The study area represents a part of the South Shillong Shelf, Meghalaya, where sandstones belonging to the Barail Group (Eocene-Oligocene) are well exposed. Thin section petrography and heavy mineral investigations have been undertaken to assess the geological significance of the sandstones. Framework grains of the Barail sediments comprise of quartz (56.98 to 71.91%), feldspar (1.87 to 7.35%), mica (1.07 to 9.72%), lithic fragments (2.20 to 8.41%) and matrix (9.20 to 20.43%). The detrital composition of the sandstones comprises primarily of quartz grains, angular to sub-rounded, fine to medium grained and moderately sorted in nature. The sandstones are classified as subarkose, feldspathic graywacke and lithic graywacke. Provenance discrimination triangular plots of QFL and QmFLt reflect that the detritus were mostly derived from cratonic interior sources. The Diamond diagram indicates that the Barail sandstones were derived from middle and upper rank metamorphic source. Heavy mineral study of these sandstones indicates the presence of zircon, tourmaline, rutile, sillimanite, kyanite, staurolite, garnet, epidote, sphene, hypersthene, hornblende, chlorite, chloritoid, andalusite, apatite and opaque minerals. The percentages of most stable heavy minerals zircon, tourmaline and rutile vary from 6.11to 21.61, 2.60 to 6.56 and 2.42 to 7.57 respectively. The ZTR maturity index varies from 15.15 to 34.37, which reflects that the sandstones are mineralogically immature. The petrographic and heavy mineral study of the sandstones suggest that the detritus was probably derived from Shillong Massif where Precambrian metamorphic rocks of pelitic and arenaceous composition with plutonic bodies were exposed around the shelf margin. As the Shillong Massif comprises of Precambrian metamorphic rocks of pelitic and semitic (arenaceous) composition with intrusive plutonic bodies.

Wetlands are prevalent in all types of landscapes around the world and constitute landforms, soil units, water features and faunal and floral communities. Wetlands sustain flora and fauna in the surface layer and they are dynamic and changing as such are reffered to as living landforms. Wetlands provide natural solutions for achieving “the Paris Climate Goals, Global Biodiversity Framework, and Sustainable Development Goals”. Unfortunately wetlands have not received due attention by geologists even though geology and geological processes are at the baseline for their evolution and development. The main reason is a poor understanding of wetland landforms. Wetlands can develop only in regions where water accumulates, and the underlying surface/bed rock is impervious. They constitute unusual landforms developed by biogenic materials (solid materials, biological or organic mostly peat, gas and water) predominantly formed by biological processes.

The geochemistry of dolomite in part of the Thanagazi Formation in the Mesoproterozoic Alwar Basin has been studied employing major and trace elements, including rare earth elements (REEs) to understand their provenance and paleoweathering conditions. In the current study, two distinct types of dolomites were identified viz. amorphous and crystalline. Various geochemical discriminants such as SiO2 vs Al2O3 and CaO vs MgO indicate that the dolomites were originated from sedimentary sources with substantial metasomatic and biogenic contributions. Geochemical constraints from plots of Fe2O3/Al2O3 vs. Al2O3/(Al2O3+Fe2O3) and rare earth element compositions for provenance signatures suggest likely deposition of dolomites in shallow marine sedimentary environment. Based on geothermometric estimates and base metal concentrations in dolomites, it is inferred that the mixing of sediments derived from two different sources (metasomatic and biogenic) were likely responsible for the dolomitization in the Thanagazi Formation of the Mesoproterozoic Alwar Basin.

Alex Epstein’s “Fossil Future: Why Global Human Flourishing Requires More Oil, Coal, and Natural Gas--Not Less”, rich in empirical data and common sense, is a timely masterpiece. It makes a compelling case for more Fossil Fuels (Oil, Coal, and Natural Gas) for the survival of the human race amid the Net?Zero ultimatum on CO2 emission by 2050. In practice, Fossil Fuels are cheap, reliable, and necessary, whereas Renewable Energy (Wind and Solar) is expensive, unreliable, and a luxury. Petrochemicals are the building blocks of wind turbines and solar panels. At present, humans cannot collect renewable energy without petrochemical?based wind turbines and solar panels (i.e. without emitting CO2). It is worth noting that there are 772 Pounds of petrochemical Plastics in each electric car. Therefore, the whole renewable-energy (Wind and Solar) movement is the height hypocrisy!

An attempt is made in the present study to unravel the provenance, paleoweathering and paleoclimatic conditions of the Jurassic (Spiti Formation) black shales and sandstones from the Spiti region, Tethys Himalaya, using multi proxy approach. The sandstones are subarkose in composition and texturally poorly sorted, subrounded to subangular in shape with moderate spheriocity. The range of the chemical index of alteration (CIA) is 55–90, recorded in the black shales strongly suggests moderate to strong chemical weathering conditions in the source area, which in turn reflect fluctuating climatic conditions prevailing during the deposition of these sediments in Jurassic period in the Spiti region. Geochemical studies reveal that shales are enriched in felsic elements (high SiO2, Al2O3, K2O) and depleted in mafic components (Fe2O3 and MgO).The various geochemical discriminant plots and elemental ratios (SiO2/Al2O3, K2O/Al2O3, Al2O3/TiO2, K2O/Na2O, etc.) indicate the rocks to be the product of weathering of felsic rocks. The paleoclimate in the source area seems to be mostly semi-humid. The plot of the samples on the A-CN-K ternary diagram indicates a granitic weathering trend. The X-ray Diffraction studies show that the prominent clay minerals in the Spiti shales are illite, smectite, chlorite, kaolinite and vermiculite along with quartz, muscovite, alkali feldspar, calcite and phosphatic phase.When plotted on the tectonic discrimination diagram, the samples indicate passive margin tectonic setting.

Major and trace element concentrations were studied from the tansitional beds between Disang and Barail Successions of the Imphal valley, Indo-Myanmar Ranges. Various major and trace element ratios and discrinant diagrams were used to descipher paleoclimate, paleo-redox condition and sedimentary depositional environment of the Disang-Barail Transitional beds. SiO2 vs Al2O3+K2O+ Na2O diagram and Rb/Sr ratios indicates that paleoclimate during the deposition of the sediments changed from arid to semi-arid and humid climate. Ni/Co, V/Cr, V/(Ni+V), V/Sc ratios suggest that these sediments were deposited in oxic, suboxic to anoxic conditions. V/(Ni+V) vs V/Cr diagram suggests paleo-redox environment dominated by sub-reduction to oxidization during Disang –Barail Transitional deposition. The sediments were deposited in transitional to marine depositional environment.

The divine teacher-student relationship that covers 100 years of knowledge transfer is the underpinning of this remarkable personal story. Importantly, this narrative is about an Indian genius and a geologic pioneer, Professor T. N. Muthuswami Iyer, known as TNM. The first generation (1920s-1960s) TNM began his teaching career as a crystallographer and a mineralogist at the University of Madras-Gundy Campus (Chennai) in 1924, and continued at the Presidency College (Madras), Sager University (Madhya Pradesh), and Annamalai University (Tamil Nadu). One of his early students at Presidency was A. Parthasarathy, who later studied at the Imperial College in London (UK) and earned his Ph.D. in Engineering Geology from the London University (UL) in 1954. The second generation (1940s-1980s) Prof. Parthasarathy became the Head of Applied Geology section in the Civil Engineering Department at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay in 1964. The third generation (1960s-2020s) G. Shanmugam earned his B.Sc. in Geology and Chemistry from Annamalai University with a First Class (1965) and started teaching science in a local high school in his hometown of Sirkazhi, Tamil Nadu. TNM, who was the Head of Geology at Annamalai University in 1965, motivated G. Shanmugam to quit his teaching job and pursue M.Sc. in Applied Geology at IIT Bombay. Shanmugam earned his M.Sc. in Applied Geology at IIT Bombay under the guidance of Prof. Parthasarathy. Education and training at IIT Bombay propelled Shanmugam to receive his second M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in the USA. His Ph.D. research under the guidance of Prof. Kenneth R. Walker at University of Tennessee on Ordovician tectonics and sedimentation in the Southern Appalachians led to securing a research position with Mobil Oil Company in Dallas, Texas in 1978. Because of his global research on multiple domains while at Mobil and as post-retirement consultant since 2000 for oil companies in India and China, Shanmugam has to his credit 382 published works that include three Elsevier books on process sedimentology and petroleum geology, with the first two books were translated into Chinese language. He has authored 6 invited Encyclopedia Chapters for Elsevier and McGraw Hill Book Companies and has delivered 89 lectures worldwide during 1980-2021 period. He won the top "Special Prize" from Springer Journal of Palaeogeography in 2020 for "Excellent Papers" based on Science Citation Index (SCI) of five articles published during 2012-2018. Shanmugam's efforts in knowledge transfer during the COVID-19 global pandemic included giving virtual lectures on Zoom, Google Meet, and WebEx platforms to academia (e.g., Royal Holloway, University of London, IIT Bombay, and Ohio University). Shanmugam organized 23 onsite workshops on "Deep-water sandstone petroleum reservoirs" worldwide, which included (1) the UK Government Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Edinburgh, UK, (2) Reliance Industries Ltd., Kakinada, India, (3) Hardy Oil, Chennai, India, (4) Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), Mumbai and Kajuraho, India, (5) Petrobras, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, (6) Research Institute of Petroleum Exploration and Development (RIPED) of PetroChina, Beijing, China, and (7) China University of Petroleum, Qingdao, China. The T. N. Muthuswami - A. Parthasarathy - G. Shanmugam lineage, spanning over 100 years, is unique and phenomenal in knowledge transfer among geoscientists. On the economic front, TNM and his lineages contributed directly to the petroleum, atomic mineral, cement, gemstone, and geothermal energy industries, among many others. The acronym "TNM" for T. N. Muthuswami Iyer is just perfect for a Transformational, Neoteric and a Motivating teacher and a noble soul!

The present study focuses on the surface textures of the quartz grains derived from the granitic rocks in a fluvial regime on the west coast of India. The surface microtextures formed during transport due to their stable physical and chemical properties. The surface textures include information about source rock types, transporting force, sedimentary environment and evolution history of the sediment. For this purpose, eight samples were collected and investigated from the Gurupura River estuary of Dakshina Kannada District of Karnataka state west coast in India. The quartz grains show distinct surface textures with unique mechanical, chemical and morphological features. The mechanical features such as conchoidal fractures with arcuate steps indicate that the sand grains were derived from crystalline source rock (i.e., granite) and transported in a high-energy condition. The silica globule, overgrowth, and precipitation marks on the grain surfaces suggest action of chemical processes in a saturated silica environment, which is evident in the upper reaches of the Gurupura River. Surface textures of the quartz grains along the lower reaches of the Gurupura River display an array of mechanical features like a conchoidal fracture, V-shaped marks and impact pits, indicating the impact of mechanical processes. The overall pattern of the surface textures present on the quartz grains suggests moderate to high energy conditions in the Gurupura River.

Sarbani Patranabis-Deb was an impressive multi-disciplinary earth scientist grounded on conventional scientific method of examining the rocks in the field. She was born in West Bengal, India on the 13th November, 1966 and passed away in Kolkata, India on the 31st October, 2022. Sarbani was an accomplished sedimentologist, stratigrapher, sandstone petrologist, volcanic geologist, geochronologist, tectonics specialist, basin analyst, and a global geologist. She had a remarkable career in academia by joining the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) in 1997. I had the privilege of getting to know Sarbani both professionally and personally during the past 20 years since her obtaining Ph.D. in 2001. It was serendipity that the Directors of ISI requested my professional evaluation of her academic performance in 2008, 2013, and 2019 towards her career advancements at ISI. Although my research interest focuses primarily on deep-water processes (Shanmugam, 2021, 2022), Sarbani and I had many common interests of research domains, which included deltaic sedimentation, shelf sedimentation, tidal sedimentation, sequence stratigraphy, sediment deformation, tectonics, and diagenesis. We both published articles on fan deltas (McPherson et al., 1987; Patranabis-Deb and Chaudhuri, 2007).