An earthquake of 4.0 magnitude rocked parts of Delhi-NCR early on Monday, the National Center for Seismology said. The earthquake, with its epicentre in New Delhi, struck at a depth of five kilometres at 5:36 am, it said in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter).
An official told the news agency PTI that the epicentre was near Durgabai Deshmukh College of Special Education in Dhaula Kuan. That region, which has a lake nearby, has been experiencing smaller, low-magnitude quakes once every two to three years. It recorded a 3.3-magnitude earthquake in 2015, he said.
The official added that a loud sound was also heard when the earthquake hit. The strong tremors triggered by the earthquake prompted residents of several high-rise buildings in Delhi, Noida, Greater Noida, and Ghaziabad to rush out.
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A woman in her 50s who was out on a morning walk in E Block of Noida Sector 20 said, "'Hum log bahar park me walk kar rahe the toh pata nahin chala. Lekin kafi tej tha. Log bahar aa gaye. (We were walking in the park, so we didn't feel it strongly. But it was quite strong. People came rushing out)'."
In a post on X, the Delhi Police said, "We hope you all are safe, Delhi!" It also urged citizens to call the emergency 112 helpline.
AAP leader Atishi said on X, "A strong earthquake just hit Delhi. I pray to God that everyone is safe."
Resharing Atishi's post, AAP supremo
"Massive tremors were felt 10 minutes back in Delhi, woke us up from sleep. I hope and pray everyone is safe and sound," AICC national spokesperson Ragini Nayak said in a post on X.
A local resident said, "I have never experienced an earthquake like this in my life. Everyone in the neighborhood rushed outside... I am still feeling scared..."
A woman said, "There was such a strong shock, such a strong shock that we all got scared. In fear, everyone rushed out of their homes. By the time the gate was opened, the shock came so strong that there was no time to understand it..."