Scientists: Claims of major earthquake, tsunami in Indian Ocean by year end are untrue

PETALING JAYA: The Meteorological Department has debunked claims by an Indian professor predicting a major earthquake and subsequent tsunami in the Indian Ocean, that would wreak havoc in several Asian countries by Dec 31.
The director of the National Weather Operation and Geophysics Centre, Dr Mohd Hisham Mohd Anip, said there was no scientific proof showing that the disaster would take place.
He pointed out that there is no technology available in the world that could predict seismic activities months before they happen.
"We only have sensors that can detect when an earthquakes takes place. If you want to predict, especially months ahead, there's no such technology yet.
"There is really no scientific indicator pointing towards a major earthquake and tsunami happening in the Indian Ocean by year end. He (the scientist) only predicted based on his hunch," he told theSun today.
Kerala-based Babu Kalayil of the B.K. Research Association for ESP in India had in September sent a letter to the country's Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, warning that a "vigorous earthquake" was expected by Dec 31.
He claimed that it would shake the entire coast of the Asian continental areas, affecting 11 countries including Thailand and Indonesia, with a storm to strike the coast with speeds of up to 180km per hour.
The letter was however full of spelling and grammatical errors.
Kalayil claimed to have made this observation on Aug 20 with the help of extra sensory perception (sixth sense or second sight).
The scientist had previously, before making this earthquake claim, told an Indian radio journalist that he could predict natural disasters through visions, and that with the help of intuition, he could find out when and where an event was to take place.
A two-minute-fifty second video clip has emerged on social media saying a huge tsunami and earthquake will occur before end of this year.
Universiti Malaysia Sabah (USM) Natural Disasters Research Centre director Prof Felix Tongkul told theSun all these claims of major Earth changes were made without any strong scientific backing or evidence.
He was puzzled why such information was given without any thorough research being carried out first.
He did not condemn the Indian scientist but pointed out the prediction made without solid proof would bring fear to the people.
Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) School of Distance Studies lead lecturer Prof Dr Habibah Lateh also played down such possibilities, to reduce public fear.