The Geological Survey of India (GSI) currently maintains two protected areas bearing rich fossil deposits.
Both parks, numerous fossil displays and models in Indian zoological parks, are part of the Geological Survey's charter program to educate the general public on the Earth's evolutionary history. One of the more comprehensive displays is that of the Natural History Museum of the Nehru Zoological Park, Hyderabad.
The GSI also manages the following fossil parks:
Other fossil parks in India include:
Madhya Pradesh is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal, and its largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Gwalior being the other major cities. Madhya Pradesh is the second largest Indian state by area and the fifth largest state by population with over 72 million residents. It borders the states of Uttar Pradesh to the northeast, Chhattisgarh to the east, Maharashtra to the south, Gujarat to the west, and Rajasthan to the northwest.
The Narmada River, previously also known as Narbada or anglicised as Nerbudda, is the 5th longest river in India and overall the longest west-flowing river in the country. It is also the largest flowing river in the state of Madhya Pradesh. This river flows through the states of Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat in India. It is also known as the "Lifeline of Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat" due to its huge contribution to the two states in many ways. The Narmada River rises from the Amarkantak Plateau in Anuppur district in Madhya Pradesh. It forms the traditional boundary between North and South India and flows westwards for 1,312 km (815.2 mi) before draining through the Gulf of Khambhat into the Arabian Sea, 30 km (18.6 mi) west of Bharuch city of Gujarat.
The Satpura Range is a range of hills in central India. The range rises in eastern Gujarat running east through the border of Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh and ends in Chhattisgarh. The range parallels the Vindhya Range to the north, and these two east–west ranges divide Indian Subcontinent into the Indo-Gangetic plain of northern India and the Deccan Plateau of the south. The Narmada River originates from north-eastern end of Satpura in Amarkantak, and runs in the depression between the Satpura and Vindhya ranges, draining the northern slope of the Satpura range, running west towards the Arabian Sea. The Tapti River originates in the eastern-central part of Satpura, crossing the range in the center and running west at the range's southern slopes before meeting the Arabian Sea at Surat, draining the central and southern slopes of the range. Multai, the place of Tapti river origin is located about 465 kilometer far, south-westerly to Amarkantak, separated across by the hill range. The Godavari River and its tributaries drain the Deccan plateau, which lies south of the range, and the Mahanadi River drains the easternmost portion of the range. The Godavari and Mahanadi rivers flow into the Bay of Bengal. At its eastern end, the Satpura range meets the hills of the Chotanagpur Plateau. The Satpura Range is a horst mountain and is flanked by Narmada Graben in the north and much smaller but parallel Tapi Graben in the south.
Rajasaurus is a genus of carnivorous abelisaurid theropod dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous of India, containing one species: Rajasaurus narmadensis. The bones were excavated from the Lameta Formation in the Gujarat state of Western India, probably inhabiting what is now the Narmada River Valley. It was formally described by palaeontologist Jeffrey A. Wilson and colleagues in 2003 based on a partial skeleton comprising the braincase, spine, hip bone, legs, and tail–a first for an Indian theropod. The dinosaur likely measured 6.6 metres (22 ft), and had a single horn on the forehead which was probably used for display and head-butting. Like other abelisaurids, Rajasaurus was probably an ambush predator.
The Indroda Dinosaur and Fossil Park in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India, is a park that houses fossilized remains and petrified eggs of dinosaurs. It is a man-made fossil park and not the actual nesting grounds where the dinosaurs lived. The eggs and fossils on display here are from the world's 3rd-largest dinosaur fossil excavation site and 2nd-largest hatchery at Raiyoli, Balasinor, Gujarat. The Park was set up by the Geological Survey of India and is the only dinosaur museum in the country.
The geology of India is diverse. Different regions of the Indian subcontinent contain rocks belonging to different geologic periods, dating as far back as the Eoarchean Era. Some of the rocks are very deformed and altered. Other deposits include recently deposited alluvium that has yet to undergo diagenesis. Mineral deposits of great variety are found in the subcontinent in huge quantities. Even India's fossil record is impressive in which stromatolites, invertebrates, vertebrates and plant fossils are included. India's geographical land area can be classified into the Deccan Traps, Gondwana and Vindhyan.
Titanosaurus is a dubious genus of sauropod dinosaurs, first described by Richard Lydekker in 1877. It is known from the Maastrichtian Lameta Formation of India.
Mandla District is a district of Madhya Pradesh in central India. The town of Mandla is the administrative headquarters of the district. It is part of Jabalpur Division.
Indosuchus is a genus of abelisaurid dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous Period, a theropod related to Abelisaurus. Like most theropods, Indosuchus was a bipedal carnivore. It was about 7 metres long, weighed about 1.2 tonnes, and had a crested skull, flattened on the top.
Tindivanam is a municipality in Viluppuram district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the second largest town in Villupuram District after the headquarters town Villupuram. Important roads from north to south Tamil Nadu pass through Tindivanam and similarly from west to east.
The Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), founded on 1 July 1916 by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change of the Government of India as a premier Indian organisation in zoological research and studies to promote the survey, exploration and research of the fauna in the country.
Shivalik Fossil Park, also known as the Suketi Fossil Park, is a notified National Geo-heritage Monument fossil park in the Sirmaur district in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. It has a collection of prehistoric vertebrate fossils and skeletons recovered from the upper and middle Siwaliks geological formations of sandstones and clay at Suketi. The Siwalik ranges are located in the outer Himalayas. The park has a display of the fossil finds and an open-air exhibition of six life-sized fiberglass models of extinct mammals in a recreation of the Sivalik Hills environment of the Plio-Pleistocene era. A museum, within the precincts of the park curated and exhibits the fossils. Shivalik is Asia's biggest fossil park. The exhibits in the park are used to generate scientific interest among the public, and facilitate special international studies by visiting research scholars from all over the world.
Madhya Pradesh, often called the "Heart of India", is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal. Madhya Pradesh was the largest state in India until 1 November 2000 when the state of Chhattisgarh was carved out. It borders the states of Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Rajasthan.
Maharajapuram Seetharaman Krishnan was an Indian Geologist. He was the first Indian to serve as the Director of the Geological Survey of India.
The National Fossil Wood Park, Tiruvakkarai is a notified National Geo-heritage Monument located in the Villupuram District in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and is maintained by the Geological Survey of India. The park was established in 1940 and is located 1 km east of Thiruvakkarai village on the road between Tindivanam and Pondicherry.
Ghughua Fossil Park is a National Park, located near Shahpura in Madhya Pradesh, India, in which plant fossils belonging to 31 genera of 18 families have been identified.
Akal Wood Fossil Park is a National Geological Monument of India located in Jaisalmer district, Rajasthan. It is also a Biodiversity Heritage Site.