| The
Prehistoric Rocks of the Deccan |
 |
THE ROUNDED ROCKS OF THE DECCAN
Visitors to the eastern Deccan (Karnataka, Andhra ) are struck by the eccentric looking rounded boulders perched
precariously as if giants piled them up.
Vast sheets of granite rock sprawl for miles to the horizon in the eastern Deccan plateau in peninsular India.
The Precambrian rock is very hard and highly resistant to erosion. Over the millennia
the elements have gradually worn away the
surfaces, resulting in very picturesque balancing boulders.
Similar granite formations are found in Australia and Zimbabwe , among others. ( ed.- and the western US, as several emails
informed.)
While the boulders look as though they may teeter and crash down in the next stiff breeze or tremor, they are actually quite
stable. In fact they have been formed where they are now. They do topple, of course, but
only once in fifty centuries or so.
Unfortunately the qualities of the rock make it an excellent material for road laying and concrete making. Many memorable
balancing boulder sites have been blasted away.
The city of Hyderabad used to be surrounded by these picturesque formations, but in the last decade they have been blasted
into little pieces. Worse, some have been sliced like huge potatoes and the sight is rather sorry looking.
A few houses have been designed to use these boulders as part of the structure and design. There is also a save the rocks
society.
Many say India is too poor to bother about beautiful rocks. Others say once you indiscriminately start blasting rocks, forests
will be the next to be cleared off, along with wildlife.. "unimportant people" may be the next.
So if you want to see the great looking rocks grow back to their eccentric splendor, do visit Hyderabad after some time-- fifty
million years or so.
|
