According to seismologists, the next major earthquake in the Himalayan region will strike the mainland and be especially destructive. The lives of more than 300 million people will be directly affected.
Early on Monday morning, the whole Delhi-NCR was rocked by a shallow 4.0 magnitude earthquake. Following this, a number of small earthquakes were reported from Bihar, Odisha, and even Sikkim. The Monday tremors have revived interest in the “Great Himalayan Earthquake,” even though there were no reports of casualties or property damage because of the low intensity.
For a while now, seismologists have been warning of a big tectonic shock in the environmentally vulnerable area. Scientists have predicted that the Himalayan belt will see an earthquake of magnitude 8 or higher at some point, affecting the Gangetic plain, ever since the 2015 Nepal earthquake. According to renowned geophysicist Roger Bilham, the question is not what but when.
Major earthquakes have been occurring in the Himalayas “every few hundred years,” according to Bilham, who made this claim in an interview with the Times of India. The Himalayan region has seen numerous earthquakes at regular intervals during the last 2,000 years. The majority of these tremors have had magnitudes of 8.7.
However, the expert stated that no earthquakes with a Richter Scale strength greater than 8 had been recorded in the Himalayas in the previous 70 years. For the record, the magnitude of the terrible Nepalese earthquake was 7.8. Nine thousand people were murdered in the Kathmandu earthquake, which also completely destroyed areas of the capital city of Nepal.
When will the “big one” happen?
When the Indian and Eurasian plates contact, earthquakes occur in the Himalayan region. Fault lines with significant geological strain are the result of these tectonic collisions. According to experts, the strain can only be released by a powerful earthquake. According to Bilham’s study paper, there is a concerning lack of a significant earthquake that could alleviate the load on the Himalayan Arc.
According to a 2018 study by Indian scientists, the area between Dehradun and western Nepal could be struck by the next major Himalayan earthquake. A number of significant earthquakes that recently struck India and its neighboring countries were examined by researchers at the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research in Bengaluru. According to the researcher’s analysis of the earthquakes in Gujarat and Nepal, the area has a considerable tectonic build-up.
Is Delhi prepared for a significant earthquake?
Delhi is located in the IV zone of India’s seismic map, according to a 2019 report released by the National Disaster Management Authority. The Delhi-Hardwar Ridge is the cause of Delhi’s seismic vulnerability. The extension of the Aravali Mountain range beneath the Ganga basin corresponds with this geological structure. Major Indian cities, ranging from Delhi to Shimla, are particularly vulnerable.
Why is a future earthquake in the Himalayas so dangerous?
Because it will strike the mainland, seismologists predict that the next major earthquake in the Himalayan region will be very damaging. More than 300 million people’s lives will be directly impacted. The Himalayan earthquake is extremely deadly due to its land-based location. In the case of a mega-quake, urban infrastructure is more susceptible to the intense shaking.
