ALLUVIUM AND SURFACE DEPOSITS. 143 



to give to it ; it is apparent at a glance that quite the major portion 

 of the State is shrouded in alluvium and other surface deposits. 

 On the other hand these surface accumulations and the soils they 

 carry, require special treatment, quite dissimilar from that given 

 to the solid geology of the area, and need a survey of their own 

 to be adequately treated. This no doubt will be undertaken in 

 the future as occasion demands, but its scope will not with ad- 

 vantage be restricted to the limits of any State. 



Meanwhile the following notes may be of some interest. One 

 may say that the more level plain areas, 



Some general feat- , , . . _ _ r s 



ures. suc h as that between Ahmednagar and Berna, 



are covered by a sandy clay to a depth of about 

 30 feet, but to the north of this line there are more irregularities, 

 and along certain directions little hills of alluvium and blown sand 

 make a feature that is shown on the map. I may instance the 

 little set of hillocks east of Badoli, on which the summits marked 711, 

 683, 757 and 71C appear, and also a multitude of similar but more 

 sandy hills near Medhasan, Kabola and Bakrol. Much of this 

 country is almost barren, but the more clayey parts in hollows 

 grow dry crops, such as Indian corn, etc. All the more sandy 

 soil that comes above the Ahmednagar Sandstone series is quite 

 waste land. In many parts, especially those that are open to the 

 sweeping south-west winds, the blown-sand accumulates bo deeply 

 along the ordinary (unmetalled) roads that wheeled traffic is 

 rendered very difficult. Notwithstanding this there is no typical 

 dune formation, such as is so common in Western Rajputana and 

 other desert areas. On the other hand such parts of the State 

 as are defended by encircling Delhi Quartzite hills, have frequently 

 become to a large extent immune to the sand invasion. A notable 

 example of this is the old Archaean peneplain in the Jesangpur- 

 Bamanvada area. 



Beautiful sections of alluvium are exposed in the river cliffs 



Sections in alluvium. M ™ Alimedna £ ar (Himatnagar) town, as 

 at Harpa, where beds of from 100 to 200 

 feet in thickness occupy the whole cliff section. They consist of 

 ordinary alluvium with kankar and conglomerate beds of the usual 

 khaki colour. In the granite tountry, as is natural, the sands 

 of the present river-bed are of a very coarse nature and are 

 chiefly composed of quartz and felspar, 



l2 



