CHAPTER IV. 



GENERAL GEOLOGY. 



Formations Represented. 



At one time ifc seemed probable that the termination of the series of 

 coal fields in the Damuda valley would be found to be exactly coincident 

 with marked changes in the characters o£ the Gondwana rock-groups, 

 and that this would at once become apparent as new areas in the country 

 farther west were brought under examination. Already in the Karan- 

 pura fields the central groups so well developed in the Raniganj field 

 had been found to be diminished in thickness and modified in character. 

 The result of the examination of the various coal-fields of Palamow has 

 been to confirm the general truth of the view thus entertained, but the 

 change has proved to be not quite so abrupt and is not coincident with 

 the termination of the Damuda valley, but takes place farther west. 



Had it been abrupt, the difficulty in correlating the several groups 



would have been great, as the aid which might 

 Correlation of rock 



groups not aided by have been afibrded by the presence of distinguish- 

 xossils B.S vet 



able fossils has been denied to us for the present. 



Fossil plants are not indeed wholly absent, as will appear on a future 



page, but they have not been available for purposes of determining 



the ages of the rocks in which they occur. The geological formations 



and sub-division of formations represented within the limits of the area 



herein described are as follows (in descending order) : — 



Superficial deposits. 



Laterite. 



Deccan trap. 



C TJPPEE Mahadeva series. 



Gondwana 3 /^Pancliet group, 



SYSTEM. i T ] Lower „ ■) 



^ LowEE ■< [Damuda sEEiEs. 



^Talchir 



Metamorphic series. 

 ( 30 ) 



