ALBERT

Description: In the central and western part of India, the Neoproterozoic deposits are identified in the Vindhyan and Marwar Basins. The Vindhyan Basin consists of two sub-basins; one in the eastern part and the other in the western part. The basic problem with the Vindhyan Basin is the correlation of the eastern part with the western part, as the two areas show different stratigraphic successions and the outcrops in the eastern part are not traceable in the western part. In this paper, an attempt is made to suggest intrabasinal correlation within the Vindhyan Basin on the basis of stromatolites, carbon isotope data, microbial mats, fossils and lithology. The Marwar Supergroup is developed in the western Rajasthan and unconformably overlies the Malani Igneous Suite, which has previously been dated as 779–681 Ma. On the basis of the available fossil records, the Jodhpur Group has been assigned an Ediacaran age and the Precambrian–Cambrian boundary is suggested within the Bilara Group. As both the Maihar Sandstone of the eastern part of the Vindhyan Basin and the Jodhpur Sandstone of the Marwar Supergroup have been assigned an Ediacaran age, these have been correlated.