Earthquake Timebomb Active Under the Himalayan Regions

An earthquake of 6.6 magnitude hit Nepal today claiming at least six lives. Tremors were also felt in northern regions of India including Delhi. The recurrence of earthquakes in Nepal makes us remember that the Himalayan regions of India are always under the threat of major earthquakes. Hilly regions of Uttrakhand are almost sitting on the ticking earthquake timebomb. Increased human activities like the construction of hydel projects and tourism infrastructure have increased the threat of major losses during a possible earthquake in the region.

Reason behind:

The Central Himalayan region is a major seismically active area of the world. Earthquakes are caused by volcanic activities or the movement of tectonic plates. Tectonic plate movement occurs under the surface of the earth.

There are seven major tectonic plates in the world. They are African, Antarctic, Eurasian, Indo-Australian, North American, Pacific, and South American tectonic plates. Earthquakes in Himalayan regions like Nepal are caused by the shifting of the tectonic plate of Indian sub-continent under the Eurasian plate. One tectonic plate thrusting against another causes massive tremors on the earth’s crust. It is experienced as a devastating earthquake. The Himalayas were formed by the thrust of one tectonic plate against the other. So, it is the region where the chances of earthquakes are quite high.

Worries of Uttarakhand:  

During past 10 years, hilly regions of Uttrakhand have already experienced around 700 minor earthquakes. They did not cause much damage as their intensity was less than 3 on Richter scale. As per geologists, the possibility of occurrence of a major earthquake in the region always looms large.

Chamoli and Bageshwar districts of Uttrakhand are cent percent hyper-sensitive seismic zones. Dehradun, Champawat, Nainital, Uddhamsingh Nagar and Haridwar, come under 100 percent sensitive zone for earthquakes. If any big earthquake hits these areas, the loss of lives and property would be quite high.