Tectonophysics 838 (2022) 229472

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Tectonophysics
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Evolution of the Western Ghats: Constraints from receiver function imaging

and harmonic decomposition
Padma Rao B. a, *, Ravi Kumar M. b
a
National Centre for Earth Science Studies, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Govt. of India, Thiruvananthapuram, India
b
CSIR-National Geophysical Research Institute, Hyderabad, India

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Keywords: The Western Ghats (WG), with an average elevation of ~1.2 km, is one of the greatest escarpments that spans
Receiver functions ~1500 km parallel to the west coast of India. It is a mosaic of disparate geological formations having distinct
Harmonic decomposition structural and physical characteristics. In this study, the lithospheric structure in terms of crustal thickness, sub-
Moho
Moho layer and deformation along and across the WG are investigated using receiver functions (RFs) at 30
LVL
Rifting
broadband seismological stations. Techniques like slant stacking, common conversion point imaging and har­
Western Ghats monic decomposition are applied to the RFs. Results reveal a large crustal thickness of ~45 km in the central part
of the WG, which decreases to ~39 km in the southern and ~ 37 km in the northern parts, in conformity with the
geology. The variation in crustal thickness beneath the WG could be due to the effect of hotspot impingement and
subsequent rifting mechanism. Further, the RFs reveal a strong sub-Moho low velocity layer (LVL) along the WG.
This observation gains support from a previous inference of a low-density zone in the uppermost mantle beneath
the west coast of India. Harmonic decomposition of the RFs reveals that this LVL is anisotropic, while the Moho is
dipping/ anisotropic in nature. The trend of the symmetry axis of anisotropy (of the LVL) varies from 58.2∘ to
134.4∘, almost perpendicular to the west coast of India. We postulate that the origin of this LVL can be linked to
different rifting episodes along the west coast of India, since LVLs are manifestations of thermal/chemical
anomalies. These results support the rifting model proposed for the evolution of WG.

1. Introduction
The Western Ghats (WG), known as the Sahyadri mountain range, is
a coast parallel upliftment along the passive western continental margin
of India. It has an average elevation of ~1.2 km and extends ~1500 km
in the NNW-SSE direction from 8.1∘N to 21.2∘N. The WG is a mosaic of
diverse geological formations having different physical and structural
characteristics, namely the Southern Granulite Terrain (SGT) in the
south, Western Dharwar Craton (WDC) in the middle and the Deccan
Volcanic Province (DVP) in the north. Globally, studies aimed at deci­
phering the evolution of passive continental margins resulted in many
different mechanisms or models. The most popular among these are,
crustal thinning due to rifting (McKenzie, 1978), magmatic underplating
(Cox, 1980; Devey and Lightfoot, 1986), transient thermal effects
(Cochran, 1983), extensional and flexural unloading (Buck, 1986;
Weissel and Karner, 1989), denudational isostasy (Gilchrist and Sum­
merfield, 1994; Widdowson and Cox, 1996; Gunnell, 2001) and flexural
response to denudation (Gunnell and Fleitout, 2000). According to
Gunnell (2001), the causes for plateau uplift can be basically divided
into three categories: (i) density reduction due to an isostatic response,
mechanically or thermally, (ii) crustal buoyancy owing to an increase in
lithospheric thickness and (iii) plastic necking because of stretching and
asymmetrical denudation of the lithosphere on both sides of the scarp,
known as lithospheric flexure. In the Indian context, several studies
attempted to understand the evolution of WG. Based on geomorpho­
logical analysis, Radhakrishna (1993) suggested that the WG is formed
due to Cenozoic rifting and down faulting. Later, a model of rift flank
upliftment proposed by Matmon et al. (2002), corroborated these find­
ings. Recently, a multistage model was invoked to explain the evolution
of WG based on the geophysical and geological characteristics (Sinha-
Roy, 2018). This model linked its evolution to two rifting episodes, i.e.,
rifting of greater India from Madagascar at ~91 Ma due to the Marion
hotspot and from Seychelles and Mascarene plateau at ~65 Ma due to
the Reunion hotspot. Further, from palaeomagnetic analysis of deep drill
samples from a part of the Koyna region within the WG, Radhakrishna
et al. (2019) inferred that igneous underplating, extension/rifting and

* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: padmarao.india@gmail.com (P.R. B.).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2022.229472
Received 12 July 2021; Received in revised form 9 June 2022; Accepted 29 June 2022
Available online 9 July 2022
0040-1951/© 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
P.R. B. and R.K. M. Tectonophysics 838 (2022) 229472

thermal collapse and subsidence of the lithosphere are the key mecha­
nisms for the evolution of WG. Apart from these studies, different
geological and geophysical studies have been undertaken to decipher
the evolution of WG (e.g., Kaila et al., 1981; Tiwari and Mishra, 1999;
Gunnell and Fleitout, 2000; Tiwari et al., 2006; Campanile et al., 2008;
Arora et al., 2012; Rai et al., 2013; Gupta et al., 2018). However, a
conclusive explanation still remains ambiguous.
Geological processes like erosion, sedimentation and uplift affect the
Earth at different scales, from the surface to deep interior. Since these
alter the lithospheric properties, it is important to decipher the sub-
surface structure to understand the geodynamics and evolution of a re­
gion. Receiver function (RF) analysis is one of the best tools that is
extensively used to investigate the seismic structure of the crust and
upper mantle (Kind and Yuan, 2011). Thus, in the present study, we
decipher the crustal, sub-crustal discontinuities and anisotropy beneath
the WG through harmonic decomposition of RFs and interpret the results
in terms of possible causes for its evolution. Most of the receiver function
studies extract the isotropic, 1D structure utilizing the radial compo­
nents of the RFs obtained by deconvolution of the radial components
with the vertical components of teleseismic P- waveforms. However,
important, second order effects like heterogeneity and anisotropy of the
sub-surface layers, can be extracted from the analysis of radial RFs
together with the transverse RFs. In this study, we use both these com­
ponents to parameterize the crustal and uppermost mantle layering.

2. Data and methodology

2.1. Waveform data

In the present study, three component teleseismic waveform data

recorded at 30 broadband seismological stations sampling the WG along
and across the strike (Fig. 1), are used for receiver function analysis. The
data sets have been collated from various organizations like the National
Centre for Earth Science Studies (NCESS), National Centre for Seis­
mology (NCS), Institute of Land and Disaster Management (ILDM) and
National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI). The codes, geograph­
ical locations and time period of operation of these stations are given in
Table 1. Further, the waveforms of earthquakes having magnitude >5.0,
in the epicentral distance range of 30∘ to 95∘, and signal to noise ratio
(SNR) ≥ 2.5 are only selected for analysis. These criteria resulted in
38,889 three component waveforms from 4041 earthquakes recorded at
30 broadband seismological stations.
Fig. 1. Location of broadband seismological stations (inverted triangles) whose
data are used in the present study. Tectonic units: SGT – Southern Granulite
Terrain (Brown), WDC – Western Dharwar Craton (Yellowgreen), DVP – Deccan
Volcanic Province (Light‑gold), CG – Closepet Granite (Slategray), EDC –
Eastern Dharwar Craton (Gold), CB – Cuddapah Basin (Pink), EGMB – Eastern
Ghats Mobile Belt (Light-green) and WG – Western Ghats (Cross-pattern). Inset
at the bottom indicates an enlarged portion of the region containing the ILDM
stations. (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the
reader is referred to the web version of this article.)

slowness, the amount being proportional to depth. This moveout

2.2. Receiver functions
correction has been applied by considering a reference slowness of 6.4
s/∘, corresponding to an epicentral distance of 67∘ (Kind and Vinnik,
The lithospheric structure beneath a seismological station can be
1988), using the IASP91 model. Since the phases reflected from the free
determined using receiver functions (RFs). When the primary (P) wave
surface have opposite moveouts compared to the direct conversions, it is
is incident upon a seismic discontinuity in the crust or mantle, it gets
necessary to apply the corrections individually for each type of wave.
converted into an S wave (i.e., Ps). In order to isolate the converted
Also, the difference in moveout slopes provides a simple criterion to
energy, the ZNE components are rotated into a ray coordinate system
differentiate the converted and multiple phases. Later, the bad quality
(LQT) where, the L component is in the direction of the primary wave (i.
PRFs are discarded by visual quality checking, leading to 9252 good
e., P wave), the Q component is in the direction of the SV wave and the T
quality PRFs from 3020 earthquakes, at 30 broadband seismological
component is in the direction of the SH wave (Vinnik, 1977). Further,
stations (Fig. S1). The moveout corrected PRFs at the individual stations
the source equalized SV and SH receiver functions are obtained by
clearly reveal the Moho conversions (Ps) and the corresponding P and S
deconvolving the L component from the Q and T components respec­
multiples (i.e., PpPs and PpSs+PsPs). Further, the PRFs in the slowness
tively (Langston, 1979; Owens et al., 1984). This can simply be done by
range of 4.44 s/∘ to 8.84 s/∘ are sorted in 25 narrow slowness bins and
spectral division in the frequency domain. Though, the RFs are not
stacked in each bin, to enhance the coherence of converted phases as
sensitive to the absolute velocities within the layers, these can strongly
well as multiples. Examples of Q-component PRF traces from 2 stations,
constrain the velocity contrast across the discontinuities and their
sampling different parts of the WG are shown in Fig. 2. The Q-compo­
depths. In the present study, an extended-time multitaper frequency
nent PRF traces from other stations are shown in Fig. S2.
domain cross-correlation receiver function (ET MTRF) technique
(Helffrich, 2006) is adopted to calculate the PRFs. The converted phases
(e.g., Ps phases) originating at different depths arrive at different times 2.3. Estimation of Moho depth and Poisson’s ratio (H–K analysis)
with respect to the direct P phase; the shallower conversions have
smaller and the deeper ones have larger differential times. However, the For the estimation of Poisson’s ratio (σ ) and the Moho depth (ZM)
arrival times of the Ps conversions from a given interface depend on the beneath each station, the grid search approach of Zhu and Kanamori

2
P.R. B. and R.K. M. Tectonophysics 838 (2022) 229472

Table 1 wave velocity extracted from CRUST1.0 (Laske et al., 2013) based on the
Details of broadband seismological stations whose data are utilized in the pre­ location of the station (Table S1) is used to calculate the Moho depth or
sent study. crustal thickness (ZM) beneath each station. The obtained crustal
S. Station Lat Long Elevation Data Period thickness and Poisson’s ratio values vary from 34.8 to 50.0 km and 0.20
No. Code (∘N) (∘E) (m) to 0.29 (Table S1).
02–11–2018 to 09-
1 AGMB 13.507 75.095 659 08-2020 2.4. Common conversion point (CCP) images
04-10-2013 to 05-08-
2 ALDI 09.700 77.031 767 2016
In order to capture the crustal thickness variations along and across
04-10-2013 to 05-08-
3 CTRA 09.815 77.217 878 2016 the WG, we generated common conversion point (CCP) images along 4
05-10-2010 to 28-07- profiles, ab and cd (across WG), ef and gh (along WG) (Fig. 3) using good
4 ERD 11.351 77.634 143 2014 quality PRFs. The profiles have been selected based on the piercing
02–01–2005 to points of the Ps phase, at all the stations, at a depth of 50 km (Fig. 3). To
5 GOA 15.491 73.824 58 30–01–2017
02–11–2018 to 08-
construct the velocity model required for this exercise, the velocities
6 JODA 15.176 74.490 588 03-2021 below the station locations are extracted from CRUST1.0 (Laske et al.,
05-04-2013 to 28-07- 2013) down to a depth of Moho and from AK135 model below it
7 KAL 11.071 77.446 316 2014 (Kennett et al., 1995). This station specific model is utilized to back-
29-09-2010 to 28-07-
project the PRF amplitudes to depth along the ray path, by assuming
8 KAR 10.914 78.044 49 2014
04-10-2013 to 04-07- that all the energy arises from a Ps conversion. Later, the back-projected
9 KLMV 09.794 76.944 761 2016 amplitudes are binned in 2 × 2 km grids at various offsets and depths, to
08–11–2018 to 04- enhance the spatial coherence of the converted phases. The amplitudes
10 KNUR 11.872 75.588 44 03-2021 in the corresponding bins are stacked and projected onto a 2D reference
02–01–2005 to 03-
11 KOD 10.230 77.470 2345 02-2008
plane whose strike coincides with the chosen profile. The summed am­
01-02-2013 to 31-12- plitudes in the corresponding bins are plotted with a colour scheme
12 KOLH 16.834 74.281 593 2014 where blue indicates positive polarity and red represents negative po­
16-09-2011 to 29-07- larity. The CCP images along the 4 profiles are shown in Fig. 3. Plotting
13 MET 11.279 76.973 343 2014
of the Moho depth values obtained from H–K analysis on the corre­
02–11–2018 to 08-
14 MGLI 16.172 74.126 900 03-2021 sponding CCP images reveals a good correlation. The images along (ef
02–01–2005 to 30- and gh) and across the WG (ab and cd) clearly indicate variations in
15 MNGR 12.940 74.820 31 07-2014 crustal thickness.
26-09-2010 to 28-07-
16 NAM 11.185 78.187 93 2014
29-09-2010 to 13-03-
2.5. Harmonic decomposition
17 NAN 11.986 76.873 681 2014
10-10-2010 to 30-07- In general, for horizontal interfaces associated with a purely
18 OTY 11.489 76.649 1837 2014 isotropic structure, the converted energy is present only on the P and SV
11-10-2010 to 29-07-
components of the receiver functions. However, in case of dipping and/
19 PAL 10.530 77.527 227 2014
07-04-2000 to 02-03- or anisotropic interfaces, some of the Ps converted energy appears on the
20 PCH 10.530 76.340 60 2017 T-RFs, in view of the P to SH conversions (Levin and Park, 1997, 1998).
05-04-2013 to 30-07- In case of dipping interfaces, the Ps converted energy on the T-RFs
21 PKD 10.877 76.443 92 2014 changes polarity twice in a full back azimuthal span (i.e., a two-lobed
27-04-2014 to 05-02-
22 PMBA 09.388 77.156 994 2015
polarity flip). However, in the presence of anisotropy with a hexago­
24–01–2009 to nal symmetry and a horizontal symmetry axis, the Ps converted energy
23 POO 18.529 73.849 560 30–01–2017 on the T-RFs changes polarity four times in a full back azimuthal span (i.
09–11–2018 to 06- e., a four-lobed polarity flip). However, a combination of two- and four-
24 SBMN 12.660 75.618 134 03-2021
lobed polarity occurs in case of anisotropy with a plunging axis of
10–11–2018 to 06-
25 SDPR 14.333 74.760 535 03-2021 symmetry and/or a dipping isotropic interface. One way to distinguish
26-03-2011 to 28-07- between the two scenarios is by examination of energy on the T-RFs at
26 TRI 10.666 78.741 114 2014 the time of 0 s. The dipping isotropic interface shows a change in po­
27–01–2009 to larity associated with the Ps phase on the T-RFs accompanied by an
27 TRVM 08.508 76.958 64 30–01–2017
12-05-2013 to 31-12-
arrival with opposite polarity at time 0 s. This energy is not present in
28 VAL 20.217 73.447 277 2014 the case of anisotropy with a plunging axis of symmetry. However, this
05-03-2014 to 31-07- analysis becomes ambiguous in the presence of multiple layers, showing
29 VLKV 09.528 77.112 903 2016 dip and anisotropic effects, since multiple arrivals may interfere at zero-
09-04-2013 to 30-07-
time. A technique to decompose the receiver functions into back
30 VYT 11.663 76.111 738 2014
azimuthal harmonics i.e., the harmonic decomposition technique
developed by Bianchi et al. (2010) can overcome the limitations of vi­
(2000) has been applied to the PRFs. In this approach, the pair of sual analysis of amplitude and polarity changes in a given time window
Poisson’s ratio (σ) and Moho depth (ZM) that maximizes the summation and enable characterization of the crustal and uppermost mantle
of the amplitude of Ps + PpPs-(PpSs+PsPs) at the corresponding pre­ structure in terms of anisotropy and dipping nature of the interfaces.
dicted times, is chosen as the optimal one for that station. Clear Moho This method involves extraction of the back azimuthal harmonics from
multiples (PpPs and PpSs+PsPs) at the stations yielded well-constrained RF data as a function of the incoming P-wavefield direction. RFs can be
estimates of σ and ZM (as demonstrated from the low standard errors of represented as a scaled sum of coskϕ and sinkϕ at every time step, where
estimations). In this procedure, the estimation of the depth to the Moho k is the harmonic degree and ϕ is the back azimuth. This technique
beneath the station majorly depends on the mean crustal P wave velocity performs stacking of Q- and T-RFs with a phase shift of +Π/2k in back
(Chevrot and van der Hilst, 2000). In the present study, a mean crustal P azimuth to extract the signal related to anisotropy and/or dipping in­
terfaces (modelled part). The stacking of Q- and T-RFs with a phase shift

3
P.R. B. and R.K. M.
Fig. 2. Example Q(SV) component P-receiver functions stacked in narrow slowness bins and the corresponding differential slowness stacks. Summation traces
moveout corrected for converted (bottom) and multiple (top) phases are shown in the top panel. Red and blue shaded regions indicate the Moho and LVL and the
corresponding multiples. (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)
of -Π/2k represents the unmodeled part, that supresses the effects of
anisotropy and/or dipping structures. In the present analysis, we limit to
the first three harmonic degrees i.e., k = 0, 1 and 2. Therefore, PRFs are
decomposed into five gathers i.e., k = 0 term (constant term), k = 1 term
(cosϕ and sinϕ) and k = 2 terms (cos2ϕ and sin2ϕ). Here, the constant
term represents the bulk isotropic seismic velocity variation with depth.
In general, since the flat interfaces in an isotropic medium do not
contribute to the T-RFs, the signals from them are visible only in the
constant term i.e., a simple stack of Q-RFs over all the back azimuths.
The first harmonic terms show a back azimuthal variation with a 2Π
periodicity and the second harmonic terms show a back azimuthal
variation with a Π periodicity. The first order terms are primarily sen­
sitive to dipping interfaces and/or anisotropy with a plunging axis of
symmetry and expected to produce a two-lobed periodicity (Maupin and
Park, 2007; Piana Agostinetti et al., 2011; Audet, 2015). However, the
second order terms are sensitive to anisotropic layers with a horizontal
symmetry axis and produce a four-lobed periodicity (Maupin and Park,
2007; Shiomi and Park, 2008; Bianchi et al., 2010; Audet, 2015; Cossette
et al., 2016). Moreover, anisotropy with a vertical axis of hexagonal
symmetry cannot affect the first and second order terms (Tarayoun et al.,
2017). In the present study, we initially analysed the rose plots of T-RF
energy in specified time windows and checked the back azimuthal
coverage and polarity flipping. Further, those stations having a good
back azimuthal coverage are only considered for harmonic decomposi­
tion analysis. These criteria resulted in a choice of 14 out of the 30
stations. Examples of Q- and T-RFs at stations TRVM, POO along with
4
Tectonophysics 838 (2022) 229472
the rose diagrams of T-RF energy in selected time windows are shown in
Figs. 4, 5 and the corresponding harmonic decomposition along with the
particle motion and least square fits are shown in Fig. 6.
3. Results and discussion
The PRFs at 30 broadband seismological stations indicate a variable
crustal thickness along and across the WG (Fig. 3). The times of the Ps
converted phases from the Moho range from ~3.5 s to 5.8 s among the
stations. The crustal thickness values determined from H–K analysis vary
from 34.8 km to 50 km (Fig. S4 and Table S1). Images of the crust
revealed by the CCP stacks along profiles ef and gh, clearly indicate a
significant variation in the crustal thickness, akin to the results from H–K
analysis (Fig. 3). Interestingly, the crust is shallow (~39 km and ~37
km) in the southern and northern parts of the WG, compared to that in
the central part (~45 km). The crustal thickness is in conformity with
the geological units along the WG, being less beneath the southern SGT
and DVP, compared to that in the WDC. These results agree with those
from previous studies (e.g., Singh et al., 2017). Profile ab across the WG
reveals a variation in the Moho (Fig. 3), with the crustal thickness
increasing from ~39.8 km to ~43 km. Further, for a better under­
standing of the variation in crustal thickness across the WG, we refer to
the CCP image along the cd profile, traversing across it. Results from this
profile also reveal a variation in the Moho i.e., from ~48.6 km to ~43
km (Fig. 3). These results clearly indicate that the crustal thickness
beneath the WG is distinct from the surrounding SGT region. Our results
P.R. B. and R.K. M. Tectonophysics 838 (2022) 229472

Fig. 3. Common conversion point (CCP) images along the four profiles. Red crosses in ab, cd, ef and gh profiles indicate the Moho depth values obtained from the
Zhu and Kanamori (2000) technique. Black dashed lines indicate the LVL, marked based on CCP images. (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure
legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)

5
P.R. B. and R.K. M. Tectonophysics 838 (2022) 229472

Fig. 4. Examples of Q(SV) (top left panel) and T(SH) component (top right panel) P-receiver functions at TRVM station without moveout correction, stacked in
narrow back azimuthal bins. Summation trace is shown in the top panel. Solid and dotted lines indicate Moho and LVL respectively. Rose diagrams of transverse
component P-receiver functions as a function of back azimuth, corresponding to the Moho (bottom left panel) and LVL (bottom right panel). (For interpretation of the
references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)

gain support from those of the previous studies (Chand and Sub­
rahmanyam, 2003; Tiwari et al., 2006; Singh et al., 2017). A thinner
crust beneath the southern and northern parts of the WG compared to
the central part, may be due to the impingement of the head of the
Marion hotspot beneath the southern part of WG and the Reunion hot­
spot beneath the northern part. Moreover, there is no major influence of
the hotspot heads beneath the central part of WG where we observed a
thicker crust compared to the southern and northern parts. Further, a
plot of the plume affected regions in the western part of India, extracted
from Raval and Veeraswamy (2003) (Fig. 8) supports the results from
the present study. Also, the dykes along the south-western margin of WG
have been dated at 90 Ma (Radhakrishna et al., 1994, 1999) and related
to the Marion hotspot, while the Deccan flood basalts are linked to the
thermo-magmatic Reunion plume interaction at 65 Ma (Courtillot et al.,
2000). These surface signatures at the southern and northern parts of
WG indicate the influence of hotspots on the Moho and the crust. Results
from this study corroborate an alteration of the crustal thickness due to
hotspots and subsequent rifting (Fig. 8).
Further, at most of the stations, we observed a strong negative phase
just after the Ps conversion from the Moho (Figs. 2 and S2). The time of
this negative phase varies from 4.5 s to 7.9 s. This signature is also
observed in the CCP stacks especially beneath the WG (Fig. 3). To
confirm whether this phase is from a low velocity layer (LVL) beneath
the Moho, we computed the differential slowness stacks (Vinnik et al.,
2005), which distinguish converted phases from the multiples and other
artefacts. This is due to the fact that the differential slowness is negative
for converted phases and positive for multiples. These results clearly
validate that the negative phase just after the Moho is a conversion from
an LVL(Figs. 2 and 3). Generally, LVLs are thermal or chemical anom­
alies originating from regional or local sources. The major cause

6
P.R. B. and R.K. M. Tectonophysics 838 (2022) 229472

Fig. 5. Examples of Q(SV) (top left panel) and T(SH) component (top right panel) P-receiver functions at POO station, without moveout correction, stacked in narrow
back azimuthal bins. Summation trace is shown in the top panel. Solid and dotted lines indicate Moho and LVL respectively. Rose diagrams of transverse component
P-receiver functions as a function of back azimuth, corresponding to the Moho (bottom left panel) and LVL (bottom right panel). (For interpretation of the references
to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)

responsible for an LVL beneath the Moho is linked to thermal effects like
partial melting (Kumar et al., 2002; Benz and McCarthy, 1994). It is
postulated that even small quantities (<1–2%) of melts may cause a
substantial decrease in seismic velocities (Mavko, 1980). Also, carbon­
ates can generate melt (expressed as an LVL) by decreasing the solidus
temperature (Presnall and Gudfinnson, 2005). An LVL beneath the WG
may not be linked only to partial melting beneath the DVP since this LVL
extends to the south of the DVP region too, i.e., we observed this LVL
even beneath the southern parts of DVP region (WDC and SGT). More­
over, this signature is not clear and not resolved properly beneath re­
gions away from the west coast (WG) i.e., after 300 km in profiles ab and
cd. These results indicate the existence of an LVL all along the WG. This
LVL could be associated with rifting of the Indian sub-continent, since
this feature is majorly along the continental margin.
To understand the nature of Moho and the sub-Moho LVL along the
WG, we applied the harmonic decomposition method to RFs at stations
with a good back azimuthal coverage. The back azimuthal stack sections
of the PRFs and rose diagrams of the T-RF amplitudes in the selected
time windows (i.e., at the Moho and LVL) are used to check the suit­
ability. The time windows are selected based on the Ps conversion time
of the Moho and the LVL just after the Moho, with an offset of ±0.2 s i.e.,
the time window starts from 0.2 s before the peak amplitude of Ps and
ends at 0.2 s after the peak amplitude of Ps in case of the Moho and the
peak amplitude of negative phase just after the Moho is considered as
the reference in case of the LVL. The PRFs at 14 out of the 30 stations
satisfied this criterion. Later, we analysed the Q-, T-RFs and rose dia­
grams of the T-RFs in the selected time windows, in detail, to decipher
the nature of the discontinuity based on the polarity flip. Results from

7
P.R. B. and R.K. M. Tectonophysics 838 (2022) 229472

Fig. 6. Examples of computed harmonic decomposition

components (constant, K = 1: cosϕ, sinϕ and K = 2: cos2ϕ,
sin2ϕ) for stations TRVM (first row panels) and POO (third
row panels). Solid and dotted lines in top panels indicate the
Moho and LVL respectively. Particle motion defined using
the K = 1 harmonic components for the Moho and LVL, for
stations TRVM (second row panels) and POO (fourth row
panels). Red lines in the bottom panels indicate the least
square fit line of the particle motion. (For interpretation of
the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is
referred to the web version of this article.)

8
P.R. B. and R.K. M. Tectonophysics 838 (2022) 229472

the rose diagrams of the T-RF amplitudes at the Moho reveal a two lobed
polarity flip at 6 stations namely AGMB, ALDI, CTRA, MNGR, NAN,
TRVM and a mix of two and four lobed polarity flips at the remaining 8
stations namely ERD, GOA, JODA, KAR, NAM, PAL, POO, TRI. The two
lobed polarity flip at 6 stations may indicate a dipping isotropic Moho
and the combination of two and four lobed flip at 8 stations indicates
anisotropy with a plunging axis of symmetry or a dipping isotropic
interface. We analysed the energy at zero time for the stations where we
observed such two and four lobed polarity flip, to distinguish between
anisotropy with a plunging axis of symmetry or a dipping isotropic
interface. Results reveal energy with an opposite polarity at 0 s, with
respect to the Ps energy (Fig. S3), which may indicate a dipping Moho.
However, as discussed in the harmonic decomposition section, this
analysis becomes ambiguous when there are multiple interfaces at
depth, since multiple zero-time arrivals may interfere with each other.
Further, for a detailed investigation of the nature of the identified
discontinuity, five components of the hormonic decomposition at each
station i.e., k = 0 (constant term), k = 1 (cosϕ and sinϕ terms) and k = 2
(cos2ϕ and sin2ϕ terms) are measured. Later, the amplitudes on the 5
components within the selected time windows along with the number of
loops within it (i.e., Moho) are analysed. This analysis indicates domi­
nance of energy on the k = 1 & 2 terms (cosϕ; sinϕ and cos2ϕ; sin2ϕ
components) in the time window corresponding to the Moho. Moreover,
there is no significant energy in the unmodelled harmonic stacks, which
argues that the two lobed and/or mix of two and four lobed signals at the
Moho may not be caused by a dip in the Moho (Liu and Park, 2017), but
due to anisotropy. These results along with the energy analysis of T-RFs
show that the Moho along the WG is either dipping and/or anisotropic in
nature. Further, to calculate the dip direction and/or trend of the sym­
metry axis of anisotropy, we estimate the linear trend of the particle
motion of the K = 1 terms within the selected time window by a least
square fit. These results indicate that the dip direction of the Moho (from
north) and/or trend of anisotropy all along the WG varies from 58.0∘ to
106.8∘ in the southern part, 38.6∘ to 122.7∘ in the central part and 148.2∘
in the northern part.
Further, results from rose diagrams corresponding to the LVL clearly
indicate a four lobed polarity flip at 3 stations namely AGMB, GOA,
TRVM, which suggests anisotropy with a horizontal symmetry axis.
Further, a combination of two and four lobed polarity flip observed at
the remaining 11 stations namely ALDI, CTRA, ERD, JODA, KAR,
MNGR, NAM, NAN, PAL, POO, TRI, reveals anisotropy with a plunging
axis of symmetry and/or a dipping isotropic interface. Further, we
analysed the energies on the K = 1 and 2 terms corresponding to the LVL
and observed a dominance of energy on the K = 1 term and no signifi­
cant energy on the unmodelled components. These results along with
the energies on the T-RFs within the selected time window of LVL
indicate anisotropy with a plunging axis of symmetry all along the WG.
The calculated trend of the apparent symmetry axes of anisotropy from
the least square fit of the particle motion within the selected time win­
dow, varies from 58.2∘ to 134.4∘. Specifically, these values vary from
58.2∘ to 134.4∘ in the southern part, 60.2∘ to 122.7∘ in the central part
and 107.7∘ in the northern part of WG. The strong negative phase just
after the Ps converted phase and the harmonic decomposition results of
this phase at most of the stations (Figs. 4, 7) suggest an anisotropic LVL

Fig. 7. Map showing the least fit line of the particle motion calculated using the K = 1 terms of the harmonic analysis for 14 stations, for the Moho (left panel) and
LVL (right panel). Length of the bars is proportional to the maximum elongation of particle motion and angle represents the dip direction or trend of the symmetry
axes of the Moho (left panel) and trend of the symmetry axes of anisotropy in the LVL (right panel). Blue and brown colour lines in the left panel indicate a two lobed
polarity flip of amplitude on T-RFs with the dominance of amplitude on the k = 1 terms and combination of two and four lobed polarity flip with amplitude at 0 s,
dominance of amplitude on the k = 1 term respectively. Blue and brown colour lines in the right panel indicate four lobed polarity flip of T-RFs amplitude with the
dominance of amplitude on the k = 1 terms and combination of two & four lobed polarity flip with the dominance of amplitude on the k = 1 term respectively. (For
interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)

9
P.R. B. and R.K. M. Tectonophysics 838 (2022) 229472

beneath the Moho along the Western Ghats. The trend of the apparent
symmetry axes of anisotropy within this layer is almost perpendicular to
the strike of the WG. A sub-Moho LVL beneath the WG is also reported in
previous studies (Tiwari et al., 2006). Also, such a layer in the shallow
upper mantle beneath the DVP has been documented (Kumar and
Mohan, 2005). The observed coast perpendicular trend of the apparent
symmetry axis of anisotropy within the LVL also supports its rifting
origin. Lithospheric extension or stretching associated with the rifting
process aligns the anisotropic minerals and/or flow in the direction of
extension and this process produces anisotropy parallel to the exten­
sion/stretching direction (Vinnik et al., 1992). This result also correlates
with the observations from other continental rifting models (Werner and
Kahle, 1980).
The two major hypotheses proposed to explain the evolution of WG
are directly linked to the lithospheric structure. The first one is the
buoyancy model of the crust which postulates existence of extra mass
either at the surface or at the base of the crust in terms of underplating.
The second hypothesis is the isostatic model, which requires a decrease
in density, primarily due to mass reduction either by local heat sources
or the effect of erosion. However, the crustal thickness values and dip­
ping/anisotropic nature of the Moho derived from this study do not
support these hypotheses because the crustal thickness is not uniform
along the WG and there is no significant correlation between the
elevation of WG and crustal thickness. In contrast, we observe a strong
lateral variation along the WG. As explained in the above paragraph, this
variation could be due to alteration owing to interaction with the hot­
spots and subsequent rifting. Further, the anisotropic LVL beneath the
Moho with the coast perpendicular trend of the symmetry axes all along
the WG also supports the rifting mechanism. These results corroborate
with the results of Tiwari et al. (2006). Their observations of varied
crustal thickness along the WG, negative isostatic anomalies varying
from − 40 to − 70 mGals, along with a negative Ps phase just after the
Moho conversion can be attributed to a sub-Moho LVL. Further, they
interpreted that these could be related to a rifting mechanism. Presence
of low-density material in the upper mantle level (e.g., Pandey et al.,
1996) is well explained by the negative isostatic anomalies over the WG.
Therefore, the results from the present study in terms of variable crustal
structure and anisotropic LVL vindicate rifting as a plausible mechanism
for the evolution of WG.
The west coast of Indian sub-continent is a passive margin that is
exposed to multi stage rifting episodes: (i) due to the Marion hotspot
activity, the greater India (the Indian sub-continent with Seychelles and
the Mascarene plateau) got separated from Madagascar between 91 and
83 Ma ago (Molnar et al., 1988; Storey et al., 1995; Torsvik et al., 2000),
(ii) due to the Reunion hotspot activity, the Indian sub-continent broke
away from Seychelles and the Mascarene plateau between 66 and 65 Ma
(White and McKenzie, 1989; Vandamme et al., 1991; Ramana et al.,
2015). The significant variation in the crustal thickness near or at the
coast i.e., beneath the WG, altered by the rifting mechanism engenders
the possibility of block faulting and vertical tectonics in the upliftment
of WG. Results from geomorphological studies (e.g., Radhakrishna,
1993) also indicate that the WG is formed due to Cenozoic uplifts, rifting
and down faulting. Lithospheric stretching in rift zones reduces the
thickness of the crust, causes the surface to subside and enables for­
mation of extensional basins (McKenzie, 1978). Faults generated due to
extension may create space for sediment deposition in the brittle upper
crust and the lower crust could accommodate the necking by a ductile
mechanism. In such regions, the crustal material is replaced with the
high density upper mantle, which creates subsidence by negative
buoyancy. Moreover, the rift flanks far from the tectonically extended
areas may encounter subsidiary uplift due to the long wavelength lith­
ospheric necking (Fig. 8). Further, the study of Osmundsen and Redfield
(2011) suggests that the crustal taper linked to rifting and its strength
gradient has significant controls on the topography of the escarpment.
The crustal taper could be due to thinning of the crust by the effect of
detachment related extension, whose hinterland is the continental part
with a great upliftment at the edges (Osmundsen and Redfield, 2011). In
this case, the position of crustal thinning will depend on the distance to
the continent-ocean boundary that leads to a taper-break where the
thickness of the crust is less than ~10 km, which is inversely propor­
tional to the elevation of the escarpment (Davis and Kusznir, 2002;
Osmundsen and Redfield, 2011). In the case of WG, if the break in the

Fig. 8. Right Panel: The red shaded areas indicate the probable zones of influence of plume heads. Tectonic units: SGT – Southern Granulite Terrain (Brown), WDC –
Western Dharwar Craton (Yellow green), DVP – Deccan Volcanic Province (Light gold), CG – Closepet Granite (Slate gray), EDC – Eastern Dharwar Craton (Gold), CB
– Cuddapah Basin (Pink), EGMB – Eastern Ghats Mobile Belt (Light green) and WG – Western Ghats (Cross-pattern). Left Panel: Cartoon diagram showing the possible
alterations in the Moho, rifting process and the corresponding upliftment due to the influence of plumes/hotspots. The direction (red line) in the circle indicates the
trend of the symmetric axes of anisotropy in the LVL, extracted from the harmonic decomposition results. (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure
legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)

10
P.R. B. and R.K. M.
crustal taper is assumed to be at the Laccadive ridge i.e., at a distance of
~300 km, an elevation of 1.65 km is predicted based on the relation
derived by Osmundsen and Redfield (2011) (Sinha-Roy, 2018). This
corroborates well with the present day average elevation of ~1.2 km for
the WG. These results agree with the taper related escarpments of
similar ages, for instance, the 85–65 Ma old rifted continental margins of
Australia and Greenland. Thus, the rifting theory well explains the origin
of WG and mostly supports a multi-stage development.
4. Conclusions
(i) A clear change in the crustal thickness is observed along the WG.
The crustal thickness increases from ~39 km to ~45 km from
south to the centre of the WG and then decreases towards the
north, from ~45 km to ~37 km. The variations corroborate well
with the geological units, regions of interaction of the hotspots
and the subsequent rifting phenomenon.
(ii) A strong negative Ps conversion following the Moho phase is
indicative of a sub-Moho LVL beneath the WG.
(iii) Harmonic decomposition of receiver functions reveals a dipping/
anisotropic nature of the Moho with the dip direction or trend of
the symmetry axis varying from 38.6 ∘ to 148.2∘ all along the WG.
Also, the LVL is found to be anisotropic with a plunging axis of
symmetry. The trend of symmetry axes varies from 58.2∘ to
134.4∘, almost perpendicular to the west coast of the Indian sub-
continent.
(iv) The crustal thickness variations, with dipping/anisotropic Moho
and anisotropic sub-Moho LVL shed light on the different rifting
episodes along the west coast of India, which could be the key
causative factor for the evolution of WG.
CRediT authorship contribution statement
Padma Rao B: Conceptualization, Data curation, Formal analysis,
Investigation, Methodology, Validation, Visualization, Writing – orig­
inal draft, Writing – review & editing. Ravi Kumar M: Validation,
Writing – review & editing.
Declaration of Competing Interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial
interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence
the work reported in this paper.
Acknowledgements
We sincerely acknowledge the Ministry of Earth Sciences, Govern­
ment of India for supporting this project under the core program of
National Centre for Earth Science Studies (NCESS). We thank the Na­
tional Center for Seismology, National Geophysical Research Institute
and Institute of Land & Disaster Management for sharing the data. We
are grateful to Dipankar Saikia for the RF and HD codes. All the figures
are made using the GMT software (Wessel and Smith, 1995). We
sincerely thank the reviewers for their thoughtful comments, which
significantly improved the quality of the manuscript.
Appendix A. Supplementary data
Supplementary data to this article can be found online at https://doi.
org/10.1016/j.tecto.2022.229472.
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