CORRELATION OF COAL SEAMS IN , M.P., ON THE BASIS OF SPORAE DISPERSAE*

D. C. BHARADWA} & S. C. SRIVASTAVA Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany, Lucknow

ABSTRACT MA TERIAL AND METHODS Fifteen samples of coal collected from different 15 samples of coal in 72 B.S. mesh size parts of Chirimiri Coalfield, M.P., have been sporo• from all over the area were studied (Table 1). logically investigated. The qualitative and quanti• These samples were subjected to similar tative composition of the samples at generic level indicates that the general dominance is consti• maceration procedure in each case. Five tuted by Lophotriletes, Microbaculispora, Indotri• gms. of material from each sample was radites and Sulcatisporites. In addition to these, treated with HNOa (comm.) for 3 days Horriditriletes, Retusotriletes, Potonieisporites, Fauni• followed by digestion with 10 per cent pollenites and Ginkgocycadophytus are characteristi• cally associated with the dominants. The asso• KOH after thorough washing with water ciation of these genera has enabled segregation of as detailed by Bharadwaj (1962) and Bhara• the samples into three assemblages. Assemblage A dwaj and Salujha (1964). The macerates is dominated by Microbaculispora. Assemblage B were mounted on slides in glycerine jelly. 500 is dominated by Microbaculispora in association with Indotriradites and Assemblage C has the miospores were counted from each sample dominance of Microbaculispora associated with at the generic level. Retusotriletes and Potonieisporites. It is suggested From Table 1 it is apparent that samples that the samples represent three coal seams corres• CACl - (129), (126), (143)E, (145)E and ponding to Assemblages A, B & C. The succession of mioflora in Chirimiri coalfield (141)E are representatives of only parts of has been found to show general similarity with the seams while others represent overalls of full succession of the three older coal seams in the seams. northern part of . The age of The interpretation of data for correla• Chirimiri coal deposits is suggested as Lower Barakar. tion of the samples has been based on the qualitative association of spore genera and INTRODUCTION its quantitative dominance in the spore assemblage of any sample. At the same time the trend of quantitative variation CHlRlMlRlabout 50 sq.coalfieldmiles haswhichanliesareaas ofa exhibited by individual genera vertically detached Barakar block south of the among all the samples has been kept in more extensive Sonhat coalfield. Chirimiri mind. To determine the dominance, a coalfield is bounded by latitudes 23°15' group of numerically most represented and 23°8' N and by longitudes 82°17' and genera with their combined percentages 82°25' E. totalling near about 70 per cent of the The topography of Chirimiri coalfield is mioflora have been taken for each sample. very rough. The whole area is broken by This method of determining the dominance hilly blocks of Barakars with steep sides is based on Chaney's (1924, 1925) method and escarpments. The general height of employed by him for the Tertiary floras the area is between 2300 and 2200 ft. above and this has been modified here to over• mean sea level. There are a few peaks. come the limitations of our knowledge The coal deposit of Chirimiri is entirely about such old miofloras as those of the of Barakar stage. These Barakars are Barakars. The basic idea made use of is completely isolated being entirely sur• the reliance on the similarity of overall rounded by Talchirs which lie almost hori• dominance of a group or association of zontally. There are two little outliers of genera rather than a single genus. This is Supra-Barakars on the high ground in the supposed to overcome any difference in the eastern part of the area. sporological composition of seams due to

*Results of investigations carried out in the Scheme " Palaeobotanical Investigations of Indian Coals (C.S.I.R.)." 36 BHARADWA} & SRIVASTAVA - COAL SEAMS IN CHIRIMIRI COALFIELD 37

DWA] & TIWARI 1964b, TIWARI 1964) TABLE 1 - DETAILS OF SAMPLES FROM listed below together with their average SOME COLLIERIES IN CHIRIMIRI overall percentages taking the averages of COALFIELD full seams in the succession. Leiotriletes 1% NAME OF SAMPLE No. Punetatisporites 2% COLLIERY Retusotriletes 7% Cyelogranisporites 4% Chirimiri Colliery CACI/(130)E (No.1 seam) Verrueosisporites 1% do CACI/(127) (No.2 seam) do CACI/(128)E (No. 3 bottom Lophotriletes 9% seam) A eanthotriletes + do CACI/(129) (No.4 seam top H orriditriletes 4% portion only) Mieroretieulatisporites West Chirimiri CACI/(124) Main seam d. + Colliery Mierobaeulispora 22% Korea Colliery CACI/(125)E (Bijora seam) Cyelobaeulisporites 1% Duman Hill Colliery CACI/(131) (Kaparti scam Indotriradites 7% Bottom section) Dentatispora do CACI/(131) (Kaparti seam + Top Section) Calamospora 2% do CACI/(126) (Working Sec• Latosporites 1% tion Gorghela Punetatosporites 1% seam) Thymospora 2% Kurasia Colliery CACI-(143)E (Seam NO.2, Bottom por• Parasaeeites 2% tion only) Potonieisporites 5% do CACI-(144)E (Seam No.3) Plieatipollenites 1% do CACI-(145)E (Seam No. 3A. Cuneatisporites Bottom por- 1% tion only) Platysaeeus 1% Sonawani Colliery CACI-(147) (Sonawani Striatites 1% Seam) Rhizomaspora + North Chirimiri CACI-(136)/ (Bijora seam) Lahirites + Colliery Seam Overall New Chirimiri CACI-(141)E (Main Scam Lunatisporites 1% (Ponri Hill) Colliery Bottom ten Striatopodoearpites 1% feet only) Vertieipollenites + F aunipollenites 4% Vesieaspora 3% Suleatisporites 10% lateral variation within the basin. It is Welwitsehiapites + Vittatina + stipulated that even when the major, dyna• Ginkgoeyeadophytus 2% mic components of a vegetation within a M aeulatasporites 1% small area tend to vary from place to place, M onosuleate spore 2% the sum total of their representation tends A critical appraisal of the vertical distri• to remain the same. A dynamic compo• bution of spore genera in the geological nent is one which shows significant change succession occurring in Chirimiri coalfield in its representation in time as against has revealed the following spore genera as a static component whose representa• tion remains more or less at the same dynamic components: M ierobaeulispora level throughout the succession. Thus, the I ndotriradites samples possessing nearly similar total Lophotriletes dominance percentage (T.D.P.) together H orriditriletes with comparable representations of indivi• Retusotriletes dual genera have been grouped together as correlated. Potonieisporites Faunipollenites + Striated saccates Suleatisporites + non-striated saccates RESULTS These genera constitute the association of dominants and their combined percent• The mioflora consists of the miospore age is the total dominance percentage genera (sensu BHARADWA]1962, BHARA- (T.D.P.). 38 THE PALAEOBOTANIST

Miospore Assemblages genera ill Assamblage Care Microbaculi• spora, Retusotriletes, Lophotriletes, Potonie• Assemblage A - Only one sample, CACI• isporites and Sulcatisporites. However, the (147) contains Assemblage A. This assemb• most characteristic genus is Potonieisporites lage is characterized by a low T.D.P. of 70. with an average percentage of 10. Cyclo• Qualitatively the dominance is charac• granisporites and Latosporites are fairly terized by Microbaculispora. S~tlcatisporites, well represented components. The assemb• Lophotriletes and Faunipollenites constitute lage is rich in cryptogamic spores which the subdominant clements with rather low total about 54 per cent and the rest are percentages. The cryptogamic spores total gymnospermous pollengrains (Histogram I). 66 per cent. Among the latter, Su!catisporites averages Assemblage B - Four samples, CACI• 13 per cent, Vesicaspora 3 per cent, Fauni• (144)E, (124), (125)E, (136) contain Assemb• pollenites about 4 per cent and Ginkgo• lage B. The T.D.P. values for this assemb• cycadophytus about 2 per cent. The T.D.P. lage range from 77 to 81. The most charac• values for this assemblage range between teristic feature of this assemblage is the 77 and 86. The percentages of various high percentage representation of Indotri• dominant miospore genera for different radites and Microbaculispora. Lophotriletes, samples and their T.D.P., in the three Retusotriletes and SulcatispoY'ites closely fol• assemblages as given in Table 2, have been low. A number of other trilete and mono• graphically represented in Text-fig. 1. lete spore genera are fairly well represented (Histogram I). On the whole the assemb• CORRELATION lage is very rich in cryptogamic spores totalling 67 per cent, the rest being saccate The samples in any of the three assemb• or non-saccate pollengrains. Among the lages detailed above, where-so-ever more latter, Ginl?gocycadophytus with an average than one, are stratigraphically correlated. representation of 2 per cent is worthy of Thus, as represented in Text-fig. 2, Seam mention. No. 1-3 of Chirimiri colliery are correlated Assemblage C - Only five samples con• with Kaparti Seam of Duman colliery. tain Assemblage C. The most numerous Likewise Bijora Seam of North Chirimiri

.ASSEMBlAGE ~ASSEMBlAGE~ ~ ASSEMBlAGE----> ABC A II

tElOTRllETES PUNCTATISPORlTES RETUSOTRllETES CYClOGRANISPORITES VERRUCOSISPORITES lOPHOTRILETES ACANTHOTRILETES HORRlDITR1LETES

HIStOGRAM -I t"">-; _A._ b:I > :>(/)Z(/)'""" > H >-; 867977striated83621211157014Potoniei-79disaccates10810(')<:11tj:>Horridi128084611235711019149triletes6Fattni-Micro-triletesdomi-~Retuso-42690Sulcati-2578313172451214'-<26201832Total10199 triletes282015101148201 DOMINANCEnanceCONSTITUENTSPERCENTAGES '""" 12+313+313+214+510+512+411+410+44+18+45+23+2cadophytus9+68274771081Ginkgocy-sporitesILopho-2+282CACI-(144)CACI-(147)CACI-(127)4+1±1+03+4>2+04+26+98+64+123+43+815+35+63+3sporitesSAMPLE No.2 ,- TABLE2per- Ro ~Sf:<:tI1\0tI1H..., pollenites~ baculisporaE -. centage LAGESAB CACI-(145)CACI-(128)CACI-(131) TOP Indotri- disaccatesstriatedNOIl-± ~II:>tj0t""":j:>t""'""" IncompleteC SamplesCACI-(143)CACI-(126)CACI-(125)CACI-(131)CACI-(130)CACI-(129)CACI-(124)CACI-(136) EBOT. radites (')(')(/) CACI-(141) E w ASSEMB- 40 THE PALAEOBOTAN1ST

A5l:;E MBLAGE C (0---0 INDOTRIRADtTES

X~ G1NKGOCYCADOPHYTLlS

SU~CATl5PORrrES + ~JON STRIATED DISACCATES U}--d) FAUNIPOLlEN1TES+ STRIATED OI$ACCATES MICROBACULISPORA

.~* lOPHOTRILETES t:.---L;:, POTONIEISPORlTES 0---.0 RETU$OTRILETES HORRIDITRtLETH

ASSEMBLAGE B INDEX ,, " ,, , , ,'-

Jl.~SEMBLAGE A

o I } 3 4 S 6 't 8 9 10 rl 11 13 141 IS Ie, '7 .t" IQ 20 21 12 23 ]A 25 26:2 28 29 )0 Jl 32 PERCENTAGE

TEXT-FIG. 1

NE.W (PONRI HILL) COLL.

5tAM No.1 ICO"' ••• \ COLL \ SONAWANI \ COLL. \ \

SEA'" N.~ "- \ \ ""- "-

I"AR,o,l(OH ~E.AM

SEAM ,"SSEt-':8UCoE•

I I I / LOWER SEAM / / SOtlAWlll1 SlAM SAMPLEHo. CA('I·("")

TEXT-FIG. 2 BHARADWA] & SRIVASTAVA-COAL SEAMS IN CHIRIMIRI COALFIELD 41

colliery, Bijora Seam of Korea colliery, Main either a local development or is equivalent Seam of West Chirimiri colliery and Seam of Assemblage A. The low representation No. 3 of Kurasia colliery are also correlated. of Microbaculispora in this seam may be The Sonawani Seam of Sonawani colliery due to incompleteness of the sample. is an isolated sample. Besides these sam• Sample CACI-(141)E represents the ples there are five other samples which bottom 10 feet of Main Seam in New could not be taken into consideration be• Chirimiri (Pomi Hills) colliery. The sporo• cause they represent only parts of the logical picture of this seam is individualistic seam. The sporological composition of in respect of very high incidence of Indotri• these samples may be reflecting a near radites and low of Microbaculispora. How• average of the whole seam or may be ever, its T.D.P. is closer to Assemblage B individualistic. In Indian coals we have which is also characterized by well repre• evidence of variation in the quantitative sented I ndrotriradites. Hence, inspite of representation of spore genera from base only a partial sampling this sample can be to the top of a seam (BHARADWA}& TIWARI, safely correlated with Assemblage B. 1966) as well as of uniformity (BHARADWA}& The final picture of correlation of the SALU}HA,1965). Thus considering this, it samples on palynological basis is given in is difficult as well as risky to suggest cor• Text-fig. 2. A critical perusal of Text-fig. 2 relation on sporological evidence alone. might suggest an improbability of the Hence, stratigraphical position of these correlation of Seams 1-3 of Chirimiri colliery samples with reference to those already with Kaparti seam of Duman Hill colliery correlated has been considered for correla• and Seam NO.2 of Kurasia colliery on the tion. In the case of sample CACI-(143)E grounds of much larger thickness of the representing top portion of Seam NO.2 of first as compared to the latter two. But, Kurasia colliery the sporological picture if it is supposed that Duman Seam in (Histogram I) is very individualistic yet Duman Hill colliery and Seam No. I in in view of the association of its more promi• Kurasia colliery of which we have not had nent elements and high T.D.P. (82) it can any samples to study, could, together with be reasonably placed in Assemblage C. Kaparti seam and Seam no. 2 of the two Unfortunately we have not been given the respective collieries be equivalent to the opportunity to examine a sample of Seam Seams 1-3 of Chirimiri colliery, the correla• No. I of this colliery. Had it been so, the tion would seem very much plausible. In correlation of both the seams with Assembl• view of the very uniform miospore composi• age C might have been much more obvious. tion of seams 1-3 of Chirimiri colliery Sample CACI-(129) represents only the top through a considerable thickness of strata, portion of seam No. 4 in Chirimiri colliery. the latter possibility is very much probable. Its sporological picture (Histogram I) is Hence, we have indicated this probability very individualistic but its T.D.P. as well by broken lines in Text-fig. 2. as the prominent percentage of Indotri• radites places it in Assemblage B without much hesitation. Stratigraphically it un• DISCUSSION derlies seam 3 (Bottom) which is already placed in Assemblage A. Likewise, sample In view of there being three different CACI-(126) represents the working section assemblages it is evident that three different of Gorghela seam in Duman Hill colliery. coal seams are represented among the sam• In its sporological picture (Histogram I), ples. If there are more than three seams T.D.P. as well as the high incidence of in any succession, some of them are evi• Indrotriradites, it correlates with Assemb• dently splits of one or the other of the three lage B. main seams established palynologic ally. In Sample CACI-(145)E has an individua• Assemblage A, Indrotriradites is almost ab• listic sporological picture with very high sent but Microbaculispora is highest as com• incidence of monosu1cates, absence of I ndo• pared to all the assemblages. In Assemblage triradites and the lowest T.D.P. This B, I ndotriradites is represented together sample represents the bottom portion of with a high percentage of Microbaculispora. seam No. 3A of Kurasia colliery. The seam This occurrence of I ndotriradites is closely overlying it, is undoubtedly correlated comparable to the high representation of with Assemblage B. Hence, this seam is this genus in the older coal seams of Korba 42 THE P1\LAEOBOT1\NIST

coalfield (13IIARADAWAJ& TIWARI,1964a• found in any of the assemblages of Korba Assemblage B). coalfield. It is apparent that but for the In Assemblage C, Indotriradites is negli• dominance of Indrotriradites in some seams gible though always present. In the coal of Chirimiri coalfield the. overall composi• seam succession of Ghordewa sector in tion of the floral succession contributing to Korba coalfield Indotriradites is present in the formation of its coals was somewhat two of the older seams (Assemblages A & individualistic and thus different from that B). Considering that a similar significance giving rise to the coal seams in Korba be attached to the distribution of I ndotri• basin. radites in the coal seams of Chirimiri coal• Miofloristically speaking, there IS a field, the two coal successions are of similar gradual decrease in the cryptogamic spores age, i.e. Lower Barakar. and corresponding increase in gymnospermic Microbaculispora is very prominent and pollen from older to younger sequence. consistent component in Chirimiri coals. This tendency is characteristic of Lower Actually it dominates the whole succession Barakar deposits (BHARADWA],1966). in Chirimiri coalfield. Such a distribution of this genus is not present in the seams ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS of any of the sectors from Korba coal• field. On the other hand Faunipollenites The authors are thankful to the Council which is very dominant in the Assemblage of Scientific and Industrial Research, New D of Korba coalfield is very much in the Delhi, for the financial aid to run the background in Chirimiri coalfield. Like• scheme "Palaeobotanical Investigations wise in Assemblage C of Chirimiri coalfield of Indian Coals" and to the Central the prominence of Potonieisporites in asso• Fuel Research Institute, Jealgora, for the ciation with Microbaculispora is not to be samples.

REFERENCES

BHARADWA],D. C. (1962). Miospore genera in the BHARADWA], D. C. & SALU]HA, S. Ie (1964). coals of Raniganj Stage (Upper Permian), . Sporological study of seam VIII in Raniganj Palaeobotanist. 9: 68-106, 1960. Coalfield, Bihar (India) Part. I, Description of Idem (1966). Distribution of spores and pollen Sporae dispersae. Ibid. 12: 181-215, 1963. grains dispersed in the Lower Gondwana Idem (1965). Sporological study of seam VIII in Formations of India. Symp. Floristics Strat. , Bihar (India). Part II• Gondwld, Sahni Inst. Palaeobot. 1964: 69-84. Distribution of Sporae dispersae and correlation. BHARADWA],D. C. & TIWARI, R. S. (1964a). The Ibid. 13: 57-73. correlation of coalseams in Korba Coalfield, CHANEY, R. W. (1924). Quantitative studies of Lower Gondwanas, India. C.R. 5th into Congr. the Bridge Creek flora. Am. ]. Sci. 8: 12• Strat. Geol. Carbo 3: 1131-1143. 144. Idem (1964b). On two mono saccate genera from Idem (1925). A comparative study of the Bridge Barakar Stage of India. Palaeobotanist. 12: Creek flora and the modern redwood forest. 139-149, 1963. Carnegie Inst. Wash. Publ. 349: 1-22. Idem (1966). Sporological correlation of coal TIWARI, R. S. (1964). New miospore'genera in the seams in Bachra area, North Karanpura Coal• coals of Barakar Stage (Lower Gondwanas) of field, Bihar, India. Ibid. 14: 1-10. India. Palaeobotanist. 12: 250-259.