Aftershocks of the earthquake that rocked Nepal and many parts of eastern India were felt in Delhi and nearby areas twice around noon on Saturday, causing panic among the people who rushed out of their houses and offices and headed to parks, roads and open spaces for safety.
The magnitude of the earthquake was 7.9 on Richter scale at its epicentre in Nepal. Though the tremors felt in Delhi were relatively less in intensity, they were strong enough to shake the buildings, especially the high-rise structures, and jolt the Delhi residents.
There were no immediate reports of loss of life or property in and around Delhi. However, the plaster on the walls of some residential flats in Gurgaon, including those at Regency Park, reportedly came off.
"I was in a team meeting when everything around me started shaking. All of us rushed out of the building immediately. There was a huge crowd of people who had gathered outside our building and from neighbouring offices," said Sandeep Sharma, an IT professional in Noida.
According to the meteorological office, tremors were felt in Delhi twice, first at 11:45 a.m. and later at 12:18 p.m.
The Delhi Metro train services were also affected for some time due to the earthquake. Trains were operated with a slow speed and stopped for more than 10 minutes at metro stations in order to ensure safety of passengers.
"Initially we didn't know the reason. It was later that I came to know that metro service was stopped due to tremors," said Vishal Sukhija, a student.
