A 7.1 magnitude Earthquake Hits Tibet: Tremors felt in many parts of India.

7.1 Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Tibet, Tremors Felt Across India

Written by: Supriya Kadu

Edited by: Pinky Deshmukh

Last Updated: January 07, 2025

Summary: Delhi-NCR and other states felt the tremors from an earthquake that hit Tibet.

Early this morning, a 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck Tibet close to the Nepalese border, killing 53 people. Bihar, Assam, and West Bengal were among the Indian states that felt the tremors. The National Center for Seismology (NCS) reports that the earthquake struck at 6:35 am and its epicenter was in Xizang, Tibet.

62 others were injured. Chinese media reported that many structures near the epicenter also collapsed. Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported, "Dingri county and its surrounding areas experienced powerful tremors, and many buildings near the epicenter have collapsed.”

Delhi-NCR and other portions of North India, including Patna, the capital of Bihar, and several places in the state's north, experienced strong earthquakes. West Bengal and the northeastern states, including Assam, were also affected by the earthquake.

Because of its location in a geologically active area where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates merge to form the Himalayas, Nepal frequently experiences earthquakes.

One of the residents from Kathmandu, Nepal, said, "I was sleeping. The bed was shaking, and I thought my child was moving the bed. I didn’t pay that much attention, but the shaking of the window confirmed to me that it was an earthquake. I then hurriedly called my child and evacuated the house and went to the open ground.”

With its epicenter in Tingri, a remote county that acts as the northern entry point to the Everest region, the earthquake struck at 9.05 a.m. (0105 GMT). According to the China Earthquake Networks Centre, the earthquake was 10 km (6.2 miles) deep, according to Reuters.

From the same region of Xizang, two aftershocks with intensities of 4.7 and 4.9 were recorded.

China's national broadcaster CCTV reports that in the last five years, 29 earthquakes with a magnitude of 3 or greater have occurred within 200 kilometers of Shigatse city, all of which were smaller than the Tuesday morning earthquake.