Research Projects

The End Permian mass extinction (EPME) is the most devastating mass extinction event on Earth, resulting in the extinction of 70% of non-marine vertebrate families. This event also led to the emergence of new genera and species, and a key faunal transition occurred on land. However, the impact of the EPME on non-marine, Triassic vertebrates is limited due to the limited preservation of terrestrial Permian-Triassic boundary (PTB) and vertebrate fossils. The Gondwana basins of peninsular India, such as Raniganj Basin, Satpura Basin, Rewa Basin, and Pranhita-Godavari Basin, are among the few areas that preserve a complete stratigraphic succession of terrestrial PTB and are rich storeshouses of fossil vertebrates. The proposed study aims to document a comprehensive picture of the terrestrial record of the EPME and its effects on non-marine, Triassic vertebrates from the Indian Gondwana basins. The study will re-evaluate the terrestrial PTB, detail sedimentological and climatic variation across it, and provide a detailed description and phylogeny of the synapsids of the Panchet Formation, Raniganj Basin. This project aims to understand sedimentological and climatic changeover across terrestrial PTBs, enrich the fossil collection, and elucidate the EPME's effect on non-marine, Triassic vertebrates in Indian Gondwana basins.