Rajmahal hills

The Rajmahal Hills are located in the Santhal Pargana division of Jharkhand, India. They were located on the northern margin of the Gondwana supercontinent, and its hills are today inhabited by the Sauria Paharia people whilst its valleys are dominated by the Santhal people.[1] The hills span over an area of 2,600 km2 (1,000 sq mi).[2]

Rajmahal Hills
Hunain Hills
Hills
View of Rajmahal Hills
View of Rajmahal Hills
CountryIndia
StateJharkhand
Languages
 • OfficialHindi
Time zoneUTC+5:30 (IST)

Volcanic activity during the Jurassic resulted in the formation of the Rajmahal Traps. The hills are approximately located at 25°N 87°E.[3]

The Rajmahal hills are named after the town of Rajmahal which lies in the eastern Jharkhand. The hills trend north-south with an average elevation of 200–300 m (660–980 ft), from the Sahibganj district to the Dumka district. The River Ganges wanders around the hills changing the direction of flow from east to south.

Francis Buchanan-Hamilton travelled through the Rajmahal hills in the early 19th century. He described the hills that seemed impenetrable in a zone where few travellers had been. He wrote that everywhere people were hostile, apprehensive of officials and unwilling to talk and, in some cases, left their villages and absconded.[4]

Fossils

The plant fossil bearing inter-trappean beds of the Rajmahal Formation have been declared National Geological Monuments of India by the Geological Survey of India (GSI), for their protection, maintenance, promotion and the enhancement of geotourism.[5] The Rajmahal hills contain plant fossils which are 68 to 145 million years old. The fossils here have attracted geologists and palaeobotanists from all over the world. The Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany in Lucknow has a collection of them. There are fears of these fossils disappearing, as the state government in 2018 gave a mining lease in the area to private companies.[2]

References
  1. "Rajmahal natives seek autonomous council". The Telegraph India. 13 February 2012. Archived from the original on 3 February 2013. Retrieved 30 December 2017.
  2. "Rare fossils in India threatened". BBC News. 25 July 2008.
  3. Khan, Mujibur Rahman (2012). "Rajmahal Hills". In Islam, Sirajul; Jamal, Ahmed A. (eds.). Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Second ed.). Asiatic Society of Bangladesh.
  4. Themess in Indian History, Part III, p 266 (Using Francis Buchanan, Journal of Francis Buchanan Kept During the Survey of the Districtof Bhagalpur, 1930, Government Printing, Bihar and Orissa, Patna.)
  5. National Geological Monument, from Geological Survey of India website
    - "Geo-Heritage Sites". Press Information Bureau. 9 March 2016. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
    - A Monograph on National Geoheritage Monuments of India, INTACH, March 2016


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