Climate-tectonic imprints on the Late Quaternary Ravi River Valley Terraces of the Chamba region in the NW Himalaya

Abstract An attempt has been made to reconstruct the landform evolution in monsoon-dominated the Ravi River Valley (a major tributary of the Indus River), Chamba Nappe, Lesser Himalaya based on detailed field mapping, supported by the Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dates. In the upper Ravi River Valley sediments are generated by glaciation-paraglaciation processes and accumulated in terraces and alluvial fan deposits in lower reaches north of the Main Central Thrust during deglaciation and periods of intensified monsoonal phases. Field study and OSL dating demonstrate aggradation of river terraces and debris-flow terraces occurred in two major phases: 73-46 ka and 39-23 ka and at least six minor phases between