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KERALA TOURISM NEWSLETTER

Varkala cliff to be declared as geological monument

The cliff overlooking the Varkala beach in Thiruvananthapuram, a unique sedimentary geo-morphological structure on the Kerala coast and the surrounding areas are on course to become India's first National Geopark under Geological Survey of India (GSI) initiative to preserve geologically important sites in the country.

As a first step, the Varkala cliff will soon be declared a Geological monument and later the area around the Geological monument will be declared as a National Geopark.

Before declaring it as a National Geopark, the designated area has to be made litter-free and no mining or quarrying activity should be done. With the declaration of Geopark, Varkala stands to find a place in the UNESCO's world map of Geo-Heritage sites.

Geoparks are places where rare geological landforms are preserved intact and where low-impact recreational, scientific and educational activities are pursued. The proposed project prepared by GSI, notes that, Varkala is the only place on the west coast of India where sediments in the Mio-Pliocene Age (13 lakh to 2.5 crore years ago) have been founded.

The geological monument or Geopark project at Varkala will help in protecting the cliff, which preserve the pages of Earth's history, nature's chemical lab, and storehouse of micro fossils.