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Calcareous Algal-Rich Carbonate Sediments from Assam Shelf, N-E India: An Overview of the Palaeoenvironmental Implications

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Petroleum Geosciences: Indian Contexts

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Abstract

Assam Shelf in north-east India is one of the best studied sedimentary basins of the Indian subcontinent with respect to hydrocarbon exploration. Calcareous algae are common biogenic components of the Palaeogene carbonates outcropping in Meghalaya, Assam Shelf. They occur as encrusting and compact thalli, maerls and fragments in lagoonal to proximal outer shelf facies. The relative abundance of calcareous algae increase gradually from late Palaeocene to middle Eocene and is correlated to the evolution of a reefal environment also characterized by rich quantities of benthic foraminifera. The population dynamics of calcareous algae in the carbonate units of the Sylhet Limestone Group indicate an overall shallow bathymetry, mesotrophic nutrient regime and moderate species diversity. Abundance of mastophoroid and sporolithacean corallines points towards a tropical palaeoenvironment. The Palaeocene-Eocene time period featured critical, globally significant events such as the Indo-Asian plate collision and Palaeocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM). This factor adds to the importance of reef evolution and the constituent biogenic assemblages in NE India during this period.

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Acknowledgments

Thanks to Dr. Soumyajit Mukherjee for invitation to submit. Prof. Sunil Bajpai, Director, Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany is thanked for his whole-hearted encouragement and providing the necessary infrastructure facilities. I also wish to thank Dr. Amit K. Ghosh for his kind help during the field work. Critical comments from the anonymous reviewers are gratefully acknowledged. This research was supported by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi (NET Fellowship, Grant No. 09/528/2009-EMR-I).

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  1. Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany, 53 University Road, Lucknow, 226 007, India

    Suman Sarkar

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  1. Suman Sarkar
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Correspondence to Suman Sarkar .

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  1. Department of Earth Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Powai, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India

    Soumyajit Mukherjee

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Sarkar, S. (2015). Calcareous Algal-Rich Carbonate Sediments from Assam Shelf, N-E India: An Overview of the Palaeoenvironmental Implications. In: Mukherjee, S. (eds) Petroleum Geosciences: Indian Contexts. Springer Geology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-03119-4_7

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