New Delhi: A 2.7 magnitude earthquake hit the city at around 1:26 pm at a depth of 5 km, the National Centre for Seismology said. There were no immediate reports of any damage to property.
This is the second consecutive day that a low-intensity earthquake hit the national capital, which is under a lockdown to control the spread of the novel coronavirus.
On Sunday evening, a quake measuring 3.5 on the Richter Scale – with its epicenter at north Delhi’s Wazirabad – shook the city at around 5:45 pm, prompting panic-stricken people to come out of their houses. The tremors were also felt in neighbouring Noida, Ghaziabad and Faridabad.
Minutes later, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal tweeted: “Tremors felt in Delhi. Hope everyone is safe. I pray for the safety of each one of you.”
The city falls under the fourth of the five seismic zones. It is rare that Delhi has been the epicentre of an earthquake. The city, however, feels tremors when a quake occurs even as far as central Asia or in the Himalayan range, which is a high seismic zone. An earthquake of magnitude 2.8 had hit the national capital in 2004. Another quake of magnitude 3.4 was recorded in the city in 2001, according to official data, news agency PTI reported.
A majority of population has been asked to stay indoors, people are working from home to ensure social distancing amid the lockdown which has been imposed on March 25 to contain the virus.