NOAMUNDI
22.150000,85.466700
Description
No cave entrance gace access to a cave passage, which was (is?) up to 1.2 m high, petering out at both ends, and was (is?) was formed about 5 m to 6.2 m below the surface in a ferruginous lateritic material containing about 30.5 % of calcium carbonate (PASCOE 1928 for 1926: 74-75). NOT SEEN: PERCIVAL (1931) on aspects of iron ores at Noamundi. SITUATION: Somewhere in a certain »Naomundi Mine area« named after the village of »Naomundi« (PASCO, E H 1928) or Noamundi (note 1), which lies about 5 km in a direct line south-east of Jamda (note 2). CAVE DESCRIPTION 1928: »During the sinking of a prospecting pit by the Tata Iron and Steel Company in their Naomundi Mine area near Jamda, the coolies after opening up to a depth of fifteen feet [4.6 m], suddenly broke through an underground cave. The cave was about four feet [1.2 m] high, but owing to the narrowing down in height of the cave, the distance to which it extended was not determined. … The pit was put down in a ferruginous lateritic material and an analysis of this material from the bottom of the pit showed that it contains about 30.5 % of calcium carbonate, the solution of which evidently accounts for the cavity. There appears to have been a narrow band with a high percentage of lime; the surrounding laterite shows a normal constitution on analysis« (PASCOE 1928 for 1926: 74-75). CAVE DESCRIPTION 1959: GLENNIE (1959: 31) positions the cave at »N.Lat. 22° 09', E.Long. 85° 25'« (note 3) and reports from »Bihar Province: Singhbum [sic!] District. At Noamundi Mine near Jamda a small cave in ferrugineous lateritic material was broken into about 15ft. from the surface when sinking a pit. The laterite here was found to contain 30.5% of CaCO3 which is an unusually large amount and accounts for the solution cave [note 4]. There are probably other caves as in some parts of the iron ore area, the ground sounds hollow« (GLENNIE 1959: 31 after »Rec.Geol.Surv. of India, Vol.LX, p.75« = PASCOE 1926 published 1928: 74-75). CAVE DESCRIPTION 2001: »Près de Jamdam [note 5], dans le district du Singbum [note 6], une petite grotte est signalée sous la croûte laterique (22° 09°N: 85° 25'E) [note 7]« (JUBERTHIE et al. 2001: 1785).
NOTE 1: »Naomundi« (PASCO, E H 1928) or »Noamundi« (GLENNIE, E A 1959) is positioned as »Noamundi« near 22°09'N: 85°32'E (nima.mil/geonames accessed 16.11.2003; falling on AMS sheet NH45-06 Jamshedpur, U502 series, 1959 edition) but indicated as »Naomundi« near 22°09'N: 85°28'E on AMS sheet NH45-06 Sundergarh (U502 series, 1959 edition) and on the India Road Atlas (Eicher Goodearth 2006: 76 A3). NOTE 2: »Jamda« (PASCO, E H 1928) near 22°11'N: 85°26'E (nima.mil/geonames accessed 16.11.2003) or »Janda« (GLENNIE, E A 1959) and »Jamdam« (JUBERTHIE, C et al. 2001) is indicated as »Jamda« on AMS sheet NF45-05 Sundergarh (U502 series, 1962 edition) and as »Bara Jamda« on the India Road Atlas (Eicher Goodearth 2006: 76 A3). NOTE 3: »N.Lat. 22° 09', E.Long. 85° 25'« (GLENNIE, E A 1959: 31) is perhaps a copyist's blunder based on »N.Lat. 22° 09', E.Long. 85° 28'« (22°09'N: 85°28'E). NOTE 4: The cave may as well have originated due to other causes, like piping processes. For sure, the comapartively high CaCO3 content of a sample collected from the »bottom of the pit« indicates an unexpected presence of calcite but such a discovery does not necessarily mean that the calcite occurrence has something to do with the laterite, especially since the depositional environment required for laterite excludes concurrent calcite deposition. The subsurface calcite at Naomundi may have accumulated like any sub-soil caliche formation (kunkar) or like stalagmitic calcite formations (from percolating waters releasing CO2 upon entering the partly air-filled subsurface conduit), especially since »the surrounding laterite shows a normal constitution on analysis.« To have a laterite deposit accummulating, then impregnated with calcite and finally the calcite removed again requires a scenario featuring a full geomorphological cycle, probably including two climatic changes, and fertilizes a few interesting theories. NOTE 5: »Jamdam« (JUBERTHIE, V et al. 2001) reflects an attempt to refer to »Jamda« (PASCO, E H 1928) indicated near 22°11'N: 85°26'E (nima.mil/geonames accessed 16.11.2003) on AMS sheet NF45-05 Sundergarh (U502 series, 1962 edition). NOTE 6: »Singbum« (JUBERTHIE, C et al. 2001) is a corrupted version of Singhbhum, the obsolete district now known as Pashchimi Singhbhum (West Singhbhum) and Purbi Singhbhum (East Singhbhum). NOTE 7: JUBERTHIE, C et al. (2001: 1785) achieved to misplace their anonymous »petite grotte« (no name mentioned) »près de Jamdam« at 22°09'N: 85°25'E and thus at linear distances of 11.8 km due east of Noamundi (where the cave is) and 4.1 km approximately SSW of Jamda.
Caves nearby
| Distance (km) | Name | Length (m) | Depth (m) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10.2 | MATAMPA (Grottes de) | ||
| 10.2 | Gua | ||
| 83.0 | GOPINATHPUR (Caves at) | ||
| 101.7 | RANGAMATIA HILL (Cave on) | ||
| 102.8 | BAGH GHARA, Ichinda | ||
| 162.4 | LALJAL (Cave near) | ||
| 169.1 | KHATRA (Caves at) | ||
| 192.6 | BARSO PANI CAVE | ||
| 205.7 | BHALUK SONDA CAVE |