Srinagar: A light-intensity earthquake measuring 3.2 on the Richter scale struck the Kashmir Valley on Monday evening.
The earthquake occurred at 6.44 p.m. with a magnitude of 3.2.
The epicentre was located 28 km south-east of Srinagar city, at latitude 33.89 degrees north and longitude 74.99 degrees east.
Its location was in Pulwama district, according to data posted by the National Centre for Seismology (NCS).
The earthquake originated at a depth of 5 km below the Earth’s surface.
Experts said the shallow depth was the reason tremors were felt despite the relatively low magnitude of the earthquake.
Officials said no loss of life or damage to property had been reported from anywhere in the Valley so far.
The Kashmir Valley is classified under Seismic Zone V, the highest earthquake-risk category under the Bureau of Indian Standards’ seismic zoning classification.
The Valley is located in the north-western Himalayas at the collision zone of the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates.
Active fault lines in the region include the Himalayan Frontal Thrust (HFT), Main Boundary Thrust (MBT), Main Central Thrust (MCT), and the local Balapur and Kishtwar fault systems.
According to seismologists, the region acts as a seismic gap where tectonic stress and strain have accumulated for centuries without a major surface-rupturing release, increasing the potential for a high-magnitude earthquake.
The Valley has experienced major destructive earthquakes in the past, including those in 1555, 1669, 1779, 1885 and the 2005 Kashmir earthquake.
Areas such as Srinagar, Baramulla and Kupwara contain thick, soft, water-saturated basin sediments with shallow groundwater tables, around 4 to 6 metres deep, which can lose bearing strength and liquefy during intense shaking.
More than 98 per cent of buildings in urban centres such as Srinagar are non-engineered masonry structures with limited seismic resistance.
Traditional flexible construction styles, such as ‘Taq’ and ‘Dhajji Dewari’ timber-interlaced wall systems, have largely been replaced by rigid and heavier concrete-and-brick structures.
The Valley is home to a dense population and has witnessed rapid, largely unregulated urban expansion in several high-risk areas and zones close to active faults.
(IANS)
