Twenty-five years after the devastating Gujarat earthquake struck on Republic Day in 2001, memories of loss, resilience and rebuilding remain deeply etched across the state. At 8.46 am on January 26, a magnitude 7.6 quake with its epicentre near Chobari village in Kutch flattened towns, cracked roads and reduced entire villages to rubble.
More than 20,000 people were killed and over 1.66 lakh injured in one of independent India’s deadliest natural disasters. Kutch bore the brunt, accounting for nearly 18,000 deaths, while cities such as Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Jamnagar and Surendranagar also suffered heavy damage. In Anjar alone, around 2,000 lives were lost and thousands of families were rendered homeless. Among the most tragic moments was the collapse of buildings during a Republic Day parade in Anjar, which claimed the lives of many schoolchildren and teachers, casting a long shadow over the day of national celebration.
The earthquake destroyed nearly 12 lakh homes in Gujarat and damaged around 12,000 schools and 2,000 hospitals, crippling public infrastructure and heritage structures. Ahmedabad, about 250 km from the epicentre, was also badly hit, with roughly 1,000 apartments and over 80 houses collapsing, leaving nearly 750 dead and thousands injured. Though it lasted just 85 seconds, the quake reshaped Gujarat and led to major reforms in disaster management and building safety.
Then chief minister Keshubhai Patel oversaw massive rescue and relief operations with support from the Army, central forces, volunteers and international agencies. But criticism over rehabilitation led to a leadership change, and Narendra Modi was appointed chief minister in October 2001, steering the state towards long-term reconstruction.
Voluntary organisations like BAPS, RSS, and Seva Bharati played a crucial role, running community kitchens, medical camps, and relief centres, and later helping rebuild earthquake-resistant homes and livelihoods. The disaster also spurred key reforms, including the creation of the Gujarat State Disaster Management Authority in 2001, later made statutory, and the Institute of Seismological Research in 2003. Memorials such as Smriti Van near Bhuj and the Veer Balak Smarak in Anjar honour the victims.
Dhiren Patel, a subscriber of Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar, recalled his experience, “I personally was in southern Gujarat on holiday from the UK with my mother when the earthquake happened and can still remember the rumbling sound of the earth and shaking of the ground and everything around when it happened. Although we were not near the epicentre in Bhuj/Kutchh, the experience alone was terrifying for me as a little boy back then. I distinctly remember that 25 years ago as a child, I did a Geography Project in secondary school here, upon my return from India, for which I used newspaper clippings from the extensive coverage in the Gujarat Samachar to aid me documenting the disaster in my assignment. I remember getting a top grade and how the teachers were pleased with my work, especially hearing it from someone who had experienced it.”
