6.8 earthquake shakes Afghanistan, tremors felt in north India

An earthquake of magnitude 6.8 struck the Hindukush region in northern Afghanistan in the afternoon on Sunday, with strong tremors being felt through most of north India, reports The Indian Express.

The epicentre of the earthquake was located 39 km west-southwest of Eshkasham town in Afghanistan, almost on the border with Tajikistan. The place is about 282 km north east of Kabul, according to the US Geological Survey.

This is very near to the location of the 7.5 magnitude earthquake that had struck the region on October 26 last year. That earthquake was also felt very strongly throughout north and northwest India.

Today’s earthquake originated 210 km below the earth’s surface, a deep earthquake that is common in this area. Deep earthquakes travel very far, a reason why they are felt so strongly as far ahead as Delhi, about 1200 km away.

The quake was also felt in Srinagar and elsewhere in Jammu and Kashmir besides Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.

The tremors hit Kabul hard, Xinhua news agency said.

Pakistani media said the tremors were strongly felt in Lahore and other parts of Punjab province.