NEPAL EARTHQUAKE

INTRODUCTION25TH APRIL 2015 PROVED TO BE A BLACK DAY FOR THE PEOPLE OF NEPAL AND ITS NEIGHBOURING COUNTRIES. THE EARTHQUAKE OCCURRED ON 25 APRIL 2015 AT11:56A.M. N.S.T KILLED OVER 8,000 PEOPLE AND INJURED MORE THAN 21,000.

EPICENTER AND MAGNITUDEITSEPICENTERWAS EAST OFLAMJUNG DISTRICTAT BARPAK, GORKHATHE EARTHQUAKE WAS MEASURED TO BE OF 7.8 ON RICHTERS SCALE I.E CONSIDERED AS A MEGAQUAKE CAUSING MASS DESTRUCTION.

WHY EARTHQUAKES IN NEPAL DEVASTATING?THE PLATE TECTONIC THEORY HAS STATED THAT THE INDIAN PLATE BOUNDRY WHICH WAS EARLIER THE PART OF GONDWANA LAND GOT SEPARATED FROM THE LANDMASS. THIS NORTHWARD DRIFT RESULTED IN COLLISION OF THE INDIAN PLATE WITH THE EURASIAN PLATE. AS A RESULT OF CONVERGENCE OF THESE PLATES LEAD TO FORMATION OF MOUNTAIN RANGES KNOWN NAS HIMALAYAS.

WHY EARTHQUAKES IN NEPAL DEVASTATING?THE CONVERGENCE RATE BETWEEN THE PLATES IN CENTRAL NEPAL IS ABOUT 45MM (1.8IN) PER YEAR.THE EARTHQUAKE'S EFFECTS WERE AMPLIFIED IN KATHMANDU AS IT SITS ON THE KATHMANDU BASIN, WHICH CONTAINS UP TO 600M (2,000FT) OF SEDIMENTARY ROCKS , REPRESENTING THE INFILLING OF A LAKE.

SOURCE: NAT GEO

ECONOMIC LOSSHUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE WERE MADE HOMELESS WITH ENTIRE VILLAGES FLATTENED,ACROSS MANY DISTRICTS OF THE COUNTRY. CENTURIES-OLD BUILDINGS WERE DESTROYED AT UNESCOWORLD HERITAGE SITESIN THEKATHMANDU VALLEY, INCLUDING SOME AT THEKATHMANDU DURBAR SQUARE, THEPATAN DURBAR SQUARE, THEBHAKTAPUR DURBAR SQUARE, THECHANGU NARAYANTEMPLE, THEBOUDHANATHSTUPA AND THESWAYAMBHUNATHSTUPA.THE TOTAL ESTIMATED LOSS WAS OF 10 BILLION $ I.E 50% (APPROX.) OF NEPALS GDP

HUMAN LOSSThe earthquake killed more than 8,800 in Nepal and injured nearly three times as many. The rural death toll may have been minimized by the fact that most villagers were outdoors working when the quake hit. As of 15 May, 6,271 people, including 1,700 from the 12 May aftershock, were still receiving treatment for their injuries. Nearly 3.5 million people were left homeless.India: A total of 78 deaths were reported in India - including 58 in Bihar, 16 in Uttar Pradesh, 3 in West Bengal and 1 in Rajasthan.China: 27 dead and 4 missing, all from the Tibet Autonomous Region.

AFTERSHOCKS OF THE QUAKEA SERIES OF AFTERSHOCKS BEGAN IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE MAINSHOCK, AT INTERVALS OF 1530 MINUTES, WITH ONE AFTERSHOCK REACHING 6.6 WITHIN 34 MINUTES OF THE INITIAL QUAKE. A MAJOR AFTERSHOCK OF MAGNITUDE 6.9 OCCURRED ON 26 APRIL 2015 IN THE SAME REGION AT 12:54 NST, WITH AN EPICENTER LOCATED ABOUT 17KM SOUTH OFKODARI, NEPALTHE AFTERSHOCK CAUSED FRESH AVALANCHES ON MOUNT EVEREST AND WAS FELT IN MANY PLACES IN NORTHERN INDIA INCLUDINGKOLKATA,SILIGURI,JALPAIGURIANDASSAM.THE AFTERSHOCK CAUSED A LANDSLIDE ON THEKOSHI HIGHWAYWHICH BLOCKED THE SECTION OF THE ROAD BETWEENBHEDETARAND MULGHAT. ANOTHER AFTERSHOCK ALSO HIT LATER THAT NIGHT.

By Kartikeya Agarwal