Sri Lanka–Madagascar Gondwana Linkage: Evidence for a Pan‐African Mineral Belt

Sri Lanka occupies a unique geologic position in Gondwana. Recent age and isotopic data suggest that the high‐grade basement rocks of Sri Lanka are more closely associated with the southeastern part of Madagascar than with the Archean granulites of southern and eastern parts of India. The occurrences of gem minerals and graphite in the centrally located Highland Complex of Sri Lanka can also be correlated with those of the Kerala Khondalite Belt (KKB) at the southern tip of India and of southeast Madagascar south of the Ranotsara Shear Zone. These geological and mineralogical features indicate the juxtaposition of Sri Lanka with Madagascar and also with the Lützow‐Holm Bay area in Antarctica. The very close juxtaposition of Sri Lanka with Madagascar suggested here, which has hitherto been given only passing reference, implies that there exists a distinct mineralized belt running from Antarctica through the Highland Complex of Sri Lanka into Madagascar, Mozambique, Tanzania, and farther north. This mineral belt is clearly of Pan‐African origin and is now considered to be an important geosuture associated with the main Mozambique Belt. The position of Sri Lanka in Gondwana is of particular significance because Sri Lanka acts as a bridge across the main East African and Antarctica crustal fragments.