M A I N   N E W S

Fresh tremors, prediction bring agony
From R. Suryamurthy
Tribune News Service

AHMEDABAD, Feb 3 — A tremor, measuring 5 on the Richter scale, rocked this industrial city, forcing people to run for shelter. Today’s tremor rattled the confidence of even rational and scientific tempered residents of this city as it comes amidst a prediction by a local astrologer that fresh tremor would strike the quake-hit city in which several new buildings would collapse and several hundred people die.

People rushed into the streets, looking for safety.

Though no damage has been reported in today’s trembler, it was enough to “disrupt life all over again.”

The tremor was centred 25 km north of Bhachau in Kutch district. The epicentre was recorded at latitude 23.5° north and longitude 70.4° east.

Rajanbhai, who lives on the third floor of a high-rise along the highway, told The Tribune that “the windowpanes began rattling exactly at 8.46 am. Though we are not living in the high-rise any more, we were there to pick up some belongings when the tremor occurred. We ran out, and are wondering when will all this end.”

Residents of Ahmedabad were trying to bring a semblance of normalcy to their lives after the January 26 quake when another tremor, measuring 5 on the Richter scale rocked the city today.

Another resident, Balram Patel said, “I was having my usual cup of tea before getting ready for work and my wife was having a bath. The windowpanes suddenly started rattling vigorously, and I thought that it was probably because of a heavy vehicle passing by. Soon after, all hell broke lose, people were shouting and running down the staircase. We are all very scared. I do no not believe in astrology, but the fear of life has made me superstitious,” he said.

Ambalal Patel, a Gandhinagar-based astrologer had told a Gujarati daily, that fresh tremors would strike this quake-devastated city anytime after Saturday. The police has arrested him for making baseless predictions that has created panic and tension among the people.

Patel, who is based in the capital city of Gandhinagar, had predicted that another quake would hit the state any time between February 3 and 15, adding that according to the alignment of planets, the chances of an earthquake hitting Gujarat are the greatest on February 3.

Some residents of the city are taking Patel’s predictions seriously as he had made a claim on January 18 that some sort of natural disaster would strike the country at any time after January 25.

This time, Patel has predicted that an earthquake could hit Ahmedabad, Mount Abu and the Mewar region in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. Patel’s predictions have set rumour mills buzzing in this city and its adjoining areas, resulting in many people preferring to spend the day with their family and shopkeepers keeping their shops closed.

Even those who ventured out made an early return to their families as the astrologer, according to the rumour mill which is busy working overtime, has predicted that it would strike around 11 p.m. on February 3.

Several residents spending nights in their cars and outside the homes carried out “dharti poojan” on Friday to please Goddess Earth and pacify her to cool down. Similar pujas are lined up for the next few days.

“Mother is angry. We want to cool her down by offering prayers,” was the refrain of the residents, who believe on anything about the quake. “We will go inside the shop only after the third or fourth of February when the ill-effects of the planets are over,” Naresh Singhvi, who runs a shop in city said.

Seismologists have repeatedly stated that science has not developed enough to predict when the quakes would occur. The seismological instruments, after a quake occurs, indicate the epicentre and its intensity. Science has been able to identify the seismic-prone zones in the world and Bhuj falls in Zone 5, the highest category in the zones map.