Andhra Pradesh has geological links with South America, Africa, Australia, and Antarctica: Scientists

A team of scientists from Hyderabad's National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI) has unearthed new findings shedding light on an ancient link between the Indian subcontinent and Antarctica. Their research provides strong evidence of a collision between India and East Antarctica over a billion years ago, a TOI report stated.

In a significant discovery, the NGRI team, which includes Dr. K Chandrakala, OP Pandey, Biswajit Mandal, K Renuka, and N Prem Kumar, uncovered a hidden ridge beneath the Darsi and Addanki regions of Andhra Pradesh. This ridge is attributed to the historic collision, suggesting a tilting of the Cuddapah basin towards the south. The study further indicates signs of past seismic activity in the area, hinting at the presence of a marginal ocean basin along the east coast during the Columbia and Rodinia supercontinent assembly periods.

By reprocessing seismic data along a 325-kilometer profile from Alampur to Ganapeswaram, the team investigated the subsurface crustal seismic structure of the north Cuddapah basin. Their findings revealed a thin layer of alluvium underlain by Gondwana sediments and Proterozoic sedimentary layers. Gondwana, a supercontinent encompassing present-day South America, Africa, Arabia, Madagascar, India, Australia, and Antarctica, played a crucial role in the geological evolution of these regions.


"Our research has uncovered extensive Proterozoic sedimentation in the study region," shared the NGRI scientists with TOI. "We have identified both upper and lower Proterozoic Cuddapah sediments directly overlying the crystalline basement. This provides new insights into India's eastern coast's geological history during the Proterozoic era."

Published in the 'Journal of Pure and Applied Geophysics,' this study marks a significant contribution to understanding the ancient geological events shaping the Indian subcontinent and its connections with Antarctica.