MUMBAI - A strong earthquake measuring 6.0 hit India's Andaman islands early on Saturday, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said, but a senior official said there was no damage.
The epicentre of the earthquake was located 45 km (30 miles) northwest of Port Blair, the capital of the Andaman and Nicobar islands, it said on its Web site. It struck at 2034 GMT.
An Indian weather office official said the earthquake measured 5.9.
It woke people from their sleep and they rushed out of their homes, said D.S. Negi, the chief administrator of the islands.
"We felt quite a jolt. People were initially shocked, but there was no panic," he told Reuters by phone from Port Blair.
"There have been no reports of any loss of life or property." The islands, closer to Indonesia than mainland India, were hit badly by the December 2004 tsunami, which was triggered by a massive earthquake off the coast of the Sumatra Island.
REUTERS NEWS SERVICE
