Moderate Earthquake Jolts Delhi NCR; Magnitude 4.5 Recorded Near Rohtak

"The ground shook vigorously for 6 to 7 seconds, and almost everyone felt it. Some of us came outside the home after the shaking stopped. There was even a mild aftershock at around 10 pm," recalled Navdeep Dahiya, a resident of Rohtak. Experts say that earthquakes of less than five magnitudes are classified as light and are unlikely to cause large-scale damage, unless in case of weak or compromised structures.

Several low-intensity earthquakes have been recorded in and around the national capital since April. This is reportedly the seventh earthquake which shook the NCR region in the last one month, however, the first with nearly-moderate intensity. A few weeks ago, on April 12, the capital witnessed an earthquake of magnitude 3.4 on the Richter scale at the epicentre near Sonia Vihar.

Yesterday, May 28, a comparable earthquake of magnitude 4.3 was reported in Ladakh region at around 10 pm.

The entire Himalayan seismic zone is vulnerable to strong earthquakes. The Indian tectonic plate is continuously driving into the Eurasian plates around this region at a speed of 44 mm/year. Due to this motion of tectonic plates, stress builds up, and the earthquakes are triggered to release tension.

Many parts of north, east and northeastern India are at constant risk of strong earthquakes due to this phenomenon. The maximum risk areas for high-intensity earthquakes are classified as Zone-V in India. The zone broadly comprises entire northeastern India, parts of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Rann of Kutch in Gujarat, parts of North Bihar and Andaman & Nicobar Islands.

Delhi comes under Zone-IV, which is also known as the High Damage Risk Zone. The extent of damage due to earthquakes is maximised primarily due to population density and old, crumbling structures in the capital.

The long-term seismological analysis in the region shows that the amount of energy getting accumulated in the subduction zones in the Himalayan zone is not equally dissipated through the small and moderate earthquakes that are happening right now. The energy has been building up, and the only relief is a strong earthquake.

Consequently, an earthquake of magnitude higher than eight has been projected in the Himalayan seismic zone. To compare, the Nepal earthquake of 2015 was of magnitude 7.8, and it claimed over 8,800 lives. Scientists, therefore, urge the people and authorities to be prepared by strict adherence to the building codes.

As they say, earthquakes do not kill people; buildings do!

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