On Tuesday night, a powerful earthquake shook North India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan.[0] The epicenter of the earthquake was in the Hindu Kush region of Afghanistan, with an intensity of 6.6 on the Richter scale and a depth of 156 km beneath the surface.[1] People from Delhi-NCR, Uttarakhand, Punjab, and other parts of North India felt the tremors of the earthquake and came out of their homes in panic. The tremors were so strong that people in Pakistan’s Islamabad, Lahore, and Peshawar also felt them.

The earthquake in Afghanistan also claimed lives in Pakistan, with at least two people killed and six injured in roof, wall, and house collapse incidents in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.[2] There were also stampedes reported in the markets of Rawalpindi.[3] In India, no major damage or casualties have been reported yet, but buildings in Jamia Nagar, Kalkaji, and Shahdara were reportedly tilting.

According to the US Geological Services, the earthquake originated 40 km southeast of Jurm, Afghanistan, and was measured by India’s National Center for Seismology at 10.17.27 pm (IST) at 6.6.[4] The tremors were felt until Ganga’s mother Mukhba, and even in Faridabad, Ambala, Jind in Haryana.[5] The Delhi Fire Brigade received calls for help from two places in Jamia Nagar and Shakarpur area due to the earthquake.[6]

Geologists suggest that most of the flats and houses in Delhi-NCR, Noida, Gurugram, Ghaziabad, Faridabad, etc. cannot withstand the strong tremors of an earthquake.[0] In many areas of Delhi, there are illegal colonies and hundreds of such old buildings which are on the verge of collapse during an earthquake.[0] According to the Ministry of Earth Sciences, the Yamuna plains are more prone to earthquakes, and areas like East Delhi, Lutyens’ Delhi, Sarita Vihar, Paschim Vihar, Wazirabad, Karol Bagh, and Janakpuri can face a major earthquake.[0]

Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, and Uttarakhand are also sensitive to earthquakes, and people should be aware of the precautions they should take to avoid any damage.[5]

0. "Delhi Earthquake News दिल्ली NCR की अधिकांश इमारतें नहीं झेल सकती भूकंप इन इलाकों में सबसे ज्यादा खतरा.." दैनिक जागरण (Dainik Jagran), 21 Mar. 2023, https://www.jagran.com/delhi/new-delhi-city-ncr-delhi-earthquake-news-most-of-the-buildings-in-delhi-ncr-are-not-earthquake-proof-most-of-the-danger-in-these-areas-23363450.html

1. "जैसलमेर में भी महसूस हुआ भूकम्प: खिड़कियां और कांच हिलने लगे, सिस्मिक जोन में है जैसलमेर" Dainik Bhaskar, 22 Mar. 2023, https://www.bhaskar.com/local/rajasthan/jaisalmer/news/windows-and-glass-started-shaking-jaisalmer-is-in-the-seismic-zone-131069517.html

2. "पाकिस्तान में 6.8 तीव्रता के भूकंप से 11 लोगों की मौत, 150 से अधिक हुए घायल" NDTV India, 21 Mar. 2023, https://ndtv.in/world-news/earthquake-jolts-pakistan-5-people-injured-residents-flee-homes-3882130

3. "पाकिस्तान में भूकंप संबंधी घटनाओं में नौ लोगों की मौत" IBC24 News (हिंदी), 22 Mar. 2023, https://www.ibc24.in/world/nine-killed-in-earthquake-related-incidents-in-pakistan-1461922.html

4. "Earthquake: पाकिस्तान और अफगानिस्तान में भूकंप से खौफ में लोग, 11 की मौत, 100 से अधिक अस्पताल में भर्ती" News18 हिंदी, 22 Mar. 2023, https://hindi.news18.com/news/world/south-asia-earthquake-killed-9-in-pakistan-afghanistan-over-100-people-in-hospitals-after-tremors-5613775.html

5. "Earthquake: उत्तराखंड के कई इलाकों में महसूस हुए भूकंप के झटके, घरों से बाहर भागे लोग" अमर उजाला, 21 Mar. 2023, https://www.amarujala.com/dehradun/earthquake-tremors-felt-in-many-districts-of-uttarakhand-today-2023-03-21

6. "Earthquake : दिल्ली-NCR में भूकंप के तेज झटकों से झुकी इमारतें, दमकल विभाग को मिली सूचना" NDTV India, 21 Mar. 2023, https://ndtv.in/india/earthquake-buildings-tilted-due-to-strong-tremors-of-earthquake-in-delhi-ncr-mcd-alerted-3881915