Panic gripped denizens of this State Capital and other parts of Madhya Pradesh as tremors were felt soon after the noon on Tuesday. Tremors of two near-simultaneous powerful earthquakes that shook several States in the North and East India, with their epicentres in Nepal and Afghanistan, were felt across Madhya Pradesh in the afternoon, officials said.
"The tremors of the two quakes were experienced in the entire Madhya Pradesh at 12.35 pm and 1.06 pm, respectively," Dr Anupam Kashyapi, Director of the regional centre of the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), said.
However, no casualty was reported from any part of the State, he said. "We have asked people living in the kaccha earthen houses to stay out of their houses in Rewa and Sagar divisions of the State," Kashyapi added. According to officials, the panic-stricken people in Bhopal ran out of their offices, including the State Secretariat, malls and buildings following the tremors.
He said that the first tremors lasted for 95 seconds, while the following ones lasted for around 40 seconds. The April 25 earthquake, which measured 7.9 on the Richter scale, had claimed over 8,000 lives in Nepal. Nearly 80 people were also killed in India, mostly in Bihar, due to the temblor.
In the State Capital mild tremors were experienced at about 12.48 pm. Officials and employees rushed out of the State Secretariat and two other multi-storied buildings in the neighbourhood - Satpura and Vindhyachal - where several head offices of the State Government are housed.
All the three Government buildings were vacated within minutes. The State Cabinet meeting was held in the Secretariat at 12 noon and several Ministers were present when the aftershocks were experienced at 12.48 pm.
Though no casualty was reported thus far, the terrace of an old building at Jehangirabad police station premises here caved in soon after the quake. However, no one was injured.
The earthquake was felt around 12.40 pm and lasted a few seconds, officials said. They also said that initial reports have indicated no loss of life or property damage at any place.
Yashodhara Raje Scindia, Industry Minister and Maya Singh, Minister for Women and Child Welfare, were seen almost running out of the State Secretariat. Both preferred to stand out under the scorching sun.
According to city-based Regional Meteorological Centre's spokesman Wahid Khan, the magnitude of the quake was recorded at 3.4 on the Richter scale at the observatory centre here at 12:37 hrs. Khan said the epicentre of the quake was in Nepal-China border and the magnitude was 7.4 on the Richter scale. Reports from Jabalpur, Sheopur, Sagar, Indore, Rewa, Satna said that people came out of their houses as soon as tremors were felt.