Deadly 6.4 Magnitude Quake Claims 141 Lives in Nepal, Impact Felt in Delhi-NCR and MP-UP

On Friday night at 11:32 PM local time, a powerful earthquake with a magnitude of 6.4 struck Nepal, resulting in the loss of more than 141 lives. Two districts in Nepal were most severely affected, with 36 casualties in Rukum and 105 in Jajarkot.

The epicenter of the earthquake was located approximately 331 kilometers northwest of Kathmandu, 10 kilometers below the earth’s surface. The Director-General of the Department of Information and Public Relations in Nepal, Kuvir Kadayat, has confirmed the fatalities. According to the Kathmandu Post, nearly 140 people have been reported injured due to the earthquake.

The impact of the earthquake was also felt in various parts of India, including Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab, and Bihar. While several regions experienced tremors, there have been no reports of significant loss of life or property damage in India due to the earthquake.

PM Promotes Relief Efforts Nepal’s Prime Minister 

Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ has urged various security agencies to join relief efforts. The PM’s office made the announcement through social media platforms.

Earthquake Tremors in Multiple Regions

The earthquake was also felt in several regions within Madhya Pradesh, including Bhopal, Gwalior, Jabalpur, Satna, and Rewa. Some areas in Agar Malwa and Morena districts of the state also experienced seismic activity. As of the initial reports, there have been no reports of any significant damage in the state.

Earthquake Shakes 11 Districts in Bihar

The earthquake caused significant tremors in 11 districts of Bihar, including Patna, Ara, Darbhanga, Gaya, Vaishali, Khagaria, Siwan, Bettiah, Buxar, Bhojpur, and Nalanda. The earthquake, which lasted for nearly a minute, has been felt in many parts of the state. Some areas of Sitamarhi, Madhubani, Supaul, and Darbhanga fall under Zone 5, which is considered highly seismic. The rest of Bihar, including the capital city Patna, falls under Zone 4, which has lower seismic risk.

Haryana Experiences Tremors 

Several regions in Haryana, including Gurugram, and other areas, felt the impact of the earthquake. People have taken to social media to share images of damaged properties and disrupted living conditions. Many areas reported power outages and fallen ceiling fans and lights.

Uttar Pradesh Also Affected 

Various districts in Uttar Pradesh, including Lucknow, Ghaziabad, Agra, and Kasganj, experienced the earthquake. Residents in Ghaziabad reported that the earthquake lasted for more than 15 seconds.

Understanding Earthquake Intensity

The intensity of an earthquake is measured by the energy released by seismic waves that emanate from the earthquake’s epicenter. The energy spreads out in all directions, causing the shaking felt on the Earth’s surface. The farther you are from the earthquake’s epicenter, the less intense the shaking will be. When the epicenter is closer to the surface, the released energy travels a shorter distance, which can lead to more significant destruction.

Why Do Earthquakes Occur?

Earth’s surface consists of several large and numerous smaller tectonic plates that are constantly moving and interacting with one another. These plates can occasionally become locked, and as stress builds up due to the plates’ movement, they can suddenly release energy, causing an earthquake. In such situations, the stored energy is released, and the tectonic plates may shift, causing an earthquake. In these cases, the energy travels from the point of rupture and disturbance, ultimately leading to an earthquake.

Claim of experts – Crack is active in the Aravalli mountains, earthquakes will occur They come in Jaipur Zone-2 and Western Rajasthan Zone-3. Among them, there is a risk of earthquakes. According to the expert Dr. Rajendrasingh Rathod, there is a fault line (fault) in the eastern part of the Aravalli mountain range. This fault line extends from the eastern border of Rajasthan to Dharmshala. It includes areas of Rajasthan, Jaipur, Ajmer, and Bharatpur.

It is said that in the Aravalli mountains, there has been activity in Crack. Now such earthquakes are also expected in Jaipur and other surrounding areas.

Earthquakes occur in many ways, these are also called fault lines, and there are three types…

• Reverse Fault – The land moves upwards on one side during an earthquake.
• Normal Fault – In this fault, one part of the land moves down.
• Strike-slip Fault – Due to the collision in the tectonic plates, one part of the land moves forward or backward.

467 years ago, an earthquake in China claimed the lives of 8.30 million people. The most dangerous earthquake ever from the point of view of intensity occurred on May 22, 1960, in Chile. It had an intensity of 9.5 on the Richter scale. As a result of this, a tsunami struck many countries, including South Chile, Hawaiian Islands, Japan, Philippines, New Zealand, and Southeast Australia. Many countries suffered severe destruction. 1655 people died, and 3000 people were injured. The most deadly earthquake in China occurred in 1556 when 8.30 million people died.