Low Intensity Earthquake of Magnitude 2.8 Hits Rohtak in Haryana; the 8th One Since April 12

A low intensity earthquake of magnitude 2.8 hit Rohtak in Haryana on Wednesday, the National Centre for Seismology said.

The NCS said quake occurred at 12:58 pm at a depth of 5 km. Since April 12, the Delhi-NCR has recorded 18 quakes. Of these 8 have taken place in Rohtak.

Two earthquakes had previously hit Rohtak in Haryana in the span of an hour on May 29, tremors of which were felt in the national capital, said the National Centre for Seismology. Rohtak is nearly 60 km from Delhi.

The first quake, a medium intensity one of 4.6 magnitude, hit the Haryana city at 9.08pm at a depth of 5 km. The second quake was of a lower intensity of magnitude 2.9 and occurred at the same location at 10pm, said the NCS.

There were no immediate reports of any loss of life or property.

The areas around Delhi are known for reporting low-intensity earthquakes and the capital has been jolted by a series of tremors over the last month. A low-intensity earthquake of magnitude 2.2 hit the national capital on May 15, which was the fourth since April 12, according to NCS.

On May 10, a medium-intensity earthquake of magnitude 3.4 hit the area near Wazirpur in northeast Delhi.

Wazirpur and its nearby areas were the epicentre of the earthquakes on April 12 and April 13, of magnitude 3.5 and 2.7, respectively. There are five seismic zones. Delhi falls in the fourth zone.

According to the Delhi Disaster Management Authority, seismicity around Delhi appears to be associated with a major geological structure known as the Delhi-Hardwar Ridge.

An earthquake of magnitude 2.8 had hit the national capital in 2004. Another 3.4 magnitude quake was recorded in the city in 2001, according to official data.

The major quakes recorded near the national capital were at Bulandshahr (magnitude 6.7) on October 10, 1956 and at Moradabad (magnitude 5.8) on August 15, 1966. Both are in western Uttar Pradesh.

(With inputs from PTI)