Delhi isn’t exactly known for its calmness when it comes to earthquakes. In fact, the capital experiences tremors almost every couple of months, some of which are pretty strong. But why does Delhi seem to be shaking so often?
It all comes down to where Delhi is located. The city sits in Seismic Zone IV, which is the most earthquake-prone zone in India. To put it simply, Delhi is sitting right where two massive tectonic plates – the Eurasian and Indian plates – collide. It’s kind of like two giant puzzle pieces pushing and scraping against each other, storing energy like a spring, and releasing it when the plates shift. This release of energy causes earthquakes.
Delhi is also close to the Himalayan region, which is one of the most active earthquake zones on the planet. The nearby tectonic clusters in the Himalayas are constantly shifting, and when they do, they don’t just affect the mountains – the seismic waves travel thousands of kilometers, shaking places like Delhi and even as far as Afghanistan.
Delhi’s earthquake history isn’t exactly comforting either. Since the 1900s, there have been several significant tremors, with at least a dozen serious earthquakes recorded. The biggest one since the turn of the century hit a magnitude of 5. And with its location near the Indo-Australian and Eurasian plates, Delhi is especially vulnerable to any shifts happening around it.
Delhi also sits above the Delhi-Haridwar Ridge, a major part of the Indian plate. This ridge is known to contribute to smaller quakes, which might not be as intense as the big ones but are still strong enough to be felt throughout the city. These quakes, called intra-plate tremors, happen within the plate itself.
To make matters even clearer, historical data shows that Delhi has felt at least five earthquakes stronger than a 5.5 magnitude since 1720.
Frequent minor earthquakes are common. But no major earthquake-related accidents have been reported from India’s national capital in the last 2 decades.
