CHANDIGARH: Geologists have proposed developing Langza and Komic villages in Himachal Pradesh's Lahaul-Spiti district into a geoheritage destination after identifying one of the Himalayas' richest marine fossil landscapes, dating back nearly 150 million years.
Located at nearly 4,400 metres above sea level, the fossil-bearing rocks contain corals, bivalves, ammonite jaw elements, marine reptile fragments and more than 60 species of Jurassic ammonites, preserving evidence of the ancient Tethys Ocean before the Himalayas took their present form.
Geologist, hydrogeologist and palaeontologist Dr Ritesh Arya said the region should have a geological and fossil museum, protected in-situ fossil sites, scientific documentation, geological signboards and trained local guides. He said such measures could help Langza evolve into a model fossil park and eventually qualify for UNESCO Global Geopark recognition.
Arya said the fossil record in Spiti extends beyond ammonites and includes belemnites, gastropods, brachiopods, crinoid remains, fossil wood and plant remains.
“Some of the best-known Jurassic fossil horizons of the Langza–Komic region are approximately 145–150 million years old, a time when dinosaurs dominated the land and marine organisms flourished in the ancient Tethys Ocean," Arya said.
"These fossils are therefore not merely objects of curiosity. They are records of an ancient ocean, its biodiversity, environment and the geological processes that ultimately helped create the Himalayas,” he said.
Arya said visitors currently receive very little scientific interpretation of the landscape despite its global geological importance.
“There is very little geological interpretation available to visitors in the village and surrounding fossil landscape. The popular image of Langza is dominated by the ammonite, but the fossil record is much richer,” he said.
For generations, villagers collected ammonites and other fossils and sold them to visitors as a source of supplementary income. Arya said locals developed detailed knowledge of fossil-bearing slopes and recognised different fossil types.
“But there was another important aspect. Villagers knew their geological landscape, also where fossils occurred, knew how to recognise them, and which specimens attracted visitors. In their own way, they have become field palaeontologists. What was missing was not curiosity or local knowledge but a scientific system,” he said.
Following legal restrictions on fossil extraction and trade, fossil collection has largely stopped. Arya said this creates an opportunity to involve residents in conservation, research and education instead of fossil trade.
He proposed forming a Langza Fossil Heritage Committee with the district administration, Geological Survey of India, scientific institutions and local communities to document and monitor fossil discoveries.
Arya also suggested creating a permanent digital fossil database and training local youth as geoheritage guides, fossil interpreters, geological field assistants and citizen palaeontologists.
He said a dedicated Geological and Fossil Museum could become the main interpretation centre for Spiti's geological history, explaining the ancient Tethys Ocean, Jurassic marine life and the geological processes behind the formation of the Himalayas.
The Geological Survey of India has already recognised the Marine Fossil Treasure at Langza village as one of the country's geoheritage sites, providing an opportunity to promote scientific conservation alongside sustainable local livelihoods.