The state of Rajasthan today is famous for its topography of a desert. The place is flourishing for its desert tourism with vast sandy expanses. But a new finding by palaeontologists suggests that the state was a sea-bed during the pre-historic age. In Jaisalmer, a very famous desert area of the state, 47-million-year-old fossils have been discovered of the primitive whale, shark teeth, crocodilian teeth and turtle bones. These findings express the possibility of Rajasthan being under the sea at one point.

The Western region of the Geological Survey of India (GSI) had been researching on fossils in different parts of Gujarat and Rajasthan. Senior geologists Kumar and Pragya Pandey under the supervision of Debasish Bhattacharya, the director of Paleontology Division carried out this research.  This set of marine life fossils were unearthed from the Bandah village in Jaisalmer and are said to belong to the middle Eocene Age. Among all the fossils of teeth, the finding of fragmented-jaw and vertebrae of a primitive-whale is very significant according to the experts. Ancient Fossil 'Candelarhynchus Padillai' is the New Fish Species' Discovered by '10-year-old Boy.

According to Kumar, the presence of the marine fossils of Middle Eocene period indicates that about 47 million years ago, there was a sea in this area. These fossils were compared with earlier found fauna which too belongs to the middle Eocene. There were similarities in the ones found at Kachhch Basin and Gujarat. So according to the senior expert, there was similar shallow marine deposition under the tropical-temperate conditions in the state of Gujarat.

These findings are really significant since they take back to the formation of these desert lands. More studies into these fossils could reveal into the formation of these water beds turning to dry deserts.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 15, 2018 09:20 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).