<p>The Tipam Sandstone Formation of the Bengal Basin, deposited during the Pliocene, represents a crucial archive for understanding sedimentary processes, provenance, and tectonic evolution in an active foreland basin setting. This study integrates granulometric analysis, heavy mineral composition, and statistical modeling to reconstruct the depositional environment, sediment transport mechanisms, source rock characteristics, and tectonic implications of the formation. Textural parameters indicate that the studied sandstones are fine to medium grained, moderately to moderately well sorted, and display predominantly leptokurtic and fine-skewed grain size distributions. Bivariate plots and sedimentological indices suggest deposition under a fluvial regime dominated by bedload transport through traction and saltation processes, with energy fluctuations likely linked to seasonal variations. Heavy mineral analysis reveals a diverse assemblage dominated by minerals such as garnet, epidote, kyanite, sillimanite, and staurolite, alongside ultrastable (zircon, tourmaline, rutile) and mafic (pyroxene, opaque) components. These indicate a mixed provenance from the Higher Himalayan Crystalline Series, Lesser Himalayan Sequence, Shillong Plateau, and the Indo-Burma Ranges, including potential ophiolitic sources. The source lithologies varied from low- to high-grade metamorphic, igneous, and recycled sedimentary/metasedimentary sources. Low zircon–tourmaline–rutile (ZTR) index (19.29) values and the angular to sub-angular morphology of grains point to mineralogical immaturity and a proximal sediment supply. Tectonically, the Tipam Sandstone Formation reflects active uplift, erosion, and rapid sedimentation within a foreland basin influenced by Himalayan and Indo-Burmese orogeny. The transition from shallow marine-deltaic to fluvial conditions marks a significant phase of basin evolution driven by compressional tectonics during the Pliocene.</p> Graphical Abstract <p></p>