The First Report of Gangamopteris Rajaensis from Rajmahal Gondwana Basin (Jharkhand, India)
Abstract: The present study deals with the systematic description of macro and miofloral analysis of Gangamopterisrajaensis and Glossopteris indica from the carbonaceous shale-coal bearing sequences of the Rajmahal Open CastMine, Rajmahal Basin, Jharkhand, India. The floral diversity, age correlation, and the paleoenvironment of the BarakarFormation were well described. Morphological analysis revealed the reticulate venation pattern, anastomosingof veins, and the absence of the midrib in Gangamopteris rajaensis. The recovered megafloral assemblages ofGangamopteris rajaensis and Glossopteris indica suggest a late early Permian (Artiskian-Kungurian) age for theBarakar strata of Rajmahal coal mine and the prevalence of a moderately warm climate during their deposition.Earlier the species was reported from the Barakar Formation of Damodar and Mahanadi Gondwana basins in India.However, this is the first detailed systematic investigation of this species from the Rajmahal Gondwana Basin,Jharkhand, India.