Research Projects

The Mesozoic sequence of Kachchh has long been known to geoscientists because of its rich and exceptionally well-preserved fossil fauna. The mega invertebrates have been studied by several workers viz. cephalopods by Waagen (1873-75), Spath (1919, 1924, 1927-33), Jaikrishna (1983, 1984), Pandey and Westermann (1988), Pandey, Alberti and Fürsich (2013), Sharma and Pandey (2016); echinoids and corals by Gregory (1893, 1900), Fürsich et al. (1994, 2001); brachiopods by Kitchin (1900, 1903); and the bivalves by Cox (1940, 1952) etc. Among microfossils, record of ostracodes from upper Jurassic beds of Kachchh is extremely sparse. Only seven species, belonging to genera Cytherelloidea, Cytheropteron, Fastigatocythere, Galliaecytheridea, Majungaella, Pirileberis, and Trichordis recorded from the upper Jurassic beds (Khosla, Jakhar and Mohammed, 1997). Whereas, extensive work has been done on middle Jurassic beds (Pachchham and Chari formations) of Habo, Jhura, Jumara, Nara, and Keera domes; Chorar, Bela, Khadir and Pachchham islands “(Lyubimova, Guha and Mohan, 1960; Guha, 1977; Neale and Singh, 1986; Khosla et al., 1992, 1997, 1999, 2003a, 2003b, 2004, 2005, 2009”. Foraminifera, for the first time, were described by Tewari (1957) from the Patcham series of Kachchh. Since then, it has been described by “Subbotina, Datta and Srivastava (1960), Bhalla and Abbas (1975, 1976, 1978), Bhalla and Gaur (1989), Bhalla and Talib (1978, 1980, 1985a, 1985b, 1985c, 1991), Bhalla, Talib and Ahmad (1998), Pandey and Dave (1993), Talib et al. (2005, 2006, 2008, 2012a, b, 2016a, b, 2020, 2021), Talib and Faisal (2007), Wasim et al. (2020, 2021)”. Most of these records are from mid-upper Jurassic Patcham and Chari formations. There is no significant record available on the foraminiferal assemblage from upper Jurassic Katrol Formation. These micro-fossils are helpful for paleoceanographic investigations because they can adapt to a variety of settings, from shallow marine waters to deep-sea sediments, and due to their extreme sensitivity to temperature, salinity and other environmental changes, they serve as an excellent marker of past-climatic and oceanographic conditions. Besides, ostracodes have evolved rapidly and have a short life span which makes them an ideal tool for biostratigraphical studies and paleobiogeographical applications. In view of the wide scale application in geological investigations and to fill the gap in our knowledge of micro-fossils, under the proposed research project, the applicant wishes to take up monographic studies of micro-faunal assemblages (ostracodes and foraminifera) from upper Jurassic Katrol Formation covering entire Kachchh District. Though the main thrust of the investigation will be the detailed study of ostracodes (including biostratigraphy, paleoenvironmental and paleobiogeographical implications), study of foraminiferal assemblage will also be taken up.