Assam Fossils Reveal Kevda Plant Survived for 24 Million Years

The discovery offers fresh evidence that India acted as a safe refuge for ancient tropical plant species while many disappeared from other parts of the world as the climate changed.

Scientists have uncovered fossil leaves in Assam that reveal the Kevda plant, famous for its fragrant kewra essence used in sweets, perfumes, traditional medicine and religious rituals, has been part of the Indian subcontinent for at least 24 million years. The discovery offers fresh evidence that India acted as a safe refuge for ancient tropical plant species while many disappeared from other parts of the world as the climate changed.

Fossil leaves closely match today's Kevda plants

Researchers from the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences (BSIP), Lucknow, recovered four exceptionally preserved fossil leaves from the Tikak Parbat Formation in the Makum Coalfield of Assam. Detailed morphological and microscopic examinations showed striking similarities with modern Kevda plants, including their long sword-shaped leaves, parallel veins and distinctive prickly margins.

The research team, led by Harshita Bhatia and Gaurav Srivastava, compared the fossils with preserved specimens in herbaria and botanical databases as well as fossil records reported from other parts of the world. Their analysis confirmed that the fossils belong to the Pandanaceae family, making them one of the rare fossil records of this plant group and showing that the lineage was firmly established in India millions of years before humans appeared.

Discovery sheds light on India's ancient biodiversity

The study combines geological, palaeobotanical and climate evidence to trace the evolutionary history of the Kevda family. Earlier fossil records from Europe and North America indicate that the ancestors of these plants were once spread across much of the Northern Hemisphere between 85 and 66 million years ago. As global temperatures declined around 34 million years ago, the plants gradually disappeared from many regions and survived mainly in tropical environments.

The newly discovered fossils bridge a major gap in the evolutionary timeline by connecting older fossil records from Europe and North America with younger records from tropical Asia and Australia. Published in the journal Geobios, the research strengthens the view that India preserved ancient tropical plant lineages through periods of major climate change, offering valuable insights into how ecosystems adapted in the past and how they may respond to future environmental shifts.