Tectonophysies, 174 (1990) 321-329 321

Elsevier Science Publishers B.V., Amsterdam - Printed in The Netherlands

Position of the Main Central Thrust in the tectonic framework

of Western Himalaya

M. NAWAZ CHAUDHRY and M. GHAZANFAR

Institute of Geology, Punjab University, Lahore (Pakistan)

(Received January 10, 1988; revised version accepted August 24, 1989)

Abstract

Nawaz Chaudry, M. and Ghazanfar, M., 1990. Position of the Main Central Thrust in the tectonic framework of
Western Himalaya. Tectonophysics, 174: 321-329.

Investigations in the western part of Northwest Himalaya have indicated a marked contrast in the stratigraphy,
metamorphism and tectonics of the rocks north and south of Batal in the Kaghan Valley and Luat in the Neelum
Valley. It is proposed that the Batal-Luat line represents the trace of the Main Central Thrust (MCT).

Introduction Sharda) in the Neelum Valley. It is here that we

propose the demarcation of the MCT.
An impressive lateral continuity of tectonic
zones has been observed almost throughout the
Stratigraphy in the Kaghan and Neelum valleys
length of the Himalayas from Assam to Eastern
Kashmir. Attempts have been made in the past to
extend this continuity into Western Kashmir and The stratigraphic sequence in the Kaghan Val-
Pakistan. The extension of the Murree Fault (Main ley is given in Table 1.
Boundary Thrust) and the Panjal Fault did not In the past all of the sequence below the Ag-
present many problems. The problem of the con- glomeratic Slate (Chushal Formation), north of
tinuity of Indus Tsangpo Suture Zone is now also Nauseri in the Neelum Valley and north of Jared
considered to be somewhat resolved by its demar- in the Kaghan Valley, had been considered as the
cation in the form of a double suture (Shams, Salkhala Formation (Wadia, 1931; Call&s et al.,
1972; Tahirkheli, 1979; Bard et al., 1980). How- 1975; Bossart et al., 1984). As can be seen in
ever, the presence and the position of the Main Table 1, recent geological mapping in the Neelum
Central Thrust (MCT) has continued to pose an and Kaghan Valleys (Fig. 1) has now made it
enigma up to now. Recent work in the Neelum possible to subdivide the so-called monotonous
Valley (Ghazanfar et al., 1983) and the Kaghan Salkhalas into a number of distinct stratigraphic
Valley (Ghazanfar and Chaudhry, 1985b, 1986; units. This subdivision brings out the prominent
Chaudhry and Ghazanfar, 1987) has now some- and interesting nature of the break between the
what clarified the tectonostratigraphic position in Kaghan Group and the Sharda Group, occurring
this area. There is a fairly marked contrast of near Naran in the Kaghan Valley. This break can
stratigraphy, metamorphism and tectonics north be correlated with a similar break at the base of
and south of the Batal Fault (near Naran in the the Sharda Group in the Neelum Valley to the
Kaghan Valley) and the Luat Fault (south of east. As will be shown later, this break is also

0040-1951/90/$03.50 0 1990 Elsevier Science Publishers B.V.

322 M li C’HAIJI>HRY ANI) M. (jHAZANk4R

TABLE 1

Stratigraphic sequence in the Kaghan Valley (after Ghazanfar and Chaudhry, 1985a,b; Chaudhry and Ghazanfar. 19X7)

Murree Formation Red sandstone. shale sequence

Paras Formation Foraminiferal limestone
Rosachcha Formation Calcarenite, quartzite, lateritic pisolttic claystone etc
Malkandi Limestone Dark grey oolitic limestone with shale partmgs
Kashmir
Sequence Panjal Formation PanJal basic volcanics and associated Ling. BhunJa and Shino bands of
limestone/marble
Chushal Formation Graphitic schist, limestone/marble. metaconglomerates
Tanawal Formation Jared quartzites and quartz mica-schist

Biari quartzites. metaconglomerates. quartz mica-schists, talc-schist

and pegmatites
Doga schists, marbles, quartzites and metaconglomerates
Mahandri Formation Kamalban quartz mica-schists. quartzites. talc-schists and marbles
Lohar Banda marble
Phagal quartz mica-schists and quartzttes
Kandla marble
Kaghan Group Khannian quartzites, talc-schists and marbles
(Late Proterozoic)

Kaghan Formation Kaghan pelites with subordinate graphitic schist, marble and gypsum

Batal quartzites and quartz mtca-schiat/gnetss

Paludaran graphitic schist
Rajwal Formation
Rajwal quartzites, quartz mica-schrsts/gnetsses, pegmatites, apli-
tes and granite/gnetsa

Sharda Burawai Gneisses

Group (Mid- Saiful Muluk Granite Gneiss Naran Gneisses (in the Naran area to the south)
Proterozoic Lulu Sar Gneisses
to Archaean) Besal di Khari Granite Gneiss
Besal Gneisses

accompanied by a break in P-T regimes and TABLE 2

tectonic style. Lithostratigraphy across the Batal Fault in the Kaghan Valley
The Kaghan Group, occurring in the middle of Kaghan Group Quartz schists. quartzites, graphitic
the Kaghan Valley, is separated in the south from (south) schists, calcschists, marbles and
the younger Kashmir Sequence by the Jared Fault, metaconglomerates: the middle division
and in the north from the older Sharda Group by of the Kaghan Group also contains a thick
horizon of gypsum
the Batal Fault. We can sum up the stratigraphy
on both sides of the Batal Fault as shown in Table
2.
Sharda Group Calc-pelitic gneisses, pelitic gneisses
From Table 2, on the basis of stratigraphy, the (north) graphitic gneisses and marbles with
Sharda Group in the Kaghan Valley differs from sheet granites, migmatites. a few younger
the Kaghan Group in that it lacks quartzites, garnet tourmaline granites and amphibo-
metacoglomerates and gypsum. Then there is the lites
 I---

I I
L
U-l-

*-
 / I,
A gcP
.15264 15046

14870

Sat01
15055'
/

9
f
LEGEND

MUZAFFARABAD SEDIMENTRY SEQUENCE

I
MURREE FORMATION ////

KASHMIR SEQUENCE (t, possible Tanol Fm ) \

\
KAGHAN GROUP
(r= Rajwal Fm., kp= Kaghan Fm., k= Mahandri Fm. )
SHARDA GROUP
(g= Sheet Granites, gcp:. Garnetiferous calc_pclitic gncisscs, I ,
mx = Mixed Units, )
KOHISTAN ISLAND ARC SEQUENCE

MMT = Main Mantle Thrust, MCT Main Central Thrust,

MF= Murree Fault, h PF = Panjal Fault.

Geological base from:

.Ghazanfar and Chaudhry 1985_CENTRAL KAGHAN
.Chaudhry and Ghazanfar 1987_ UPPER KAGHAN
. Calkins, Offild, Abdullah and All 1975_ LOWER KAGHAN
lGhazanfar, Chaudhry, Zaka and Baig 1986_ BALAKOT AREA

km5T 5 km

Fig. 1. a. Index map of the Kaghan Valley. b. Geologic map of the Kaghan Valley showing the principal stratigraphic groups.
 Malikseri

A f Pichla Rajwal J
LEGEND
Biari Quartzites, Metrconglomerrtcs,
,+*+-+. +
- a Bela b-p$g’
+ I(llGani Cluartz Mica Schist, Calc-schist h
L-4
Pcgmatitcs
Doga Schists, Qurrtzitcs h
1-1
Metrconglomerates
Kamalban Quartz Mica Schists,
MAHANDRI Quartrites, Calc_schists b Marbles E.Zl
FORMATION
Lohar Banda Marbles

Phagal Quartz Mica Schist and

Quartzites
Kandla Marbles
 Khannian Qurrtzites, Calc-schists
and Marbles

KAGHAN Kaghan Pelites

FORMATION Gypsum tza’ m
Batal Quartzites 6. Quartz Mica Schist

Paludaran Pcgmatites, Gnphitic Schist

I I
and Marbles
RAJWAL
FORMATION Rajwal Quartzites, Quartz Mica Schist,
Aplites and Granites
Ouartzo_teldspathic gneiss

Graphitic Schist

m 2000 1000

urn

l Geological base from Ghazanfar and Chaudhry,l985

Fig. lc. Map showing units of the Kaghan Group, central Kaghan Valley.
POSITION OF MCT IN TECTONIC FRAMEWORK OF W HIMALAYA 327

TABLE 3 The Sharda Group continues northwards to the

Lithostratigraphic summary across the Luat Fault in the Main Mantle Thrust. A study of the gneisses
Neelum Valley comprising the Nanga Parbat Haramosh Massif
Kashmir Sequence Low-grade metamorphics, including (Misch, 1936, 1949) and its comparison with
the polygenetic Agglomeratic Slate, tectonostratigraphy in the Kaghan Valley
the Panjal volcanics and younger (Chaudhry and Ghazanfar, 1987) show that, stra-
sediments up to the Murree Forma- tigraphically, this promontory is also part of the
tion of Miocene age
Sharda Group. Southwards, the Sharda Group
Authmuqam Phyllites, quartzites slates, graphi-
Formation tic schists, and metamicroconglomer- extends to the Batal Fault near Naran in the
(Cambrian to ates Kaghan Valley, and to Luat, south of Sharda in
Precambrian) the Neelum Valley.
Kundalshahi Quartz mica-schists and quartzites The Sharda Group thus represents a laterally
Formation
continuous crystalline slab between the Neelum
(Precambrian)
and Kaghan valleys, extending between the MMT
--__,Q,at Fault ______
in the north and the Batal-Luat Fault (the pro-
Sharda Group Calc-pelitic gneisses, pelitic gneisses, posed MCT) in the south.
(Precambrian) graphitic gneisses and marbles with
S-type anatectic sheet granites, mig- Tectonics
matites, some younger gamet-tour-
mahne granites and amphibolites It becomes quite apparent to a worker in the
Kaghan Valley that the tectonic style of the Sharda
Group slab between Naran and Babusar is quite
extensive granitization and the presence of pre- different, on the one hand, from that of the Kaghan
dominantly bedded amphibolites. Group in the south and, on the other, from that of
Ghazanfar et al. (1983) have given a detailed the Kohistan Sequence in the north beyond
lithologic and petrographic description of the units Babusar Pass. The Sharda Group in the Upper
exposed in the middle of the Neelum Valley, Azad Kaghan Valley is marked by plastic deformation:
Kashmir. We may group the units in the Neelum the faults, at least, are not so marked. Mylonites
Valley as shown in Table 3. occur on both major thrusts, MMT and
Neelum (Kishanganga) towards the east and MCT-which bound the Sharda Group to the
Kaghan towards the west are parallel valleys which north and south respectively, and along the Sohch
provide N-S sections through the western Fault. The major folds are in the form of elon-
Himalayas. Mapping in the two valleys reveals a gated structural basins and domes, a few miles or
broad lithostratigraphic and tectonic continuity, tens of miles across. The granites and amphibo-
of course, with differences. The continuity of the lites are fully involved in the folding.
Agglomeratic Slate Formation (Chushal Forma- On the other hand, the Kaghan Group to the
tion) to Eocene Limestone or the so-called south in the middle Kaghan Valley is marked by a
Carboniferous to Eocene of Wadia (1931) and the number of steep N-dipping thrusts which have
Murree Formation of the Kashmir Sequence in piled and stacked fault blocks one over the other
the Lower Neelum and Kaghan valleys is clear. in the form of a schuppen structure (Ghazanfar
Correlation of the Kaghan Group of the middle and Chaudhry, 1985b).
Kaghan Valley with the Kundalshahi Group of The basic and intermediate Kohistan Sequence,
the middle Neelum Valley does requires further which occurs across the MMT suture zone beyond
mapping across ridge tops. However, the continu- Babusar Pass in the north, comprises much
ity of the Sharda Group (north of Luat in the younger rocks (Upper Jurassic and younger;
Neelum Valley), comprising garnetiferous calc- Honegger et al., 1982; Reynolds et al., 1983) which,
pelitic gneisses and marbles with amphibolites and in this area, instead of being marked by large-scale
sheet granites, with that in the Upper Kaghan folds, are characterized by fault slices, some of
Valley (Naran to Babusar) is again quite apparent. which are separated by mylonites.
328 M.N. (‘HAUDHRY AND M GHAZANFAR

The Sharda Group slab thus has a dis- grade melange of sediments and ophiolites. The
tinguished tectonic style which is different from inversion of metamorphic grades in the Upper and
that of the Kaghan Group in the south and the Middle Kaghan Valley is obviously due to thrust-
Kohistan Sequence in the north. ing and overturning of this sequence.

Metamorphism The position of the MCT towards the east

The Batal Fault in Kaghan marks a significant The MCT as distinguished from eastern
break in the P-T continuum (Chaudhry et al., Kashmir eastwards has been placed at the base of
1986). The unit exposed immediately south of this the crystalline slab of the Higher Himalayas. This
fault belongs to the epidote amphibolite facies, 10 km thick crystalline slab is characterized by
lacking staurolite, kyanite and sillimanite, with high-grade pelitic psammitic gneisses, marbles,
amphibolites containing oligoclase or lower ande- quartzites and amphibolites. In places it shows
sine. Further south of Kaghan Village the rocks migmatization and extensive granitization, which
are in the greenschist facies. On the other hand, finally produced the widespread young intrusive
the Sharda Group rocks lying to the north of tourmaline granites cutting through the previous
Batal Fault represent a sudden jump in metamor- structures (Gansser, 1964).
phic grade to the upper amphibolite facies. Kyanite The MCT at the base of the Higher Himalaya
and sillimanite appear in metapelites. The slab is a low- to high-angle thrust plane, a crustal
amphibolites are invariably garnet-bearing with shear, a zone of strong mylonization marked by
plagioclase, very often a labradorite. The unit reverse metamorphism (Gansser, 1964; Le Fort,
contains a number of migmatite horizons and at 1975; Pecher, 1977; Valdiya. 1984). There is a
least a few small bodies of leucocatic garnet-tour- sudden jump in metamorphic grade from
maline granite. greenschist facies to upper amphibolite facies up-
In the Neelum Valley the Luat Fault similarly wards and northwards across the MCT. There is
marks a significant P-T break. The rocks lying even a change in the tectonic style. According to
immediately south of the Luat Fault are in the Gansser (1964) the crystalline slab north of the
greenschist facie% containing tiny almandine MCT has a rather simple tectonic structure while,
garnets with chlorite, a stable associate of musco- on the other hand, in the area of the Lower
vite. North of this fault the Sharda Group is Himalayas southwards the structure is more com-
strongly gneissic. Here chlorite does not occur in plicated, with normal and reversed sections.
stable association with muscovite. Kyanite and
sillimanite are present, and suitable horizons have Conclusions
undergone partial anatexis. The terrain belongs to
the almandine amphibolite facies. In conclusion we may say that the Luat and
There is an inversion of metamorphic grade Batal faults in the Neelum and Kaghan Valleys
across the MCT. The overlying Upper Kaghan are associated with a break between two different
tectonic slab shows a higher degree of metamor- lithostratigraphic regimes, a break between two
phism. However, this inversion agrees with that different tectonics styles, and a P-T break. In
observed elsewhere in Central and Eastern addition, this tectonic scar is associated with small
Himalaya. In the Kaghan Valley this inversion pegmatites, granites and a zone of mylonites which,
continues throughout the underlying tectonic slab in places, is more than 1 km wide. Therefore, these
of the Middle Kaghan Valley (Chaudhry et al., two faults together constitute the trace of the
1986), which is characterized by a stack of faulted Main Central Thrust in the western part of the
blocks. However, upwards and northwards in Northwest Himalaya. The MCT extends ESE-
Kohistan across the MMT, the metamorphism WNW from Luat in the Neelum Valley to Batal
decreases. The upper amphibolite facies rocks of (near Naran in the Kaghan Valley) over the great
the Sharda Group are at once overlain by low- Kaghan watershed. Further northwest, near Ch-
POSITION OF MCT IN TECTONIC FRAMEWORK OF W HIMALAYA 329

halayyan in Nili Nadi (Kaghan Valley), the MCT Ghazanfar, M., and Chaudhry, M.N., 1985a. A third suture in
Northwest Himalaya. Kashmir J. Geol., 3: 103-108.
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the southern branch of the Indus-Tsangpo Suture
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tallines (Sharda Group) appears to pinch near Northwest Himalaya, Pakistan. Geol. Bull. Punjab Univ.,

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