An earthquake of magnitude 4.9 struck Chamoli district in Uttarakhand on the night of Tuesday, 6 October 2026, the National Centre for Seismology said. Tremors were felt across the hill state and as far away as Delhi and its neighbouring cities. There were no immediate reports of casualties or serious damage.
The details
- Magnitude: 4.9
- Time: shortly after 10 pm
- Epicentre: Chamoli district, at about 30.10°N, 79.56°E
- Depth: 13 kilometres
Where it was felt
In Uttarakhand, shaking was reported from Chamoli, Rudraprayag, Bageshwar, Pithoragarh and Champawat districts, and from towns including Gopeshwar, Badrinath, Rishikesh, Haldwani, Bhowali and Khatima. In the National Capital Region, people in Delhi, Noida and Ghaziabad reported tremors, and some residents of high-rise buildings came out into the open.
Why a moderate quake travelled so far
The earthquake was shallow. When the rupture is only a few kilometres below the surface, more of the energy reaches the ground, and the shaking is felt over a wider area than a deeper earthquake of the same size would produce. The soft river soils of the plains on which Delhi stands also amplify distant tremors.
A zone of high risk
Uttarakhand lies in the Himalayan belt, where the Indian plate pushes under the Eurasian plate, and is classed among the most earthquake-prone parts of the country. Chamoli itself was the centre of a far stronger earthquake in March 1999, which killed about a hundred people. Scientists have long warned that the central Himalaya is capable of a much larger event.
What to do in an earthquake
The National Disaster Management Authority’s advice is to drop to the ground, take cover under a sturdy table and hold on until the shaking stops; to stay away from windows; and not to use lifts. Those outdoors should move away from buildings, trees and power lines.
Details are as reported by Business Today, citing the National Centre for Seismology. Reports differ by a few minutes on the exact time of the earthquake.
Image: Gopeshwar, the headquarters of Chamoli district in Uttarakhand (file photo). Photo by Vishwanath Negi, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.