10-Sec Scare: Tremors Jolt City Again; 8th Earthquake Shocks

10-Sec Scare: Tremors Jolt City Again; 8th Earthquake Shocks In 14 Months

LUCKNOW: Tremors shook Lucknow and parts of UP for several seconds after an earthquake measuring 6.2 on the Richter scale hit Nepal on Tuesday afternoon. The epicentre of the earthquake was around 280km away from Lucknow.

People rushed out of homes and offices as buildings began to shake around 2.51pm. This was the eight tremor that jolted the city since August last year, raising concerns among the citizens and geological experts.

As per the data from the National Center of Seismology (NCS), the area along the Indo-Nepal border, touching parts of UP and Uttarakhand, experienced eight tremors between 2:25pm and 7:29pm.

The first quake came at 2.25pm measuring 4.6 on the Richter scale. The next and the major one with 6.2 magnitude on the Richter Scale came at 2.51pm and lasted around 10 seconds. There were six aftershocks measuring 3.6 at 3.06pm; 3.1 at 3.19pm; 3.5 at 4.13pm; 4.3 at 5.04pm; 3.9 at 5.23pm and 3.0 at 7.29pm. The tremors of those above 4 were felt in UP.
The epicentre was in the Diyapal district of western Nepal, 280km away from Lucknow. Recorded at 6.2-magnitude, it was a shallow earthquake, originating just 5km below the earth’s surface. “The preliminary fault plane solution derived from moment tensor inversion suggests a thrust fault. Maximum felt intensity VI in epicentral region and minimum intensity of II on Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) scale have been reported from a distance of around 5km and 500km from the epicentre respectively,” read the preliminary report prepared by the NCS on Tuesday evening.

The NCS report suggests that the occurrence of earthquakes in the region is attributed mainly to the tectonic settings of the Himalayas. “Besides several local faults and geological demarcated lineaments, the neighbouring states of India that felt earthquake shaking falls under the seismic hazard zones V and IV,” the report added.

The Himalayan region is prone to earthquakes as the Indian plate is steadily subducting beneath the Eurasian plate.
“This leads to an increase in resistance and resulting tension. When this tension builds up, it releases and there’s no way of predicting which side it will release. Given that the cities on the Ganga plains are experiencing major tremors is forcing to shed the previously held norms that this area is not prone to earthquakes,” pointed out former deputy director, Geological Survey of India, Satish Tripathi.

Lucknow not at high risk’ Experts say that it is highly unlikely for a city like Lucknow to experience any major movement beneath its surface.
“Lucknow comes under seismic zone 3, which has moderate risk. The Ganga plain is made up of loose unconsolidated sand, silt and clay known as alluvium. The loose alluvium acts as a shock absorber that reduces the intensity of the earthquakes. And, earthquakes are the property of brittle substances like rocks,” said Lucknow University professor and glacier expert Dhruv Sen Singh.TOI

JKNN