Minor tremors in the Himalayas could be a precursor to major earthquake, says top scientist Dehradun: The recent tremors felt in Delhi-NCR, Uttarakhand and Nepal have caused panic among the residents even as scientists have warned that the minor quakes could be a precursor to major earthquakes in the future. In a special conversation with ETV Bharat, Kalachand Sai, Director of Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology Dehradun in Uttarakhand said that in the last three-four days, an earthquake of more than 5.5 magnitude has occurred in the area of Western Nepal and Eastern Uttarakhand owing to the friction between the Indian Plate and the Eurasian Plate.
Also read:Earthquake tremors felt in Delhi, parts of north India
Sai said that a lot of energy has accumulated in the region in geological terms which gets released at the time of the earthquakes. The Wadia Institute Director said that the Himalayan region is quite stressed due to friction and is seismically quite strong. Significantly, the region falls in seismic zones 4 and 5 thereby underscoring the vulnerability of the major earthquakes in the region.
Sai said that studies through GPS and seismology have revealed that the friction between the plates generates a lot of energy leading to earthquakes. If this energy gets released simultaneously then the possibility of a major earthquake cannot be ruled out, Sai said. He however said that currently there is no such technology available through which it can be told how much energy will be released from the stored energy and when it will happen.
Experts said that any major earthquake in the Himalayan region will cause huge devastation not only in Nepal, Uttarakhand but also in Delhi. That said, if earthquakes of moderate magnitude in 5.5 to 6.0 range keep occurring, then the bigger earthquakes can be shifted forward.
