A view of Bengaluru city near Nagawara Lake (file photo)

BENGALURU: Many Bengalureans, especially those in west and south Bengaluru, claimed to have heard a loud noise and felt tremors between 3pm to 4 pm in different parts of the city on Thursday. Some of them ran out of their houses fearing an earthquake. Even as panic spread through WhatsApp groups and other social media platforms, the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre ( KSNDMC ) has confirmed that there were no report of earthquake in the region.

"There were complaints from people in and around Rajarajeshwari Nagar (RR Nagar) in west Bengaluru and other parts about a big noise possibly due to earthquake on Thursday afternoon. However, no such tremors have been recorded in our Earth Quake Observatory in Tippagonadahalli,” said a media communication from KSNDMC. Experts from the Centre said they are examining the reasons behind such a phenomenon.

Meyyappan Sundararajulu (48), a resident of RR Nagar told TOI, "Around 3.45 pm, we heard a loud noise at our apartment and there was vibration for one or two seconds. We felt as if the building was shaking. Some construction workers living nearby ran out of their hutments as well," he said.

Rachana Sandeep, a resident of RBI layout, JP Nagar VI stage, said, "I heard a big noise in the afternoon. The sound resembled that of a huge explosion heard in granite quarries."

Dr HSM Prakash, geologist and retired from a senior posting at Geological Survey of India, said, "Nothing to worry. It was not an earthquake. The sound could be outcome of a atmospheric variation resulting in collision air layers of different temperatures. Or it could be due to construction activities or tunnelling work nearby these areas which might of resulted in small displacements beneath the ground."

