There were reports of people scurrying for safety in several cities and towns
The states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Sikkim, which share a border with Nepal, have reported building damage. There have also been reports of damage in the northeastern state of Assam.
NEW DELHI: The northern and eastern states of the country experienced fresh tremors on Sunday as the toll from Saturday’s strong earthquake in Nepal rose to 62 in India.
The tremors, triggered by a strong 6.7-magnitude aftershock epicentred in Nepal on Sunday, were experienced in West Bengal, Bihar, Assam, Jharkhand, Odisha, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Delhi for over 30 seconds at 12.42 pm. There were reports of people scurrying for safety in several cities and towns. Home secretary L.C. Goyal said Bihar accounted for 46 deaths, UP 13, West Bengal two and Rajasthan one.
Out of 38 aftershocks emanating from the epicentre of earthquake in Nepal since Saturday, eight were felt in Bihar measuring between 5.5 and 6.9 on Richter scale. The fresh tremor forced UP Governor Ram Naik to wrap up his programme midway in Kushinagar and security personnel promptly evacuated him.
Meanwhile, the Uttar Pradesh and Bihar governments asked schools across the state to shut down on Monday and Tuesday as a precautionary measure. In New Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi also chaired a follow-up meeting to review the progress of relief and rescue operations in the country.
Meanwhile, West Bengal and Gujarat governments have announced plans to send relief material including food packets and a team comprising structural engineers to Nepal. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that the state will be sending a rescue team.
“The Gujarat government has decided to send 25,000 food packets to Nepal in coordination with National Disaster Management Authority,” a statement said.
( Source : dc correspondent/ agencies )
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