Strong tremors were felt in Delhi and other parts of the National Capital Region (NCR) around 9 am on Thursday (Juuly 10) as an earthquake struck in Haryana’s Jhajjar district.
The magnitude of the quake was estimated to be around 4.4 on the Richter scale, which measures the magnitude of earthquakes. According to the National Institute of Seismology, the earthquake’s depth was 10 km.
Some of the residents in the capital hurriedly left their homes after fans and other household items swayed after the quake struck. The tremors were also felt in office areas in Noida and Gurugram, and according to reports, computer systems shook and some professionals stepped out of their offices.
In Haryana, the tremors were felt in Gurugram, Rohtak, Dadri and Bahadurgarh. Meerut and Shamli in western Uttar Pradesh also experienced tremors though they were about 200 km from the epicentre in Jhajjar.
Many people posted their experience about the earthquake and how they responded to it. Many felt that it was “longest” they had experienced.
Delhi is located in Seismic Zone 4, which has a higher risk of earthquakes. The national capital is located near several active fault lines, including Delhi-Haridwar Ridge, the Sohna Fault, the Delhi-Moradabad Fault, and the Mahendragarh-Dehradun Fault.
So, earthquakes are not uncommon in Delhi.
The Delhi Disaster Management Authority told the media that seismicity in north India, including the Himalayas, is due to the collision between the Indian tectonic plate with the Eurasian plate. “These colliding plates flex, storing energy like a spring, and when the plate’s margins finally slip to release energy, an earthquake results,” the DDMA explained.
Since 1720, the capital has witnessed at least five earthquakes above 5.5 magnitude on the Richter scale, said reports.
