Two earthquakes hit Uttarakhand on Saturday, October 10. The bigger one, of 4.2 magnitude, struck Uttarkashi district at 8.07 pm. About four and a half hours earlier, at 3.40 pm, a smaller 2.8-magnitude tremor was felt in Bageshwar district. No injuries or property damage have been reported in either case.
The National Centre for Seismology (NCS) — the government body that tracks earthquakes in India — confirmed both events on Saturday night. It shared the readings on social media, as it does after every quake.
What the seismologists recorded
For Uttarkashi, the NCS data reads: magnitude 4.2, at 8.07 pm and 30 seconds, depth 11 km below the surface. The location was fixed at latitude 30.744 North and longitude 78.414 East. The NCS named Uttarkashi, Uttarakhand, as the location.
For Bageshwar, the reading was: magnitude 2.8, at 3.40 pm and 53 seconds, depth 5 km. The coordinates were latitude 30.005 North and longitude 79.950 East.
These numbers sound technical, so let us break them down. Magnitude tells you how strong the quake was. Depth tells you how far below the ground it started. A shallow quake — like the 5-km-deep Bageshwar one — can shake the area right above it more sharply, even if its magnitude is low. An 11-km depth, like Uttarkashi’s, is still considered shallow too.
No damage so far, but people ran out
As of Saturday night, no reports of injuries or damage to property had come in, Republic World reported. The Times Bull reported that people in Uttarkashi rushed out of their homes when they felt the tremors, and many moved to open spaces to stay safe.
That reaction is the right one. During a quake, the danger is not the shaking itself — it is walls, roofs and objects that can fall. Standing outside in an open area, away from buildings, is the safest place to be.
Three shakes in four days
Saturday’s two quakes are not the only recent ones. On October 6, a 4.9-magnitude earthquake struck Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district at around 10.20 pm, NDTV reported. Its tremors were felt in Delhi and nearby areas, and triggered panic in the national capital. One Delhi resident wrote on X that their whole couch and building moved.
So the score for the week stands at three recorded earthquakes in four days: Chamoli on October 6, Bageshwar and Uttarkashi on October 10. Different districts, different days.
A note on conflicting reports: one outlet, Times Bull, described the October 6 event as a 4.4-magnitude quake centred in Bageshwar. We have not found that version confirmed anywhere else. The NCS-linked reporting from NDTV puts it at 4.9 in Chamoli. We are going with the NCS-backed figure.
Do three quakes in four days mean a big one is coming? Nobody can say that. Seismologists do not predict earthquakes. What the records do show is that Uttarakhand sits in one of the world’s most active earthquake zones, in the Himalayan belt. Small and medium quakes there are common. They do not, by themselves, prove that a larger quake is on the way.
What 4.2 means in plain words
The magnitude scale runs from 0 to 10. Most people do not feel anything below 2.5. A 2.8, like the Bageshwar tremor, is felt only by some people near the centre — many will have missed it entirely.
A 4.2 is different. It is strong enough to rattle windows and shake furniture. It can wake you up at night. But it rarely causes serious damage to well-built structures. Damage usually starts at around magnitude 5 and above, and depends a lot on how deep the quake is and how old the buildings are.
One thing the scale does not do: a 5 is not “a little more” than a 4. Each full step up means about 32 times more energy released. So the October 6 Chamoli quake (4.9) packed far more punch than Saturday’s 4.2.
What to do when the ground shakes
The NCS asked people to download its BhooKamp app for quake alerts and information. Beyond that, the official advice is simple and worth memorising:
- If you are indoors, drop to the ground, take cover under a strong table, and hold on until the shaking stops.
- Stay away from windows, glass and heavy objects that can fall.
- If you are outside, move to an open area away from buildings, trees and power lines.
- Do not run out of a building during the shaking — most injuries happen from falling debris near exits.
- After it stops, check for gas leaks and do not use lifts.
Officials say residents should stay alert for aftershocks — smaller quakes that often follow a bigger one — and follow guidance from the NCS and local authorities.
If you felt the shaking, you can report it on the BhooKamp app. The NCS uses these public reports to map how far the tremors were felt. And remember: small aftershocks are normal in the hours after a quake. If you feel one, do not panic. Move to a safe spot and wait it out.
