Twin quakes jolt Chikkaballapur, no casualty

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: Two earthquakes of magnitude 2.9 and 3 on the Richter Scale were recorded in Chikkaballapur district by Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre (KSNDMC) on Wednesday. There was no casualty or damage to property anywhere in the quake-hit villages.

The epicenter of the first earthquake was located at Mandikal gram panchayat in Chikkaballapur taluk which was of 2.9 magnitude and occurred at around 7:10 am. The epicenter of the second earthquake was located near Bhogaparthi village in Addagallu gram panchayat of Chikkaballapur taluk and occurred at 7:14 am. People ran out of their houses as they felt the tremors for a few seconds.

The KSNDMC Director said, “The intensities observed are low and the tremors might be felt up to a maximum radial distance of 10-15 kms. These earthquakes do not create any harm to the local community, although there may be slight tremors locally. The community need not panic as the intensity observed is low and not destructive.”

It may be mentioned here that earthquakes had occurred in several villages in Koppal, Bagalkot and Vijayapura districts nearly two months ago which forced the state government to dispatch a team of experts to find the cause. Residents slept outside their houses for days together fearing quakes. The government had set up tin sheds so that the villagers could stay safely in them till the tremors stopped.

According to sources, seismologists who visited the tremor-hit villages opined that the slight movement of plateaus beneath the ground may have resulted in the tremors which are happening repeatedly due to the large deposits of limestone. A report to this effect had been submitted to the government for further course of action.