Research Projects

Forty-five terminal fans in the Ganga plain formed in accommodation space generated across various topographic breaks, most of which were shallow-depth normal or reverse faults. These depositional features have been successfully linked with the faulting and sliding events in the Ganga plain. The geomorphic evolution of the Ganga plain depends on the Himalayan tectonic influence and climatic changes. The optical stimulated luminescence (OSL) chronology of the terminal fans suggests that the progressively younger terminal fans occur in the eastern Ganga plain. Three major surface-faulting episodes in the Ganga plain have been established. The growth mechanism of these geomorphic features is unclear, and the role of tectonics, climate, available accommodation space, slope, and temporal and spatial variation of sediment budget contributing to the growth of the terminal fans is unclear. The present proposal aims to select five terminal fans (SRFn, AHFn, KAFn, KBFn, and JTFn) formed in three different neotectonic episodes for study. The study will analyze the lateral and vertical facies variation on large scales, record vertical lithological changes for lithological correlation, study climatic records from vertical sequence and sediment coring, and analyze the areal growth of corresponding deposits within the fan. The study will provide a conceptual model that captures the control of tectonics and climate in the formation and growth of terminal fans in alluvial plains.