People after Earthquake on Road Prak Street Kolkata. Pictures by Bibhash Lodh/BS News Agency.
Sanchita Chatterjee, BS News Agency: Kolkata: Junior union minister Sukanta Majumdar, speaking at a programme in Park Street on Friday afternoon, paused and asked, "Should I stop?" as some people in the audience got up, scurrying for an exit from the venue. Kolkata had started feeling the ripple-effect of the earthquake that hit Nayabazar about 100km away.
Panic was writ large on the faces of everyone present at the press conference, like people in other parts of the city, as a 52-second tremor – the longest in recent memory – sent shockwaves on Friday afternoon. After pausing for a while, Majumdar tried to ease the anxiety, saying: "I think the tremors are hinting towards initiation of the election period in Bengal."
The tremors also disrupted multiple classrooms. Supplementary exams for HS students, CBSE classes 10 and 12, and ISC were underway when the tremors were felt. Bhawanipur Mitra Institution headmaster Raja Dey said: "Though we only have seven students who were writing their supplementary exams, we immediately evacuated them from the classroom. They were given extra time to complete their paper."
At Sarsuna Law College, third-semester exams were underway when the tremors led to panic inside the classroom as examinees and examiners contemplated whether to rush down. Exams remained disrupted for five minutes or so before they resumed.