massive earthquake that occurred on Jan. 26, 2001, in the Indian state of Gujarat (Gujarāt), on the Pakistani border.

The earthquake struck near the town of Bhuj on the morning of India's annual Republic Day (celebrating the creation of the Republic of India in 1950), and it was felt throughout much of northwestern India and parts of Pakistan. The moment magnitude of the quake was 7.7 (6.9 on the Richter scale). In addition to killing more than 20,000 people and injuring more than 150,000 others, the quake left hundreds of thousands homeless and destroyed or damaged more than a million buildings. A large majority of the local crops were ruined as well. Many people were still living in makeshift shelters a year later.