Geology of India

The geology of India started with the geological evolution of rest of the Earth i.e. 4.57 Ga (billion years ago). India has a diverse geology. Different regions in India contain rocks of all types belonging to different geologic periods. Some of the rocks are badly deformed and transmuted while others are recently deposited alluvium that has yet to undergo diagenesis. Mineral deposits of great variety are found in the subcontinent in huge quantity. Even the fossil records are impressive in which stromatolites, invertebrates, vertebrates and plant fossils are included. India's geographical land area can be classified into- Deccan trap, Gondwana and Vindhyan.

Firstly, the Deccan Trap covers almost all of Maharashtra, a part of Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh marginally. It is believed that the Deccan Trap was formed as result of sub-aerial volcanic activity associated with the continental deviation in this part of the Earth during the Mesozoic era. That is why the rocks found in this region are generally igneous type.

During its journey northward after breaking off from the rest of Gondwana, the Indian Plate passed over a geologic hotspot, the Réunion hotspot, which caused extensive melting underneath the Indian craton. The melting broke through the surface of the craton in a massive flood basalt event, creating what is known as the Deccan Traps. It is also thought that the Reunion hotspot caused the separation of Madagascar and India.

The Gondwana and Vindhyan include within its fold parts of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttaranchal.

The Gondwana Supergroup forms a unique sequence of fluviatile rocks deposited in Permo-Carboniferous time. Damodar and Sone river valley and Rajmahal hills in the eastern India are depository of the Gondwana rocks.