Shallow Earthquake of Magnitude 4.4 Jolts Delhi-NCR

NEW DELHI:
A relatively mild earthquake of magnitude 4.4 jolted Delhi and nearby areas on Thursday morning. The earthquake originated around Jhajjar in Haryana and was felt across the National Capital Region.

The National Centre of Seismology said the earthquake was shallow and originated about 10 km below the earth’s surface. Shallow earthquakes have greater capacity to cause damage, but in this case, the magnitude of the earthquake was not very strong. There were no immediate reports of any damage having been caused by the earthquake.

Delhi is prone to earthquakes and falls in Zone IV of seismically active areas of the country, which is the second highest category.

In recent years, the region has experienced several magnitude 4 earthquakes. In 2022, a 4.1-magnitude earthquake originated in Delhi’s neighbouring state Haryana. It was a shallow quake but did not cause any damage. Delhi has not recorded an earthquake above magnitude 5 in the last 10 years, according to data from the US Geological Survey.