‘Nepal, U’khand tremors may be indicators of a bigger quake’

KANPUR : Earthquakes in Nepal and Uttarakhand in the past one week could be an indicator of a bigger threat in the region. The previous quake hit Nepal in 2015 and the epicentre was the upper part of the Himalayan front. But this time, the seismic activity moved to west of Nepal, which is a cause of concern, said Prof Javed N Malik of the earth sciences department at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur.

“This doesn’t mean it will happen immediately, it can be in 10 years or 50 years. But we are in that zone and need to be

cautious and prepared,” said Malik citing the research published in 2017 in a reputed journal, ‘Tectonic Physics’.

“This time, the epicentre has been west of Nepal, which suggests

the energy created by friction in tectonic plates was finding new spaces for release,” he said. IIT- K’s earth sciences department has been studying the seismic activity in Himalayas

and its effect on India.

Prof Dhruv Sen Singh, director, Institute of Hydrocarbon Energy and Geo-resources, University of Lucknow, said the built-up total energy has not fully been released and could lead to a bigger earthquake. At the same time, he pointed out, it is a good sign that energy is being released through low intensity quakes. “There is need for close monitoring and being cautious,” he said.

The biggest earthquake in Uttarakhand-Nepal region was recorded in 1505 and then 1803. During the 16th and 20th century, many quakes hit Kashmir, North-East, Himachal Pradesh and Assam.