore
snd Godavari districts. They contain some molluscan
fossils. At Tiruvakkarai near Pondicherry they
show large trunks of fossil wood. In the Cuddalore-
Vriddhachalam area of S. Arcot they contain lignite
beds, as at Neyveli. In several places they yield
artesian water. Red and yellow ochre, refractory or
semi-refractory clays and sandstones for building
are also obtained from them.
CHAPTER XVII
PLEISTOCENE AND RECENT
GLAClATIoN.-The beginning of the Quaternary
era was marked, in the Northern Hemisphere, by a
cold climate due to the formation of continental ice-
sheets in several areas. This great lowering of
temperature affected the fauna seriously; some of it
perished and a part migrated to regions having a more-
agreeable climate.
The evidences of glaciation in India are confined
practically to the Himalayan region where the glaciers,
must have descended to comparatively low altitudes.
Here we see facetted boulders, grooved and planed
rock surfaces and moraines. The moraines have-
formed obstructions to drainage in some places and
given rise to lakes.
At least five advances and retreats of glaciation
have been noted in Kashmir, the nrst advance being"
the most marked. Man seems to have already
appeared in this region during the second period of
glaciation which may roughly be correlated with the
age of the Siwalik Boulder-Conglomerate. The
POTWAR SILTS overlying the Boulder-Conglomelate
are of the same age as the third inter-glacial period_
North-west Frontier
Evidences of glaciation are seen in the Marwat
Kundi and Sheik Budin Hills in the Trans-Indus
region where there is a boulder-bed (BAIN BOULDER-
BED), 70 feet thick, associated with lower Pleistocene
strata.
In the Attock district, there are several localities
where large blocks are found lying amidst boulders,
gravel and finer materials. Some of these blocks are
as much as 40 or 50 feet in girth and show groo\'ed
surfaces. These are called erratic blocks. They
seem to have been brought to their present positions
by glacial floods during the Pleistocene.
Kashmir
THE KAREWA FORMATION in Kashmir is of Pleis-
tocene age. It forms flat terraces in the Jhelum
valley, and on the flanks of the Pir Panjal, as for
instance between Srinagar and Gulmarg. It consists
()f sands, clays, 10ams and boulder-beds. Some of the
finer materials are very finely laminated and recall
the structure of glacial varves.
The Karewas occupy some 3,000 square miles in
the above region and attain a thickness of 5,000 feet.
They are horizontal for the most part. The upper
veds are coarser than the lower and contain workable
deposits of lignite. They are tilted up on the flanks
of Pir Panjal where they are found at a height over
6,000 feet from the general level of the Kashmir
valley indicating that these mountains suffered uplift
after these sediments were formed. They are believed
to have been deposited in a vast lake which occupied
the area between the Himalayan ranges on the north
and a ridge on the south which later became the Pir
Panjal.
The Karewas are of fluviatile and lacustrine

origin. The lower Karewas contain several well-
preserved remains of plants--pine, oak, beech, alder,
willow, holly, cinnamon, etc.-indicating that the
climate of the period was cold temperate. There are
PLEISTOCENE AND RECENT 171
also remains of mammals (Elephas, EquU8, Rhino-
ceros, Sivatherium, Bos, SU8, Felis), fresh-water
Bhells. fishes and algae. These point to the age being
the same as that of the Pinjor Stage of the Siwaliks.
There are traces of Palreolithic culture in
Kashmir and Tibet. There is also evidence that in
the Chalcolithic times (about 3,000 B.C.) Baluchistan
enjoyed a moist climate but became gradually desic-
cated since then.
The Boulder-Conglomerate (Siwalik) is in some
places overlain by the POTWAR SILTS which are sandy
and gravelly below and of fine silty nature in the
upper portion. The lower part is a fluviatile forma-
tion while the upper part is of the nature of loess,
deposited by wind. The Potwar Silts are of about
the same age as the third inter-glacial period.
Older Alluvia
UPPER SUTLEJ VALLEY.-The Sutlej valley in
Hundes shows well developed river terraces in which
remains of Pleistocene mammalia are found.
NARMADA.-The Narmada and Tapti rivers flow
through areas covered by Pleistocene deposits, which
are up to 100 feet thick. The Narmada alluvial
terraces have been studied in some detail. There is,
in places, a basal laterite, followed by two series of
deposits separated by a gravel horizon. The lower
beds contain Acheulian implements while the upper
beds show flakes, chips and cores similar to the Soan
implements in the Potwar area. These two stages
may be the equivalents of the Boulder-Conglomerate
and the Potwar Silts respectively. Reptilian and.
mammalian remains are found especially at the
junction of the two stages and include Ursus, Hippo-
potamus, Rhinocero8, Stegodon, Elephas, Equus,.
Bubalu8 and BOB.
GODAVARI and KRIsHNA.-The Upper valleys of
these rivers show older alluvia, composed of gravela~
sands and clays containing some Pleistocene animal
remains.
MADRAS AREA.-The valley of the Kortalayar
river near Madras shows a series of four terraces in
which palaeolithic implements have been found.
Similar materials have been collected south~west of
Madras also.
IRRAWADDY.-A series of four terraces is seen in
the Irrawaddy basin. They contain mammaHan
remains and palleolithic implements, referable to
Middle and Upper Pleistocene.
Indo-Gangetic Alluvium
A large alluvial tract intervenes between the-
Peninsula and the Extra-Peninsula, covered by the-
alluvial deposits of the three great river systems--
the Indus, Ganges, and Brabmaputra. It covers an
area of over a quarter of a million square miles and
conceals the edges of the geological formations of the
other two units. The alluvial tract is narrowest
where the trend line of the Araval1i Mountains:
ero ses it near Delhi. In the region between the-
Rajmahal and Garo hills the basin is comparatively
shallow as it is underlain by a ridge connecting the-
two hilly regions.
The general shape of the depression is known
but not in detail. It is deepest a few miles south
of the Himalayan foot-hills and becomes gradually
shallower towards the peninsular margin. Some-
borings have been put down in the alluvial deposits
to a depth of around 2,000 feet for tapping water.
The maximum depth of alluvial deposits in the
basin deduced from recent investigations is of the
order of 3,000 or 4,000 feet. Recent geophysical
work in Upper Assam in connection with prospecting
for oil indicate that the basement rocks lie at a depth
.of 20,000 to 25,000 feet and in the Bengal basin at
about 20,000 ft.
The deposits are composed of sands, silts and
.clays, and include lenses of gravel and pebbles and
peat beds. They may be divided into an older and
.newer group. The Older Alluvium (Bhangar of the
Ganges valley) is dark in colour and shows zones
~'ich in nodules and concretions of calcareous matter
called kankar. It forms somewhat elevated mounds
and terraces and is of Middle to Upper Pleistocene
age. The N ewer Alluvium (called Khadar in the
Punjab) is light coloured and contains lenses of sand
and gravel which are good reservoirs of underground
water. It contains only rarely the kankar nodules
which are a fairly common feature in the older beds.
It is upper Pleistocene in age and grades impercepti-
bly into recent alluvium.
The Older Alluvium encloses remains of the
Pleistocene mammals Palaeoloxodon, Elephas; EqU1t8,
Rhinoceros, etc. The animal remains in the Newer
Alluvium are mostly identical with living species.
The alluvial basin is thought to have been formed
.as a synclinal depression when the Himalayas were
raised up into mountain ranges. It is a sag in the
crust at the junction of the ancient peninsular mass
and the soft younger sediments of the Himalayan
region. This depression was filled up gradually by
river deposits during the Pleistocene and Recent
times. The location of the foci of some earthquakes
in the alluvial tract (e.g., the Bihar Earthquake 01
1934) indicates that the bottom of the basin contains
zones of weakness in which dislocations may occur.
Cave Deposits
Though there are numerous caves in different
parts of the country, they have not been investigated
in detail. We have, however, the results of examina-
tion of a group of caves known as Billa Surgam in the
Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh in which there
are Pleistocene deposits. The floor is covered by red
marl in which mammalian. reptilian and amphibian
fossils are found. The majority of the species are
of animals still liVing but a few represent extinct
species.
Coastal Deposits
Raised beaches occur in several parts of the
coast of the Peninsula. They usually contain mollus-
can shells of late Pleistocene and Recent age. Such
deposits are seen on the Orissa, Madras, Kathiawar
and Mekran coasts. A Miliolite limestone, called the
PORBANDAR STONE, occurs in Kathiawar. It is com-
posed of the forminifer Miliolite around which oolite
grains have been formed. This is locally used as a
building stone. On the Mekran coast, the coastal
depo its containing beds of shells have been raised
quite 100 feet above sea-level.
The outh-western coast shows severa} bodies of
water (back-water) which have been separated from
the sea by low mud banks. These contain deposits
of Plei tocene and Recent ages. On the eastern
coast, is the Chilka lake which is gradually being
silted up by sediments brought in by the Mahanadi.
Across the mouths of the river is a sand spit in which
shell deposits have been raised up several feet above
the sea-level.
The Rann of Kutch, south of Rajasthan, is
another region which was an arm of the sea in the
Pleistocene and which is gradually being changed into
dry land. There is evidence that the Indus and one
or two other rivers emptied themselves into the Rann
many centuries ago. It is now a saline marsh filled
with Pleistocene and Recent deposits.
Aeolian and other Deposits

DESERT DEPOSITS.-A large sandy desert occupies
Western Rajasthan and parts of Sind. The sands
cover the bed-rocks, the prominences in which are
sometimes to be seen rising above the sands. The
sands are generally heaped up into dunes of charac-
teristic shapes by wind action, both the longitudinal
and crescentic types being seen. A good part of the
desert, however, supports a scrubby vegetation and
there are also several cities and villages in it. Around
these there is cultivation and underground water is
not difficult to obtain. The desert deposits are mainly
of Pleistocene and Recent age. They have been
accumulated over a period of several thousand years,
the action of winds being the chief agency in the
disintegration of rocks and accumulation of the sand.
The conditions for the formation of the Raj-
asthan desert must have commenced when the
monsoon climate became established. The region has
since then become gradually arid. The action of the
prevailing south-westerly winds and the large diurnal
range of temperature help to accentuate and accele-
rate the growing aridity and the increasing accumu-
lation of sands.
LoESS.-Wind-blown dust of sandy to clayey
nature is called loess. It forms deposits of appre-
ciable extent and thickness resting on the land
surface at all attitudes, irrespective of altitude and
the presence of barriers. It is generally of buff and
grey colours showing indistinct stratification. Loess
deposits are found in Baluchistan, the Salt Range and
the Potwar Plateau.
BHABAR and TERAI.-Talus fans cover the slopes
of the Himalayan foot-hills. The upper portions of
these, constituting the Bhabar zone, are fairly coarse
mixtures of rock fragments and soil supporting good
forests. Below this zone is a marshy tract over-
grown with grass and wild jungle. This zone is
.called the Terai. -
RECENT DEPOSITS
The Recent Deposits include coastal sand dunes,
.alluvia of river deltas and soils.
SAND DUNES.-Several parts of the eastern coast
.of India are covered by sand dunes which are
.constantly being rearranged by winds. The dunes
.often travel gradually towards the interior unless
measures are taken to stop their march by inter-
posing plantations of trees in their path.
ALLUVIA.-The deposition of river alluvium is
particularly pronounced in the delta region. The
deltas of the larger rivers are constantly being
enlarged and pushed sea-ward by the suspended
matter brought down by the rivers from their upper
courses.
In the drier parts of the drainage areas of the
large rivers and in the canal-irrigated areas the soil
becomes water-logged and impregnated with the salts
PLEISTOCE E AND RECENT 177
contained in the water. The salts are generally
sulphates, carbonate and chlorides of alkalies. In
dry weather the salts appear as efflore cence at the
surface and render the oil gradually unfit for culti.
vation and the water from shallow wells unpalatable.
Such efflorescent salt are called ,'eh or kal14r.
Alkali-laden land unfit for cultivation is called U8a.r
land.
SOILS.-Soils may be classified as "esidual and

tmnsported, as also according to their colour and
other characters. Re idual soils are those formed
in situ, and transported soils those which have been
brought from somewhere else by rain or streams.
A type known as red soil is found widely in the
Peninsula, especially in areas occupied by granitic
rocks. The soil is usually some shade of red in
colour, due to the wide diffusion of its iron content.
The black Boil or ,'egur is a black clayey soil
containing high alumina. lime and magnesia. It
swells up when wetted and dries up with conspicuous
cracks. It is extensively formed on basic rocks, but
its distribution seems to be controlled to some extent
by climatic conditions as it is found mostly in areas
of low rainfall,
Lateritic soil.,; are those in which there is a con...
centration of the oxides of iron, aluminium and
manganese, most of the other constituents havin,.
been removed by leaching.
Alluvial soils are transported soils which are
usually rich and support a variety of crops. They
are mainly silts and clay-loams,
7
Late1'ite
Laterite is a product of tropical alteration of
rocks under conditions of moist tropical climate,
alternating wet and dry seasons and good drainage.
It is derived from everal types of rocks by the
removal in solution of silica. alkalies and alkaline
earths and the concentration of iron oxide, alumina,
manganese oxide and titania. In general, basic
rocks give rise to good laterite while acid and inter-
mediate rocks may produce lithomargic laterite in
which silica and clayey substances persist. Any
rock of suitable composition may produce laterite,
whose major constituents are oxides of iron,
aluminium or manganese. In an area of poor
drainage, weathering produces only clay minerals.
With good drainage and more or less uniform rain
throughout the veal', ferruginous laterite form" but
with well marked dry and wet season , the iron is
gradually eliminated leaving an aluminous laterite
w'hich is ordinarily called bauxite. If a region of
poor drainage is uplifted, resulting in good drainage,
laterite will begin to form. The process is thus
mainly physico-chemical in nature.
Typical laterite is a yeUow, brown and red,
porous and pitted material with irregular vermicular
cavitie. Some varieties are compact and pisolitic
in structure. The ferruginou laterites are yellow,
and red-brown, aluminou laterites (bauxite) grey
or buff and manganiferous laterites dark brown to
black. Laterite expo ed at the surface is hard, but
when freshly dug up it is oft and can ea ily be cut
and dres ed by any iron tool such a a knife or spade.'
On expo ure to air it hardens considerably. It is
used exten ively a. a building stone.
Laterite may be found both in the plains and
on hi11. When formed in sit1t it tends to produce
flat-topped, plateau-like hills with rounded topo-
graphy, supporting only sparse vegetation. Trans-
ported and re-cemented material called detrital
laterite.
A typical laterite plateau in the Deccan Trap
country shows a surface cover of ferruginous mate-
rial below which comes aluminou laterite of varying
thicknesR, which may be up to 50 feet thick. Below
that level the material i a lithomarge or siliceous
clay. Further below comes partly altered rock and
then the unaltered parent rock.
The age of the laterite now seen capping the
Deccan Traps, gneisses and khondalites in many
parts of India (and other tropical countrie) is
probably Pleistocene and Recent. It may also be
forming at the present day. Laterites of earlier
ages are known. For example, the Lower Tertiary
rocks in several places in the Extra-Peninsula rest on
a bed of ferruginous laterite formed on retac:eOllS
or older rocks.
Aluminous laterite is used in oj} filtration and
in the preparation of pure alumina which is the raw
material for the manufacture of aluminium salts and
the metal. Ferruginous laterite is used as a building
stone. It is usually not rich enough in iron to be
used as an ore of iron though efforts have been made
and will be made in future to utilise it for iron-
smelting, and for making cement from the slag.
Rich manganiferous laterite can be used as
manganese ore.
\ ~ \_ D tc .. _._ .. _. __ ... _.... ./)
, I
~~'O/'[r,7- -0..-" \,~
INDEX ~~~
A
Abur beds, 121
Aeolian deposits, 175
I Banganapalle
I series, 60
Barakar stage. 82
Barail series, ISS, 162
AggJomeratic slate, 97, 98 I Baripada beds, 163
Ahmednagar sandstone 129 I Barite (Buryte ). 56
Ajabgarh series, 5 5 ' Burren island, 13, 19
Algonkian, 23. 24 ' Barren Mea ures 83
Alluvium, older, 171 , 173; Newer, i Bauxite, 147 '
173; Indo-gangetic 3 172 Bawdw~n volcanics, 68
Alwar series. SS
Amb stage, 100
"
Andaman Islands, 7,13.18, ISS
I BelemOlte beds, 128
Belemnites gerardi beds 117
Bellary gneiss, 33 '
Anodontophora beds, 108 I Bengal gneis . 37
Anorthosite, 34, 38 Beryl, 33. 48
Antecedent drainage, 9 Bhabar, 176
Antimony, SO Bhunder series, S9
Apatite-magnetite rock, 38 I Bhima series, 61
Nakan belt, 18 I Bijawar series, 55
Aravalli Mts. 5, 8. 41 , Bijori beds, 84
Aravalli System,41 Bintenne gneiss, 34
Archaean group, 27-51 . Assam
42; Bhutan, 47 ; Bur~a, 48:
I Bivalve beds, 113
, Blaini beds, 75, 102
Ceylon, 34 ; Chota Nagpur 36 : I Brahmaputra river, 10
Correlation, 42 ; Eastern dhats: I Bu~a~ada sandstone, 90
35 ; Extra-Peninsula 45 . Jabal - I BUlldmg stones, 51, 56, 61 63 92
pur, 40; Mysore '30.'South 146,178 ' . ,
India, 28 ; Rajasth~n 40' Bundelkhand gneiss. 40
Ariyalur stage, 133 ' Burma are, 7, 18, 19
Ar~ni granophyre, 37 Buxa series, 47
Arsemc,SO
Aryan group, 25 C
Asbestos, 50, 56
Assam ranges, 5
, Cakar~ous zone, 18, 115, 125
CallOVian unconformity 115 117
Atbgarh beds, 89 Cambrian system, 64-70' Burma
Attock: slates, 46 68 ; Kashmir, 67 ; SaIL Range'
Axial system, 18, 113, 137 64 ; Spjti, 67 '
Car~niferous system, 74-75
B Card!ta beaumonti beds, 129
Badasar beds, 121 CardJt~ su~mplanata bed, 129
Bagh beds, 131 Carnauc gneISs. 33
Bagra stage, 8S Cave deposits, 174
Bain boulder bed, 169 Celestite, 132
Baluchistan are, 6, 18 Cenomanian transgression 126
Banded gneissic complex, 40 Ceratite limestone, 112 '
Cetatite marl, 112 Daling series, 47
Ceralite sandstone, 112 Damodar series, 82
Cbail series, 46 Darjeeling series, 47
Cbampaner series, 41 Dbands,11
Cbampion gneiss, 31 Dharwar system. 15.27
Chaung Magy! series, 48 Dhrangadbra sandstone, 89
Chari series, 122 Deccan Trap. 16, 140147; age,
Charnoclcite, 31 , 32, 34, 42 144 ; alteration, 143 ; petrology,
Chaugan stage, 86 142 ; structure, 141
Cherra sandsto,ne, J S5 Delhi system, 55
Cbeyair series, S3 Denwa stage, 85
Chharat series, 153 Deaban limestone, 47
Chldamu beds, 117 Deola marJ, 131
Chidru stage, 100 DeaH beds, 84
Cblkiala stage, 86 Desert deposits, J75
Cbildcim series. 126, 127 Devonian system, 72
Cbllpi ghat series, 38, 39 Diamonds, 55, 59, 61, 62
China clay, 63 Dibing series, 166
Chindwin river, I 1 ~ Disang series, J55
Chintalpudi sandstone, 84 Dogra series, 45
Chor granite, 46 Dome gneiss, 33, 38
Chota Nagpur gneiss, 37 Dravidi.an group, 25
Chromile, 50 Drift of India, 19
Clegg, E.L.G., 48 Dubrajpur sandstone, 85
Climate, 3 Durgapur beds, 163
Closepct granite, 32
COllI, 92, 124, 152, 154, 1SS E
Coastal deposits, 174
Cobillt ore, 50 Earthquakes, 13
Columbite tantalite, 38, 50 Eastern coast, 16
Conglomerate, autocl.a tic, 30 Eastern Ghats, 4, 35
Conularia bed, 99 Eocene system. 148 158; Assam,
Copper ore, 38, 49 155 ; Burma, 155 ; Hazara, 153 ;
Corundum, 34, 50 Kashmir, 153 ; Potwar plateau,
Cretaceou system, 125 147 ; 153 ; Salt Range, 152 ; Samaaa.
Assam, 136 ; BaluchistanSind, range, 152; SindBaluchistan,
128 ; Burma, 137 . Hazara, 128 ; 150 : Tibet, 154
19neou activity. 125 137 . Erinpura granite. 56
Kashmir. 128; Kumaon, 127 ; ErQ1tic blocks. 170
Narmada Valley, J 31; Salt Eurydesma bed, 99
Range. 129 ; Samana range, 128; Everest limestone, 97
Spiti, 126 ; Tibet, 127 ; Trichi Everest Pelitic series, 97
nopoly. 131; Western India, 129 Exotic blocks, (Jobar) 95, 110,
Cuddalore sandstone, 168 115, 118, 127
Cuddapah Slabs, 63 Extra Peninsula, structure of, 2, 17
Cuddapab ystem, 15,5257
Cumburn slates. 53 F
Fatebjang zooe, 161
D Faults, 8, 16, 19,60
Dagshai beds. 161 FenesteUa shales. 74
INDEX 183
Fermor, L. L., 38, 39 Hemipneustes beds. 129
Feistmantel, 76 Hercynian revolution, 25, 94
Fireclay, 63, 92 Heron, A. M., 40
Flexible sandstone, 57 Hill limestone, 153
Fluorite, 33 Himalayas, zones of. 6
Flysch, 18, 125, 127, 159, 160 Himalayan upheaval, 17, 148, 164
Foredeep. 19 Himgir beds, 84
Fossil-wood group, 167 HingJaj eries, 160
Fox, C. S., 78 Holland, T. H . 25, 31 , 32
Hosur gneiss, 33
G
Gaj series. 159, 160
Ganges River, 10 fee age. 148
Gangamopteris bed , 82. 98 ldar granite. 56
Gangpur series, 37 Ilmenite, 50
Gee, E. R., 66 fndo-gangetic alluvium, 172
Gemstones, 48, 51 Indo-gangetic plains. 2
Geological formations, standard, I Indus river, 9
23 ; lndian, 2426 Infra-Krol series, 103
Ghosh. P. K., 32 fnfratrappean beds. 140, 158
Giumal sandstone, 126 fnfra-Trias beds, 102
Glaciation, Pleistocene. 169 ; I inter-trappean beds. 144
Talchir, 77, 81 (ron ore, 31 , 37,49.83,92
Glaciers, 7 Iron ore series, 37, 38
Glossopteris flora, 77 , frrawaddy river. 10. 137, 172
Golapilli sandstone, 89 I Irrawaddy system, 10, 167
Gold. 33, 49
Golden oolite, 120, 122 I J
Gondite,39
Gondwanaland, 76. 94, 148
I Jabalpur series. 86
I Jabbi beds, 100
Gondwana system, 16, 76-93
classification, 78; climate, 77
I Jafl"na series, 163
Jainlia series. 155
coalfields, 92 ; faulting, 80 , Jaisalmer limestone, 121
igneous rooks, 91
Graphite, 35, 50
I Jalor granite. 56
Jammalamadugu series, 61
Great Boundary Fault, 60 Jaunsar series, 75
Great Limestone. 102 Jurassic system, 115 124 ; Andhra,
Gulcheru quartzite, 53
Gwadar stage, 166 I 124 ; Baluchistan, 120 ; Burma,
124; Kashmir, 119; Kumaon,
Gwalior system, 56 118; Kuteb, 121; Rajasthan,
Gypsum, 60, 61, 65, 133, 152 120; Salt Range, H9; Spiti,
117
H Jutogh geries, 46
HaflongDisang fault, 155
Haimanta system, 46, 67 K
Halobia beds, 108 Kabaing granite, 48
Haogu breccia, 152 Kaimur series, 59
Haogu shales. 152 Kalabagh stage, 100
Hayden, H. R ., 46 Kaladgi series, 54
Kallar, 65. 177 I Loess, 176
Karuawkala lime tone, 114 , LoiAn beds, 124
Kampa system, 127, 154 Lonar lake, I 1
Kamthi beds, 84
Kanawur system, 74, 75 . M
K.ankar, 173
Karakorum, 7 Magne ian sandstone, 65
Karewa formation, 170 Magnesite, 34, SO
Karharbari tage, 81 Mahadeva series, 85
Karaikal bed , 167 Mahadevan, Co. 54
Kasauli beds, 161 Main sandstone series. 12&
Kutrol series, 122
Kalla stage, 100 I Makrana marble. 41
Mulani rhyolite. 56, 60
I Maleri stage, 85
Kha i greenstone, 42
Khojak shales, 160 I Manasarowar, 10, 12
Khondolile, 34, 35,48 , Manchhur series. 165
King, W., 31. 54 I Manganese ore, 31, 39, 41, 50
Kioto limestone ( I!(' Megalodon Mangli beds, 84
Jjmestone) _ I Medlicott, HoBo. 76
Kjrthar series, 151 Megalodon lime tone, lOS, 108.
Kistna serie , 53, 54 liD, 119
Kodurile, 3S Mekmn series, 166
Kolar schist belt, 31 Mergui series, 49
Kopili slage. 155 Mica. 38, 50
KOla slage, 86 Mica peridotite. 91
Krol series, 103 Miocene. 159, 164
Kuldana beds, 153 Mogok series. 48
Kuling system , 95 Mong Long schists. 48
Kundair series, 61 Monsoon, 3
Kundghat beds, 100 Morar series, 56
Kurnool ystcm, 60 Moulmcin limestone, 75
KumooJ C:lves, 174 Mountain gneiss. 31
Kyanite,50 Mountain . 4. 5
Mud volcanoes. 14
L I Murree series, 161
Muschelkalk, lOS, 111
L.'lcru series. 97
L:Jkes, 11. 12
Laki series, J SO, 155
I Muth quartzite, 72
Mylliem granite, 33, 42.
L:imetu bed , 139
Laplnl beds. 1 17
L:iterite, 143, 17 . 17 agari quartzite, 53
L:iungshe shules, 157 Nallamalai series, 53
Lavender clay. 99 Namyau beds, 124
Lead ore, SO, 57. 70 Napeng beds, 114
Lignite, 157, 166. 168 appes, 2. 6. 17
Lilang system, 104 Nari series. 159
Lipak serie , 74 Narji limestone. 61
Lithographic lime tone. 128 Narkondam. 13
Lochambal beds, 117 Negrais series, 137
Lockhart lime tone, 152 Ncobolus beds, 65, 67
INDEX 185
Nepheline syenite, 34, 41 Polyphemus beds. 120
Nilgiri gneiss, 31 Pondaung sandstone. 157
Nimar sandstone. 131 Porbandar stone, 174
Nimbabera limestone, 63 Potwar silts, 169. 171
Niniyur (Nanniyur) beds, l33 Productus Limestone series, 100
Productus shales, 95
o Ptilophyllum flora. 77
Pulivendla quartzite, 53
Ochre. 51, 92 Purana group, 25
Oligocene system, 159-163 ; Assam, Purple sandstone. 62, 65, 66
162; Baluchistan, 160 ; Burma,
162; Peninsular areas, 163;
Potwar-Salt Range, 161 ; Simla Q
hills, 161 ; Sind, 159 Quartzite series, 108
Olive series. 99 Quilon beds, 163
Olivine rocks, 34
Ordovician system. 70 R
Overthrusts. 17.95.103 Raghavapuram shales, 89
Raialo series, 41
p Rainfall. 3
Pab limestone, 129 Raipur limestone, 55
Pachmarhi stage, 85 Rajamahendri sa ndstone, 168
Pakbal series, 54 Rajmabal series, 85
Palaeolithic, 171 . 172 Rajma hal traps, 85, 91
Pali beds, 84 Rama Rao, B _, 29, 32
Panchet series, 84 Raniganj stage, 83
Paniam series, 61 I Ranikot series, 150, 152. 154
PaojaJ trap, 97 Recent deposil~, 176-179
Papaghni series, 53 Regur. 143, 177
Par series, 56 Reh. 177
Parh limestone, J28 Rewa series, 59
Parihar sandstone, 121 Rhotas limestone, 59
Parsora stage. 84 Rivers, 8-11
Patch am series, 122. 124
Paunggyi conglomerate, 157 s
Pavalur sandstone, 90 I Sakesar limestone, 152
Pegu series, 162 Sakoli serie , 39
Penganga beds, 54 Salkbala series, 45
Peninsula, structure of. 14 Salt, 65
Peninsular gneiss, 31 Saline series (Salt marl), 64
Permian system, 94-103 ; Hundes, Salt pseudomorpb shales, 65, 67
95; Kashmir. 97; Salt Range, Salt Range, 6, 64, 152
99 ; SimJa-Garhwa.J, 102 ; Spiti, Salween river, II
95 Samarskite, 33
Petroleum, ISO. 161, 163 Sambbar lake, II
Phosphatic nodules, 132 Sand dunes, 176
Pitchblende, 38 Saraswati river, 10
Plateau limestone, 48, 72 Satpura mountains, 5
Pleistocene, 169-176 Satpura strike, 15
Po series, 74 Satyavedu beds, 90
Sausar series, 39 Tirupati (TripeUy) sandstone, 89
Semri series, 59 Tilin sandstone, 157
Shall limestone, 103 Tipam series, 166
Shillong series, 42 Traps: Bijawar, 55; Cuddapab,
Sillimanite, SO 54 ; Deccan, ~40-144 ; Gwalior,
Silurian system, 71 56; Rajmahal, 85, 91 ; Panjal, 97
Simla slates, 46 Triassic system, 104-114; Balu-
Singhbhum aranite, 33, 37 chistan, 113; Burma, I 13
SiwaliJc system, 164-168 ; Assam, Hazara, 113; Kashmir, III
166; Burma, 167; Kathiawar, Kumaon, 105; Salt Range, 112
167 ; Sind, 165; South India, 168 Spiti, 104
Slates, 53, 54, 56, 63 Trichinopoly stage, 133
Smeeth, W. F., 29 Trigonia beds, 122
Sodalite,41 Tropites zone, 110
Soils, 177 Tum sandstone, 15S
Son Sakesar lake, 12
Sonawani series, 38 U
Spath, L. P., 86, 124 _ Umaria marine bed, 82
Speckled sandstone, 99 Umia series, 122
Spiti hales, 117, 119 Underthrust, 19
Sriperumbudur beds, 90 Uttattur stage, 132
Steatite, 51
StmtiaraphY, principles of, 20 Y
Strike directions, 15
Structure of India, 14-19 YaiJcrita system, 46
Subathu bed , 154 Variegated series, 120
Sulcacutus bed , 117 Yarkala (Warkalli) beds, 167
Sullavai series, 61 Vemavaram shales, 90
Sulphur, 13 Vempalte stage, 53
Surma serie , 162 Vindhya mountains, 5
Sylhet limestone, 155 Vindhyan system, 15, 58-63
Syringothyris lime tone, 74 Volcanoes, 12
Volcanoes, mud, 14
T Vredenburg, 32, 78
Tabyin clays, 157 W
Tabbowa series. 90 Walker, T. L., 35
Tadpatri stage, 53 Watershed, 8, 9
Talar tage, 166 Wanni gneiss, 34
Talchir boulder bed, 77, 81, 99 Wedges, Pen.insular, 18
Thnakki boulder bed, 75, 102 Western coast, 16
Tanawal seri ,75 Western ghats, 4, 8
Tantalite, 50 Wolfram 50
Tawng Peng sy tem, 48
Tbabo stage, 74 y
Teth.)' , 76, 148
Ter-.lI, 176 Yaw shales, 157
ThaiJand,7
Tberria stage, 155 z
Tibetan lakes, 12 Zewan beds, 99
Tiki beds, 85 Zinc ores, 70
:'fLORE
LIBRARY
National Bur.au of .oil Survey.
Land U Planning (ICAR) 8angalor.
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BY

PlRsT EDITION 1944

Bangalore , 5:'iv ()2 '~

This book gives a short and concise account of

It was my intention to bring out this book soon

PREF ACE TO THE SECOND EDITION '

CHAPTER n .- REVIEW OF INDIAN STRATI-

CHAPTER lII.- THE ARCHAEAN GROUP- PENIN-

Archaeans and Dharwars. South India, Ceylon,

CHAPTER IV.-THE ARCHAEAN GROUP- EXTRA-

CHAPTER V.-THE CUDDAPAH rKADAPA ) SYSTEM. 52-57

CHAPTER XV.-OLIOOCENE AND LOWER MIOCENE

CHAPTER XVI.- THE SIWALIK SYSTEM . , 164-168

CHAPTER XVJ;I.-PLEISTOCENE AND RECENT . . 169-179

The Koh-i-Sultan mountain in the Baluchistan

Stratigraphy is the branch of Geology which

The terms Azoic (life-less). Palreozoic (ancient life),

The names of the standard formations (also

There are still some areas in India which await

Standard Extra-Peninsula Peninsula

Recent Recent alluvia, loess. ~tc. Recent alluvia. Desert

I Series, Quilon beds, ~.

Standard Extt'B-Penwula Peninsula

Oligo- Murree, Pegu, Nari and Nari and Gaj

The Archrean rocks were formed at a time when

All the Archrean (Dharwarian) rocks of Mysore

Basic dykes. chiefly doJerites .

! ceous gneisses and quartz-schists.

The Lower Dharwars are largely, if not

of earlier schistose rocks. The Peninsular Gneiss

Newer Dolerite Quartz-dolerite and some more basic types.

Eastern Area I Western Area

Schistose biotite-gneiss Gneisses

Cbilpi Ghat Series Sakoli Series

Sonawmi Series Suasar Series

Raialo eries Marbles and garnetiIerous mica-schists.

The BANDED GNEISSIC COMPLEX is a group of

Correlation of the Peninsular ArchlBans

.S . f { Cum burn slates

Pullam pet (Tadplltri) Slates

Vempalle slntes and limestones

Each of the major divisions of the Cuddapahs

The greater part of the exposures consists of

Bhander Series Calcareous and arenaceous.

Table 9.-The Kurnool Series

The sub-divisions of the Kurnools are given in

slaty flagstones (called 'Cuddapah slabs') of the :-

The Salt Range

At Khewra, in the eastern part of the Range,

The age of the marls and associated salt is still

I. Ntobolus wart/Ii (x 4). 2. Lingula roarthi (x 5). 3. Rtdlichia

THE ORDOVICIAN SYSTEM

THE SILURIAN SYSTEM

Spiti and Kashmir

1. Cyathoph;t[/um caespifosum (5). 2. Calceola sanda/ina (I).

The LIP AK SERIES consists mainly of limestones

The MOULMEIN LIMESTONE in Tenasserim over-

In the Simla-Garhwal region, the JAUNSAR

A three-fold classification was suggested by

The Gondwana strata are formed of alternations

GANGAMOPTERIS BEDS.-The Karharbari stage is

The Barakars are the chief coal-bearing strata

Equisetales Schizotfl!llTa gondwanmsis, Phyllothtca grits-

BARREN MEASURES.-Barren sandstones inter-