Quake leaves 20 dead in the east, injures 117

The quake that hit Nepal today also shook the eastern and northeastern states of the country, leaving at least 20 people dead and injuring 117 others with Bihar bearing the brunt of its impact even as the state recovers from the devastation of a tropical storm earlier this week.
Seventeen casualties were reported in Bihar with 48 others injured in wall and roof collapse incidents triggered in the impact of the quake.
Six people died in East Champaran and four in Sitamarhi, two districts of Bihar adjoining Nepal, where the epicentre of the quake lay 80-km to the north-west of Kathmandu, special secretary in the disaster management department, Anirudh Kumar, told PTI.

Darbhanga reported two deaths, while Supaul, Araria, West Champaran, Sheohar and Saran districts all reported one casualty each, he said, adding that 48 people were also injured in quake-related incidents in various parts of Bihar, where 55 people were killed in a tropical storm on Tuesday night.
National Disaster Response Force teams have been rushed to the districts and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is heading back to Patna from New Delhi.
In West Bengal, where state-wide civic elections are on, three persons were killed in the temblor and at least 69 others were injured, including 43 schoolchildren.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said two persons died in Darjeeling and one in Jalpaiguri district.

Banerjee, who said she has spoken to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the damage caused by the quake, added that she will leave for north Bengal tomorrow to take stock of the situation following the quake.
She tweeted that the WB government was monitoring the situation closely and urged people to stay calm.
"My prayers with the people of Nepal and across India after the massive earthquake. Hope everyone is safe. Stay calm," she said.
Sixty-nine people were injured in roof collapse incidents at three places in Malda district and a stampede-like situation ensued as people rushed out of buildings to safety, district authorities said.

The quake triggered landslides in various parts of the mountain state of Sikkim, official sources said. But there was no report of any loss of life so far, they said.