Union Ministry of Earth Science, Kiren Rijiju on Wednesday informed Lok Sabha that the Himalayan region consisting of Northern part of India and Neighbour Nepal had experienced 124 earthquakes between January and November 2023. He also mentioned that the highly seismically active areas are prone to frequent earthquakes due to collision tectonics, where the Indian plate subducts beneath the Eurasian Plate.

He said that data indicates that there has been an increase in earthquake activity in 2023 and that it was mainly attributed to the activation of the Almora fault in Western Nepal which triggered significant mainshock earthquakes measuring 5.8 on the Richter Scale on 24th January, M:6.2 on 3rd October and M: 6.4 on 3rd November 2023. These mainshocks, accompanied by subsequent aftershocks, have led to an increased frequency of earthquakes in the year 2023. However, the background seismicity remained unchanged during this period, Rijiju’s written reply stated.

Details of earthquake occurrences (for Magnitude 3.0 and above) in these regions as recorded by National Center for Seismology, New Delhi

He further informed that the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has published the Seismic Zoning Map of India, ranging from Zone II to V, and offers guidelines for implementing the essential engineering codes and practices to construct earthquake-resistant buildings. The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has been responsible agency for various precautionary measures such as earthquake drills, awareness programs, earthquake management, etc., to enhance preparedness and response to earthquake related incidents, he added.