1994-95 - Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany

1994-95
suggests Miocene age. A manuscript dealing with morphotaxonomy and data interpretation
has been prepared. Processing of forty-three samples of Warkala (Warkalli Formation) has
heen completed.
M.R. Rao
Programme 3.6
Objecti\'e
Tertiary megafossils from Neyveli lignite, Tamil Nadu
To sllId)'morphotaxonom)' of Tertiary megafossilsfrom
lignite and relate them with extant plants
Ne)'veli
To dedllce palaeoenvironmental, palaeoecolor;ical and phytogeographical
information
Twenty carbonised woods tram Neyveli lignite were sectioned and studied; fifteen
of them were found to be the duplicates of already reported genera, viz., 801lea, Diospyros,
GlliltI, Hopea and Parinari and remaining were poorly preserved. More than 125 blocks of
carbonised woods were prepared and studied. The study is still continued. Manuscript of a
paper entitled "Evolutionary status of fossil wood assemblages of Neyveli lignite, Tamil
Nadu and Warkala (Warkalli) bed, Kerala" was prepared.
Programme 3.11
Objective
Project suspended
Organic petrological study of Rajasthan lignites
To carry Olltpetrolor;ical evaillation of Rajasthan
To prepare basinal models showinr; deposition
and their coalification trel/ds
Anil Agarwal
lir;nite.\
of lignite heds
for the present because no fresh material could be collected.
Anand-Prakash
& Rakesh Saxena
Programme 3.9
Objective
Organic petrology of Kutch lignites, Cujarat
To evaluate Panandhro lir;l/itefor various industrial uses
To understand r;enesis of lignite and palaeoenvirol/mental conditions
Qoantitative estimation of Panandlu'o lignite from old mine section has been carried
oot onder blue light excitation (fluorescence mode). TIle data generated reveal that the
lignites of all the sections are more or less sim.i1arin respect of maceral composition. Huminite
is the dominant maceral group (44-94%, fluorescing ,-47%. non-Iluorescing 36-89':«)
followed by liptini(C (5.6-56%) and inertinite (op to 4.4 %) groups. Among liptinites.
resittite shows a wide range of variation (0.2-20%). However, the percentage ranges between
0.2-10%. Alginite (Botryoeoceus), though persistent, is not in recordable amount in
old mine section. TIle lignites of old ntine section contain a relatively lower proportion of
Iluoresdng huminite.
R.K. Misra & Alpana Singh
97