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DIMAPUR, NAGALAND — A message claiming that a powerful 7.2 magnitude earthquake with its epicenter at Manipur’s capital city Imphal will hit Nagaland state on February 26 has been doing the rounds on social media, creating panic among people.
The message that comes in a map under the headline “2023 India Earthquake” also claimed that the impending earthquake will happen at 12.09 pm on February 26 and last for 31 seconds. However, the claim is unfounded with no scientific proof that Manipur and Nagaland will be hit by a tremor.
Meanwhile, the Nagaland State Disaster Management Authority (NSDMA) has clarified by informing the public that the warning being circulated on social media is not from a government authenticated or authorised agency.
It added that the warning about an impending earthquake has no relation to any of the authorised nodal agency monitoring seismic activity in the country, such as National Centre for Seismology, Ministry of Earth Sciences, government of India.
The NSDMA also advised the public not to panic but be aware and continue to adhere to various safety measures it issues from time to time concerning earthquakes as Nagaland and other north-eastern states including Manipur lies in the Seismic Zone-V and in a tectonic plate boundary which is most vulnerable to earthquakes.
It may be recalled that a similar hoax message claiming that an earthquake measuring 8.5 on the Richter scale would hit Nagaland, Manipur and other north-eastern states of India between August 29 and 30 was widely shared in 2017, causing panic among the people, but it turned out to be a hoax.
Such rumours surface from time to time but going by scientific studies, it is clear that earthquake cannot be predicted. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) has also stated on its website that scientists may not be able to predict an earthquake even in future.