Uplift along the western margin of the Deccan Basalt Province: Is there any geomorphometric evidence? |
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| Authors: | Vishwas S Kale Nikhil Shejwalkar |
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| Institution: | (1) Department of Geography, University of Pune, Pune, 411 007, India |
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| Abstract: | In line with the passive margin landscape evolutionary model in vogue, sustained erosion and long-distance retreat of the Western Ghat escarpment are widely considered to be the results of erosionally-driven isostatic uplift since Tertiary by many workers. Others have postulated or adduced evidence for strong neotectonic activity in the Ghat region. An obvious question in this regard is whether there is any geomorphometric evidence in support of this widespread view? In order to test the hypothesis of ongoing post-rift fexural uplift or neotectonic activity in the western Deccan Basalt Province (DBP), geomorphometric analysis was carried out and commonly used geomorphic indices of active tectonics (GAT) were derived for 30 selected river basins on both sides of the Western Ghat. SRTM-DEM data and ArcGIS were used to derive the indices. Tectonic geomorphic analysis based on five proxy indicators suggests that the differences in GAT indices, both along strike and across the Western Ghat, are statistically insignificant. The index values are nowhere close to the GAT values typically associated with drainage basins affected by active tectonics and deformation. Mapping of the indices reveals lack of discernable trends. The adduced results indicate that the western DBP belongs to the class of relatively low tectonic activity. |
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| Keywords: | Geomorphometric analysis active tectonic indices uplift Western Ghat Konkan rivers Upland rivers |
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