Earthquake jolts Assam, parts of NE; no major damages reported

Guwahati: An earthquake of 5.8 magnitude jolted Assam, parts of the northeast, West Bengal and neighbouring countries on Sunday afternoon at 4:41 pm, IMD officials said.Even though there was no immediate report of any major damage, including building collapse or loss of life, three aftershocks were felt following the first tremor, which the IMD said was of magnitude 5.8 on the Richter scale, with the epicentre at Udalguri in Assam. The depth of the earthquake was 5 km.According to a preliminary report by the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), there were minor damage to properties, including wall cracks and non-structural damages in Biswanath, Darrang, Hojai, Nalbari and Sonitpur districts, while two girls were injured due to the collapse of a ceiling at Danda Saharia Girls’ Hostel in Udalguri.Soon after the earthquake, Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma wrote in a post on X that there was no report of any major damage or loss of life. “We are actively monitoring the situation,” he wrote.PM Modi’s event at Golaghat in upper Assam ended about 45 minutes before the major jolt due to the first earthquake.Later in the evening, in another post, Sarma said PM Modi immediately enquired about the earthquake after arriving in Kolkata from Assam’s Jorhat. “Immediately upon his arrival, he called me to enquire about the earthquake and the damages caused. He assured me of all possible support from the Govt of India. I thank him for his concern,” Sarma wrote. He said that at present, the situation is under control and various teams are on the ground assessing the extent of the damages.Panic-stricken people rushed to the courtyards of their houses and apartments in Guwahati and other parts of the state despite heavy rain. “I thought my apartment would collapse today. I ran for safety as the jolt continued for more than a minute. The kitchen utensils dropped from the almirah due to the tremors,” said Sankar Saha of Ulubari area in Guwahati.The jolt was felt in Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, and other northeastern states. Though there were reports of buildings swaying in Meghalaya, no human casualty or significant damages were reported from the hill state.Meghalaya is prone to frequent earthquakes as it is located on Seismic Zone-V. (With inputs from Manosh Das)