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Geologists Fear More Earthquakes in Jammu and Kashmir | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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Srinagar, Asharq Al-Awsat- Geologists in Jammu and Kashmir have expressed their fears of another earthquake in the coming months.

Dr G.M Bhat, a professor of at Jammu University Geology department said, &#34there is an urgent need to warn the government and masses about the threat of this natural disaster.&#34

He adds, &#34The two and a half billion year old Indian plate is crashing into the Eurasian plate that threatens the Himalayas in Nepal, and parts of India and particularly Kashmir.&#34

The professor said that the catastrophic October 8 earthquake was 33.95 degrees to 35.63 degrees north latitude, and 72.94 degrees to 73.58 east longitude causing a quake that reached 8.2 on the Richter scale.

He fears that if there were more seismic vibrations, several parts of the Jammu region would be affected. &#34There will be mass casualties because we do not have any firm policies on disaster management. Earthquakes are a natural phenomenon. It is not the earthquakes that kill, but the buildings. It is time to teach the masses how to minimize losses and deal with such crises.&#34

It is also worth mentioning that Dr Bhat last year predicted that Jammu and Kashmir was experiencing seismic waves that could potentially a major earthquake.