ISLAMABAD: An earthquake shook large parts of Pakistan's northern region including several areas in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Gilgit-Baltistan provinces early on Tuesday.

According to the Met Office, tremors were felt around 3am (local time) and the intensity of the quake was recorded as 5.5 on the Richter scale.

The epicentre of the quake was located in the Hindu Kush mountain range on the Afghan-Tajik border, 300 kilometres from Peshawar, on the depth of 190 kilometres.

The jolts were recorded at 5.2 in Lahore, while intense tremors were also felt in Peshawar, Kohat, Mardan. Gilgit, Ghazar, Chitral, Mansehra, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Murree and other adjoining areas.

The shocks were also felt in Azad Jammu and Kashmir region.

The tremors prompted panic-stricken people in the affected areas to rush out from their homes. There was no report of any casualty or damages.

According to the United States Geological Survey, the tremors were felt in Afghanistan as well.

Pakistan and the region, along an active continental plate boundary, is often hit by earthquakes. In September 2013, a magnitude-7.7 quake struck Pakistan's Balochistan province, killing at least 376 people.

In 2005, the country was hit by a 7.6-magnitude earthquake that killed more than 73,000 people and left about 3.5 million homeless.