4.8 Magnitude Earthquake Shakes Kashmir Valley, Epicentre in Budgam

Although the earthquake measured only 4.8 on the Richter scale, its impact was widespread because its epicentre was in the central Budgam district.

Officials of the disaster management authority said the earthquake occurred at 5.35 a.m.

Its epicentre was in the Budgam district of the Valley. The earthquake shook Kashmir, as the epicentre was in the Valley itself, in Budgam, barely 21 km north of the capital city, Srinagar.

People ran out of their homes in panic as windows and doors rattled under the impact. Worried about the welfare of relatives and friends, locals started calling each other on mobile phones, as luckily the services remained intact.

Reports about possible casualties or damage to property were still being collected by the authorities.

The shock waves were reminiscent of the 2005 massive earthquake that occurred on October 8, 2005, measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale with Mercalli intensity of XI, which is regarded as extreme.

The epicentre of that earthquake was in Muzaffarabad town of Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK). That earthquake was so massive that it was felt in far-off Tajikistan, Xinjiang and Afghanistan.

The 2005 earthquake killed more than 80,000 people, and it razed the Muzaffarabad town in PoK to rubble. Nearly three and a half million people were left without shelter, while 1.38 lakh people were injured in the 2005 earthquake in the occupied Kashmir.

Before 2005, another massive earthquake occurred in the Valley on May 30, 1885. It was called the Baramulla earthquake. Its magnitude was 6.8 on the Richter scale.

Again, since the epicentre of the 1885 earthquake was in the Valley, its impact was massive. At least 3,081 people were killed, and severe property damage resulted.

Seismologically, the Kashmir Valley, right up to Zanskar in the Ladakh region, is situated in an earthquake-prone region, where tremors have wreaked havoc in the past.

- IANS