Two earthquakes rattle Nepal, injuring 17, triggering landslides

Two earthquakes rocked western Nepal on Tuesday, injuring 17 people, damaging homes and triggering a landslide that blocked a major highway, authorities said.

The landslide after the quakes of magnitude 6.3 and 5.3 in the district of Bajhang, bordering India, blocked the road to the southern plains, interior ministry official Rama Acharya told Reuters.

The temblors, centred in Talkot and Chainpur, struck at an interval of about 30 minutes.

Tremors from the quakes were felt as far away as the Indian capital of New Delhi, where people rushed out of their homes and office buildings in case the structures were compromised. There were no immediate reports of damage.

Police official Dipesh Chaudhary said 17 people - 11 women and six men - were injured and were being treated in hospital. One woman was missing after being engulfed by a landslide triggered by the quake, he said.

One of the injured people was hit by a falling object, said Narayan Pandey, the top district official. Some homes in Chainpur, a town in the district, collapsed.