Assam Jolted By 6.4 Richter Scale Earthquake, Tremors Felt Across North East

A powerful earthquake measuring 6.4 on the Richter Scale jolted Assam and other parts of northeast on Wednesday while six aftershocks were recorded in the hours after the first quake which shook up Sonitpur in northern Assam at 7.51 a.m. on Wednesday.

According to the National Centre for Seismology (NCS), the tremors were felt even in North Bengal and other parts of the northeastern states.

According to the disaster management officials in Guwahati, there are reports of damages of buildings and roads in different parts of Sonitpur, Tezpur, Nagaon and adjoining areas but detailed reports are awaited.

The NCS data said that after the first quake, six aftershocks of magnitude 3.2 to 4.7 on the Richter Scale were recorded over the next 2 hours 47 minutes in the vicinity of Sonitpur and Nagaon districts. Successive earthquakes in the mountainous northeastern states specially in Assam, Mizoram and Manipur have the authorities worried.

Seismologists consider the mountainous northeastern region as the sixth most earthquake-prone belt in the world.

In 1950, an earthquake measuring 8.7 on the Richter scale had altered the course of the mighty Brahmaputra river, which passes by the congested Guwahati city.

(This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.)