Stromatolites: a guideline for development of a carbonate ramp, Basantpur Formation, Neoproterozoic Simla Group in Lesser Himalaya, India

Outcrop-based facies analysis of the Proterozoic Basantpur Formation, Simla Group in the Lesser Himalaya was combined with the stromatolites morphometry and sea-level fluctuation to delineate the stages of carbonate ramp development. On this basis, a vertical profile depositional model (Basantpur type) has been developed. Facies associations and variation in the patterns of microbial growth along with the sea-level fluctuations have contributed to the identification of the development of a tide-influenced carbonate ramp. Different stromatolitic structures (mega-, macro- and microstructures) are documented in the dolomudstones and dolosiltstones along with fenestral structures and their depositional facies together with evidences of marine transgression which leads to development of carbonate ramp where inner-mid-outer-ramp subenvironments are recognised. The “Basantpur”-type model is therefore unique in that it deals with lateral facies variation due to shift in shore line along with fluctuations in accommodation space on a carbonate ramp owing to fluctuations of sea level. This model will probably find its applicability in similar carbonate ramps.