A strong 6.2 magnitude earthquake rocked Afghanistan on Tuesday, Pakistan and parts of northern India, including Jammu and Kashmir, triggering panic in the region, where a devastating temblor in October 2005 claimed nearly 80,000 lives.
No casualties were reported in the quake, which struck in the Hindukush region in Afghanistan and was nearly 200 km underground, according to the US Geological Survey, which said that its magnitude was 6.2 on the Richter scale.
Hundreds of people ran out of their houses as the quake, which hit near the town of Faizabad in Afghanistan after 8:00 am local time, shook the buildings.
In Pakistan, the quake was felt in Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Lahore and North West Frontier Province. Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, where maximum casualties were reported in the 2005 temblor, was also jolted by the tremor.
The Met office in New Delhi said the tremor shook parts of Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh at 9:05 a.m.
"The earthquake had its epicentre in the Hindukush mountains in Afghanistan," a Met official said.
Slight tremors were also felt in parts of the Indian capital.
In Jammu and Kashmir, panic gripped the residents of Uri and Tangdhar reviving the memories of the October 8, 2005 quake. However, the officials said there was no report of loss of life or damage to property from anywhere in the valley so far.
Reports of mild tremors were also received from Rajouri, Poonch and Udhampur districts, an official of Police Control Room said in Jammu.
The quake, which was felt for 12 seconds, came at around the same time when in 2005 the entire valley was shaken causing huge loss to life and property.
"We all got frightened so we went in the open field. Today's tremors came at almost the same time as in 2005, so I took my entire family to the safety." Said Mumtaz Ahmed of Baramulla.
Traffic stopped at many places and people left their vehicles looking for open field fearing that trees might also fall.
"I was driving my car, when I saw trees on the roadside shaking like anything, I at once thought it to be an earthquake, so I parked my car on roadside and ran towards an open field." Said Tariq Ahmed Bhat a resident of Khawaja Bagh Baramulla.
There were also reports of mild tremors from Jalandhar.
"After feeling the shocks, we ran towards our lab, where we have installed the specially designed earthquake alarm, which was giving buzzer from 9.12 am," Professor Moiuddin, Director of B R Ambedkar National Institute of Technology said.
According to reports from Himachal Pradesh, the tremor was felt in the Chamba and Dharamshala regions of the state.
People in several parts of Punjab, including Chandigarh and Jalandhar also felt the tremors.
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