Strong quake hits Afghanistan, Pak; tremors felt in India

 A massive earthquake measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale struck Afghanistan and Pakistan on Friday evening, with casualties and property damage feared.

Tremors of the quake, which occurred at 5.09 p.m. and whose epicentre was in the Hindu Kush region in Afghanistan with a depth of 210 km, were also felt across north India as far as the Delhi-NCR region, the IMD said.

Tremors were felt for several seconds in various parts of Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh at 5.13 p.m., an official of the meteorological office in Chandigarh told IANS.

The earthquake was felt in several parts of Pakistan's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and eastern Punjab provinces and other northern areas of Pakistan, Xinhua news agency reported.

No loss of life or property has been immediately reported, but the quake created panic among the people who scrambled out of buildings and compounds.

The depth of the quake was 190 km, as per the India Meteorological Department, which initially estimated its magnitude at 7.1 before revising it.IANS