A medium-intensity earthquake measuring 4.2 on the Richter scale hit parts of Delhi-NCR on Thursday night. According to the Ministry of Earth Sciences’ National Centre for Seismology, the earthquake, with a depth of five km, had its epicentre near Alwar in Rajasthan.
The earthquake, which struck at 11.46 pm, created panic, waking up people. Those who were awake claim that they saw the walls shaking. Fear of aftershocks sent people rushing outdoors despite the cold. There are no reports of any damage to properties or injuries to anyone so far.
In a tweet, Skymet Weather said, “Earthquake tremors in Delhi NCR. Tremors felt in Gurugram, Noida, and Ghaziabad. As per the National Centre for Seismology, the epicentre was suggested to be 48 kilometres southwest of Gurugram.”
Earlier in the day on Thursday, an earthquake, of 3.0 on the Richter scale, occurred in Jaipur. As per the National Centre for Seismology (NCS), the tremors were felt around 11 am, 64 kilometres North-West of Jaipur. “Earthquake of Magnitude: 3.0, Occurred on 17-12-2020, 11:26:01 IST, Lat: 27.40 and Long: 75.43, Depth: 5 Km, Location: 64km NW of Jaipur, Rajasthan, India,” NCS tweeted.
Twitter in the meantime is having a field day with memes on the quake, with several even blaming the ‘2020 factor’.
Meanwhile, scores of farmers are protesting on the outskirts of Delhi-NCR against the Centre’s farm laws. On Thursday, the Supreme Court suggested that the central government put the implementation of the new farm laws on pause, adding that it will enable negotiations with farmers.
The Centre, however, argued that if the enactment were put on hold, the farmers would not come forward for negotiation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address farmers in Madhya Pradesh through video conferencing at a Kisan Sammelan on Friday.
