Indus-Yarlung suture zone

The rocks of the suture zone consist of an ophiolite mélanges composed of Neotethys oceanic crustal flyschs and ophiolites; the Dras Volcanics: which are basalts, dacites and minor radiolarian cherts – the remains of a mid- to late Mesozoic volcanic island arc; and the Indus Molasse which are an Eocene or later continental clastic sediments.

During the trench-continent collision, segments of the crust and upper mantle were emplaced onto the Indian Plate.

[3] Some think that the many ophiolites that define the suture are not remnants of a very big ocean, but of a small back-arc basin structure.

[4] More recently it has been suggested that these ophiolites formed during Early Cretaceous subduction initiation (Hu and Stern, 2020).

Early Cretaceous Subduction Initiation in Southern Tibet Caused the Northward Flight of India.