5.7 magnitude earthquake rocks Ladakh and J&K

SRINAGAR — An earthquake, measuring 5.7 on the Richter scale, occurred on Monday with the epicentre in the Leh area of the Ladakh region and the shocks were felt in Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir with varying intensity.

Mukhtar Ahmad, Director of the local MET Department, told IANS, "An earthquake measuring 5.7 on the Richter scale occurred at 11.51 am today with the epicentre in the Leh area of the Ladakh region. “The coordinates of the earthquake were latitude 36.71 north and longitude 74.32 east. It occurred 171 Kms inside the Earth's crust."

The tremors of the earthquake were felt in varying degrees in Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir.

So far, no reports of any casualties or property damage have been reported from anywhere.

Parts of the Ladakh region and the Valley are located in seismologically sensitive areas.

On October 8, 2005, an earthquake, measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale, occurred at occurred at 8.50 a.m. with epicentre in Muzaffarabad town of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

Besides razing the entire Muzaffarabad town to rubble, it had also affected nearby Balakot in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and some areas of Jammu and Kashmir.

It registered a moment magnitude of 7.6 on the Richter scale and had a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (Extreme).

The earthquake was also felt in Afghanistan, Tajikistan and the Xinjiang region. The severity of the damage caused by the earthquake is attributed to severe upthrust.

Although not the largest earthquake to hit this region in terms of magnitude, it is considered the deadliest, surpassing the 1935 Quetta earthquake.

It was the fifth-deadliest natural disaster of the decade. Sources indicate that the official death toll in this quake in Pakistan was between 73,276 and 87,350, with some estimates being as high as over 1,00,000 dead.

In India, 1,360 people were killed while 6,266 were injured. Four others died in Afghanistan.