Earthquake in northeast India, Bangladesh

Shillong : An earthquake measuring 5.2 on the Richter scale rocked the entire northeast India and adjoining Bangladesh Saturday morning. No casualties were reported, officials said.

According to a seismologist here, the quake was felt around 7.01 a.m. in most parts of the northeast region and neighbouring Bangladesh, and its epicentre lay along the India-Bangladesh border.

“The exact epicentre of the quake was on the India-Bangladesh border with western Tripura. The tremor lasted for about four to five seconds,” an official at the Regional Seismological Centre told IANS.

The seven northeastern states – Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Tripura, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur – are considered by seismologists as the sixth major earthquake-prone belt in the world.

The region experienced an earthquake measuring 8.7 on the Richter scale in 1897. Over 1,600 people died in that quake.