Himalayan Quake 2005
A model answer has been provided for students' reference.
It is strongly recommended that students prepare the answer on their own.
The Himalayas symbolise life in our culture. The Himalayas is the habitat of numerous flora and fauna. There is human settlement in the lesser Himalayas. Many poets have sung in thier praise. In the Ramayana, Hanuman flew to the Himalayas to bring the life saving herb for Rama, the protagonist, who was wounded in the battle. Rabindranath Tagore has mentioned about the Himalayas in our national anthem.
Everybody was shocked on 8th October 2005 when the news of a massive earthquake rocking some parts of the Himalayan region spread. The earthquake was devastating. It measured 7.6 in the Richter scale. According to the seismologists, the epicentre of the Himalayas earthquake 2005 was located at Muzzaffarabad of Pak administered Kashmir. The earthquake hit region lies in the area of collision of the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plates. The geological activity born out of this collision is the cause of unstable seismicity in the region. The earthquake is classified as major by the USGS.
The worst hit areas were Pakistan administered Kashmir, Khyber-pakhtunka and western parts of the Kashmir valley in Indian administered Kashmir. The death toll in the earthquake was about 80 thousand. The tragic part of the story is that many school children were buried under collapsed school buildings.
The national and international humanitarian response to the crisis was huge. The UN and the US were criticised for not taking practical steps rather focussing on training and seminar costing millions.
To conclude, the Himalayan quake 2005 will never be erased from our memories. The suffering of the victims will always invite sympathy of the mankind world wide. The Himalayan quake 2005 has taught many lessons to the planners, architects, disaster managers and the policy makers.