GEOLOGICAL FIELD REPORT ON SALT RANGE ,

PUNJAB ,PAKISTAN
NAME : AMNA SADIQ
SEAT NO : H1814006
Msc. (FINAL YEAR)
COURSE TITLE : FIELD GEOLOGY
COURSE NO : 602
TEACHER : DR. MUHAMMAD BILAL
DEPARTMENT OF GEOLOGY
UNIVERSITY OF KARACHI

1. Acknowledgment
2. Abstract
3. Background knowledge
4. Introduction
5. Study areas
6. Objective
7. Tectonics and Structure
8. Geology
9. Field equipments
Day 01 - Kirana Hills
Day 02 - Khewra George
Pre-Cambrian Rocks -
Salt Range Formation
Billianwala Salt
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Bandarkhas Gypsum
Sahiwal Marl
Cambrian Rocks -
Jehlum Group:
Khewra Sandstone
Kuzzak Shale
Jutana Dolomite
Bhaganwala Shale
Day 03 -
Khewra Salt Mine
Introduction
History
Geology
Production
Reserves
Architecture

Day 04
- Zaluch Nala
Permian Rocks
- Nilawahan Group
Tobra Formation
Complex facies
Fresh water facies
Tiltic facies
Dandot Formation
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Warcha Formation
Sardhai Formation
Permian Rocks
- Zaluch Group
Amb Formation
Wargal Formation
Chiddru Formation
Permo-Triassic Boundary
Triassic Rocks -Musa-Khel Group
Mianwali Formation
Khatwai Member
Mittiwali Member
Narmian Member
Tredian Formation
Landa Member
Khatkiara Member
Kingriali Formation

Day 05 - Namal George

Jurassic Rocks- Surghar Group
Datta Formation
Shinawri Formation
Samana Suk Formation
Tertiary Rocks - Makarwal Group
Hangu Formation
Lockhart Formation
Patala Formation
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Tertiary Rocks - Charat Group
Namal Formation
Sakesar Formation
Chorgali Formation

ACKNOWLEDGMENT
In the name of Allah the most Beneficent, the most Merciful who gives us the strength to be a part of this
informative and knowledgeable field trip which was organized by the Department of Geology university of
Karachi, Pakistan. I would like to thanks our teachers Dr. Muhammad Bilal, Dr Sadaf Ismail ,Dr Adnan
Khan and Mr. Muhammad Arsalan for accompanying us to the field and sharing their knowledge. thanks to
the chairperson of the Department Professor Dr Erum Bashir.
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ABSTRACT
The Salt Range is one of the most important geological regions in Pakistan. It is easily accessible and
displays a wide variety of geological features and paleontological remains. It has, therefore, been rightly
called a field museum of geology and paleontology. It represents an open book of geology with richly
fossiliferous stratified rocks that include a Permian carbonate succession with brachiopods, Lower Triassic
ammonite bearing beds (the Mianwali Formation, formerly known as "Ceratite Beds"). All the strata are
excellently exposed due to lack of vegetation. The quality of the exposure also provides excellent
opportunities to appreciate tectonic features in the field.

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.
INTRODUCTION
The Salt Range of Pakistan forms southernmost part of the Sub-Himalayan
Mountains, which stretch for more than 180 km east-west between the Jehlum and
Indus rivers, along the southern margin of the Potwar Basin Within the Salt Range, a
thick sedimentary cover, consisting of Precambrian to recent deposits
unconformably overlies low-grade metamorphic and igneous rocks. The Permian
stratigraphy of the Salt Range is divisible into the Early Permian Nilawahan Group
and the Late Permian Zaluch Group. the Salt Range classified the Nilawahan Group
succession into four units: the Tobra Formation,the Dandot Formation, the Warchha
Sandstone,the Sardhai Formation. The ages assigned to these formations are in
accordance with the Stratigraphic Commission and the Geological Time Scale. Each
lithostratigraphic unit is interpreted to have accumulated under a distinct climatic
regime that progressively changed throughout the Early Permian in the Salt Range
region from very cold to cold (the Tobra Formation), to cold-cool (the Dandot
Formation), to cool-warm (the Warchha Sandstone) to warm-hot (the Sardhai
Formation)

Background Knowledge
The name Salt Range was first used by Elphinston, a British envoy to the court of the Kabul. He visited this
territory (1808–1815) and noticed the extraction of salt from the Salt Range. Hence, historically, the Salt
Range derives its name after the occurrence of gigantic deposits of rock salt embedded in the Precambrian
bright red marls that are stratigraphically known as the Salt Range Formation (formerly Punjab Saline
Series). Apart from the easily available roadside geology, here are some prominent gorges cutting the Salt
Range. Among these gorges, the most famous are Khewra, Nilawahan, Warchha, Nammal, and Chichali
gorges, which provide the fantastic locations to study the sedimentary successions (Ghazi, et al., 2014)

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Study Areas:
The starting point of study area is the oldest known basement rock of Pre-Cambrian
age which is exposed as Kirana Hills. The Salt Range represents a longitudinal
east-west trough, bounded on the east by the Jhelum River and on the west by the
River Indus, between 32°15′–33°0′ N and 71°34′ – 73°45′ E. Beyond the River
Indus, it takes a hairpin bend to develop a north-south trend. The east-west
extension is the Salt Range, while the north-south segment is the Trans Indus Salt
Range. It is actuate and convex to the south with a general east-west trend but
turns to the north-west near the western end and to the north-east near the eastern
end. The average elevation of the Salt Range is about 800 m, and the highest peak
is Mount Sakesar which is are almost 1,570 meters height. The east-west extension
is the Salt Range, while the north south segment is the Trans Indus Salt Range The
Salt Range represents geology with richly fossiliferous stratified rocks that include
Cambrian stratigraphy, a Permian carbonate succession with brachiopods, the
Permo-Triassic boundary, the Mianwali formation, formerly known as "Ceratite
Beds" (lower Triassic ammonite bearing beds) and Lower Tertiary marine strata
composed of age diagnostic foraminifera.

Salt Range is divided into three geographical distributions:

1. Eastern Salt range: That ranges from Jhelum to Kalar kahar.
2. Central Salt range: That ranges from Kalar kahar to tilla jogian.
3. Western Salt range: That ranges from Tilla jogian to Indus River.

Objectives
A field trip was arranged by Bahria University on 16 March, 2017. It was a four
day field trip to salt range. We left our university on Thursday at 9:30 am and came
back on Sunday at 5 pm. The main objective of this field was to study the regional
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tectonics, Geology and geomorphological feature of the area. In the field the main
objective was to get familiar with different lithologies and their characteristics,
structures, and enable us for making the observations on the field and to record
them efficiently and to guess about the tectonic setting and of the area by using
these observations.
Tectonic and structures
The story of salt range begins with the collision of Indian plate with Eurasian
lithospheric plates. After the separation from Gondwanaland Indian plate continues
its northward motion towards the Eurasian plate with the rate of about 20 cm/y. And
later on Indian plate collided with the Eurasian plate. This collision resulted in
formation of youngest mountain chain “The Himalayas”. Because the both plates
are continental plates so the collision is followed by series of thrust fault and crustal
shortening. The series of thrust faults is present from north to south having the
older ones in north and youngest one in south and still forces are accumulating that
may give birth to a new thrust fault.
Following is the list of fault running from north to south.
(a). Main karakoram thrust
(b).Main mantle thrust
(c).Main central thrust
(d).Main boundary thrust
(e). Salt range thrust

Salt range is marked by Decolment structure that is very low angle fault i.e. less
than 10 degree. This structure is present because salt is incompetent lithology and
act as lubricant agent for the fault plane. Hence facilitating the motion along the
fault plane. The salt present in salt range marks the early stages of ocean basin.
Geology
The salt range is considered as the sub Himalayas or Himalayan foot hills and
is located between two major thrust faults the MBT and SRT. The eastern boundary
of salt range is marked by Jhelum dextral fault and its western boundary is marked
by Kalabagh sinistral fault.
Field equipments
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There are the following instruments which are essential in almost every field work.
The equipments used in the field work of salt range are:
1. Geological Hammer
2. Measuring Tape
3. Brunton or Sliva Compasses
4. Acid
5. Geological Positioning System
6. Sampling Bags
7. Note book

Day 01 - Kirana Hills:

Late Precambrian
Kirana hills are the rocks of Precambrian age exposed in the Upper Indus Basin of
Punjab province. Kirana hill is said to be the part of Indian shield located in Chiniot
district. An indication of mineralization in the form of quartz veins is also present in
the area. In this area there are highly fractured facies of blackish color without
layering, massive rocks, Agglomerate and basic igneous rock of olivine are found.
The area comprises of igneous and meta sedimentary rocks of the oldest known
basement.

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Day 02 - Khewra Gorge:
Pre cambrian
Age
The assigned age is late Precambrian to early Cambrian.
LOCATION

LAT 32’39’21’N

LONG 73’00’25’S

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Salt range formation
The name salt range formation is given to it after the name of salt range Punjab. It is also known as
Punjab saline series.

Type Locality: punjab Khewra Gorge in the eastern Salt Range has been designated as its type locality.
Lithology: The lower part of the Salt Range Formation is composed of red-coloured gypseous marl with thick
seems of salt while the beds of gypsum, dolomite, greenish clay and low-grade oil shale are the constituents of the
upper part. A highly weathered igneous body known as “Khewra Trap” has been reported from the upper part of the
formation. It consists of highly decomposed radiating needles of a light-colored mineral, probably pyroxene. The red-
colored marl consists chiefly of clay, gypsum and dolomite with occasional grains and crystals of quartz of variable
size. Thick bedded salt shows various shades of pink color and well-developed laminations and colour bandings up
to a meter thick. The gypsum is white to grey in colour. It is about 45m thick, massive and is associated with bluish
grey, clayey gypsum. The dolomite is usually light grey in colour and flaggy.

Features
The salt range formation is composed of red coloured gypseous marl. Marl is composed of angular
grains of calcite, quartz and clays with some amount of gypsum. The gypsum of white to greyish colour and
a thick salt seem is also present. The gypsum was embedded in the marl in the form of lens because of
intense deformation caused due to thrusting. The salt was not seen because it was consumed during the
thrusting and is very susceptible to chemical weathering. The minor amounts of potassium magnesium
sulphate are also present. Billiawala salt member is not exposed in khewra gorge but we observed it at
khewra salt mine

Members

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Marl, gypsum and salt in this formation are named as
(a). Sahwal Marl member
Sahiwal member overlies the bhandarkhas member. It consists of bright and dull marl with irregular gypsum
and dolomite.
(b).Bhandar kas gypsum
Bhandarkhas member overlies the billianwala member. It consists of massive gypsum, dolomite and marl.
(c).Bilianwala salt member
It consists of ferruginous red marl with salt halite.

. Depositional environment
Depositional environment seems to be an enclosed basin in arid conditions.

Cambrian
Jhelum Group
Khewra Sandstone:
Synonym:
The name was originally proposed by Noetling (1894) as ‘Khewra Group’. Prior to that Wynne (1878)
called the formation “Purple Sandstone Series” and this name was continued until recently when the name
of the formation was formalized as “Khewra Sandstone” by the Stratigraphic Committee of Pakistan.
Type Locality: The type locality is in Khewra Gorge near Khewra Town, Salt Range.
Age:The age of Khewra Sandstone is early Cambrian.
Lithology: The formation consists predominantly of purple to brown and yellowish brown fine grained sandstone.
The lowermost part of the formation is red flaggy shale. The sandstone is mostly thick bedded to massive. The
Khewra Sandstone is widely distributed throughout the Salt Range.

Location:
LAT 32 °39’ 52’’ N.

LONG 73 ° 00’ 15”S.

Contacts: Upper contact is with Kussak Formation which is gradational and lower contact with Salt Range
Formation.

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