STRATIGRAPHY AND GEOMORPHOLOGICAL

FEATURES OF PAPANASAM TYPE AREA,

WARKALLI FORMATION
 Introduction
• Kerala region is an important segment of the south Indian Precambrian terrain, where major units
of the Archean continental crust, such as granulites, granites, gneisses and greenstone are
preserved.
• The bulkof the rocks of Kerala, especially the granulites and associated gneisses belong to
Precambrian sporadic late, Precambrian early Paleozoic granites and associates.
• Pegmatites and meso-cenozoic dykes intrude these rocks.
• The tertiary sedimentary formation of Kerala basin unconformablyoverlies the Precambrian.
• The name Kerala basin denotes the southern most parts of the western continental margin of
peninsula.
• The occurrence of marine and non-marine rocks in the on land part reported on these rocks.
 Objectives

1. To document the geomorphological features of southern cliff section.

2. To record the lithological characteristics of deposits in the area.

3. To study the stratigraphy.

 Geomorphology Of Kerala
• The Kerala region is an important segment of the South Indian Precambrian Terrain.
•
• It is a narrow strip of land bounded by the Western Ghats on the east and Arabian Sea on the
West.

• The rock types occuring in the Kerala region can be classified into three major age groups as
belonging to Archean, Proterozoic and Cenozoic.

• The oldest rocks in Kerala are charnockites.

 Warkallai Formation
• The Quilon Formation is conformably overlain by rocks of the Warkalli

• Formation which occurs as patches along the coast.

• The type section is located at Varkala, edging the sea shore, 22km south of Quilon, where it
attains a thickness of 60m and has the following succession.
 A VERTICAL SEQUENCE OF VARKALA FORMATION IS GIVEN IN THE FIGURE

1. LATERITE WITH SANDSTONE MASSES- 13m

2. SAND AND SANDY CLAYS- 23m
3. ALUM CLAYS- 14m
4. CARBONACEOUS CLAY WITH LIGNITE- 5m
• KERALA REGION-MAJOR PART OF WESTERN CONTINENTAL MARGIN.

• DOES NOT HAVE FULL SEQUENCE OF ROCK FORMATION.

• RADIOMETRIC METHODS SUGGEST COMPLEX TWCTONIC HISTORY.

• COASTLINE MADE OF STEEP FRACTURES OF PLIOCENE AGE.

• ABSENCE OF PRE-MIOCENE FORMATION-EITHER LATE SUBMERGENCE /AN

UPLIFTMENT

• TERTIARY FORMATION- UNCONFORMABLY OVERLIES THE PRECAMBRIAN.

• UPPERMOST PART OF TERTIARY FORMATION IS LATERISED.

GEOMORPHOLOGY OF CLIFF SECTION
• COMBINATION OF FLUVIAL & MARINE PROCESSES.

• WARKALLI FORMATION & LATERITE : FORM MAJOR AQUIFER SYSTEM.

• 2-3 GRANULAR ZONES : POTENTIAL FOR TAPPING GROUND WATER.

• PRESENCE OF TENSION CRACKS : FACILITATES WATER PERCOLATION.

• PHREATIC AQUIFER : FORMED IN LATERITE BELOW SST.

• PRESENCE OF AN IMPERMEABLE CLAY.

• UPPER LAYER – OVER SATURATED.

• SPRINGS- BETWEEN 2 PERMEABLE AND IMPERMEABLE LAYERS.

 BEDDING AND LAMINATION
• LAYERING OF SEDIMENTARY DEPOSITS

• PECULIAR OF MOST CLASTIC AND NON CLASTIC SEDIMENTS

• HAVE THICKNESS GREATER THAN ONE.

• LAMINATION : DEVELOP IN FINE GRAINED SST AND SILTSTONE OF WARKALLI BEDS.

• LAMINATION HAS A THICKNESS LESS THAN ONE.

 CROSS BEDDING AND CROSS LAMINATION
CROSS BEDDING : MOST COMMON TYPE BEDDING IN SST.

CROSS BED : SINGLE LAYER OR SEDIMENTATION UNIT CONSIST OF INTERNAL LAYER

INCLINED TO PRINCIPAL SEDIMENTATION SURFACE.

MAINLY 2 TYPE CROSS BEDDING:

1. 1.PLANAR CROSS BEDDING : ABOUT 40 CM HEIGHT,HAS A DIP OF 22

DEGREE,TABULAR,TANGENTIAL CONTACT WITH BEDDING PLANE.
2. 2.TROUGH CROSS BEDDING : FORMED DUE TO ACCRETION OF SANDS DURING
MIGRATION OF RIVER CHANNELS.
 LOADCASTS
• RESULTED FROM UNEQUAL LOADING OF WATER SATURATED SLIGHTLY
HYDROPLASTIC AND FINER ARKOSIC SAND.

• ABUNDANTLY DEVELOPED AND ARE CLEARLY SEEN IN CLAY SECTIONS.

 MARCASITE /PYRITE NODULES.
• TERTIARY CARBONACEOUS CLAYS OF WARKALLI SECTION CONTAIN NODULES.

• PYRITE : OCCURS IN DIFFERENTIATED MORPHOLOGICAL FORMS.

• MARCASITE : OCCUR PRIMARILY AS NODULAR BODIES.

• ALSO AS REPLACEMENT OF WOOD MATERIALS IN THE CARBONACEOUS CLAY.

 CONCLUSION
• KERALA COASTLINE IS MADE UP OF STEP FRACTURES OF PLIOCENE.
• ABSENCE OF PRE-MIOCENE : EITHER SUBMERGENCE / UPLIFTMENT/EROSION.
• TERTIARY FORMATION : FORMED IN FRESHWATER SHALLOW BASIN.
• QUARTERNERY FORMATION : UNCONDORMABLY OVERLIES TERTIARIES.
• LATERITE PEBBLE BED – OVERLIE QUARTERNERY – INDICATES A BREAK.
• CROSS BEDDING & CROSS LAMINATION IN WARKALLI FORMATION.
• PYRITE NODULES : WITH STICKS AND NODULES OF MARCASITE.
• RICH HEAVY MINERALS ON THE BARRIER BEACHES.
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
IN PERFORMING OUR PROJECT, WE HAD TO TAKE THE HELP AND GUIDELINE OF THE ONE, WHO
DESERVES OUR GREATEST GRATITUDE. THE COMPLETION OF TJIS PROJECT GIVES US MUCH
PLEASURE. WE WOULD LIKE TO SHOW OUR GRATITUE TO CHINNU MISS,SNGCAS,VARKALA
FOR GIVIMG US THIS PROJECT THE PURPOSE OF WHICH WAS TO INCREASE OUR KNOWLEDGE
AND TO DO SOME PRACTICAL WORK.
THANK YOU