{"id":5954,"date":"2025-12-04T18:35:30","date_gmt":"2025-12-04T18:35:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/?p=5954"},"modified":"2025-12-04T18:35:30","modified_gmt":"2025-12-04T18:35:30","slug":"252-million-year-old-natures-library-in-kashmir-gets-national-geo-heritage-tag","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/2025\/12\/04\/252-million-year-old-natures-library-in-kashmir-gets-national-geo-heritage-tag\/","title":{"rendered":"252-million-year-old \u2018nature\u2019s library\u2019 in Kashmir gets national geo-heritage tag"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u2018Guryul Ravine fossil site holds key to Earth\u2019s ancient climate, geology\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

Srinagar, Dec 04: The Guryul Ravine in Kashmir\u2014home to one of the world\u2019s most complete fossil records of the Permian\u2013Triassic mass extinction\u2014has been declared a national geo-heritage site by the Geological Survey of India (GSI), recognising its global scientific value and extraordinary preservation of 252-million-year-old geological history.<\/p>\n

The fossil-bearing section at Guryul Ravine records the \u201cGreat Dying\u201d, the largest mass extinction in Earth\u2019s history, when nearly all life forms vanished. Located at Vihi in Khanmoh on Srinagar\u2019s outskirts, the site also preserves traces of what scientists believe could be the world\u2019s earliest documented tsunami within its one-metre-thick boundary section.<\/p>\n

What makes Guryul Ravine exceptional, experts said, is its 3-metre-thick boundary section, far larger than the globally known Meishan section in China, which measures just 27 cm. This extensive thickness provides a clearer, uninterrupted geological timeline of the extinction and recovery phases.<\/p>\n

Speaking to the news agency – Kashmir News Observer (KNO), Mohsin Noor, Senior Geologist and Nodal Officer for Guryul Ravine, said the section remains unparalleled in the region and holds critical clues about ancient climate, biodiversity collapse, and geological transitions.<\/p>\n

\u201cGuryul Ravine marks the exact Permian\u2013Triassic boundary and contains one of the world\u2019s most detailed records of the \u2018Great Dying.\u2019 Its 3-metre composite boundary makes it scientifically more significant than the 27-cm Meishan section in China,\u201d he said. \u201cThe layers here also preserve the earliest known tsunami deposits, making this site globally unique.\u201d<\/p>\n

Noor said Kashmir hosts exceptional geological diversity spanning vast time periods. \u201cThe Guryul Ravine at Khanmoh is among the Valley\u2019s most significant geological sites, spread over 9.8 lakh square metres with a face length of over 1.4 kilometres in the Zabarwan foothills,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The\u00a0geologist said the site\u2019s \u201cfascinating fossils\u201d have attracted global scientific attention and strengthened its potential as a major geo-tourism destination.<\/p>\n

Rare invertebrate fossils collected from the Ravine are preserved at the SPS Museum in Srinagar, and also at the Geoscience Museum, Department of Geology & Mining, J&K, located in Budgam. Noor was also an active member in the establishment of the Geoscience Museum.<\/p>\n

The Permian rocks of the Kashmir Himalayas exhibit striking lithological variation\u2014from fluvio-glacial and volcanic deposits to continental and marine formations\u2014making them crucial for scientific research. The Ravine preserves an uninterrupted sequence across the Permian\u2013Triassic boundary, including mixed fossil assemblages marking key climatic and biological shifts.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis fossiliferous zone is among the world\u2019s best-known Permian\u2013Triassic type sections, home to an illustrious faunal assemblage of marine and terrestrial fossils that offer a biological window into the mass extinction event,\u201d the Nodal Officer said.<\/p>\n

While similar boundary sections exist in Iran and China, Noor said they lie in remote terrains. \u201cGuryul Ravine is easily accessible, and its proximity to markets gives it unique global significance.\u201d<\/p>\n

The site\u2019s rock formations show a transition from arenaceous to argillaceous and carbonate sequences. The earliest Triassic layers begin with the ammonoid Otoceras woodwardi, a key marker fossil.<\/p>\n

Noor recalled that during an international geological conference in Jammu in 2007, experts raised concerns over quarrying at the site. This prompted the Department of Geology and Mining to stop quarrying, restrict access, and fence the area to protect the fossil zone.<\/p>\n

The Guryul Ravine fossil park is currently maintained by the Department of Geology and Mining through the District Mineral Foundation Trust (DMFT), Srinagar.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Guryul Ravine is nature\u2019s library\u2014holding secrets of historical geology and ancient climate change,\u201d the\u00a0geologist said, adding that the site is open to tourists, students, and researchers from across the world. (KNO)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u2018Guryul Ravine fossil site holds key to Earth\u2019s ancient climate, geology\u2019 Srinagar, Dec 04: The Guryul Ravine in Kashmir\u2014home to one of the world\u2019s most complete fossil records of the Permian\u2013Triassic mass extinction\u2014has been declared a national geo-heritage site by the Geological Survey of India (GSI), recognising its global scientific value and extraordinary preservation of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5955,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5954","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-top-news","category-kt-front"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5954","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5954"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5954\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5956,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5954\/revisions\/5956"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5955"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5954"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5954"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5954"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}