A 7.7 Mw  earthquake destroys Quetta in modern-day Pakistan killing 40,000.

An earthquake occurred on 31 May 1935 between 2:30 am and 3:40 am at Quetta, Baluchistan Agency, close to the border with southern Afghanistan. The earthquake had a magnitude of 7.7 M_w  and anywhere between 30,000 and 60,000 people died from the impact. It was recorded as the deadliest earthquake to strike South Asia until 2005. The quake was centred 4 km south-west of Ali Jaan, Balochistan, British India.

Quetta is the capital and largest city of the Pakistani province of Balochistan. It is the ninth largest city in Pakistan, with an estimated population of over 1.6 million in 2024. It is situated in the south-west of the country, lying in a valley surrounded by mountains on all sides. Quetta is at an average elevation of 1,680 metres above sea level, making it Pakistan's highest-altitude major city. The city is known as the "Fruit Garden of Pakistan" due to the numerous fruit orchards in and around it and the large variety of fresh and dried fruits produced there.

Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the second-largest Muslim population as of 2023. Islamabad is the nation's capital, while Karachi is its largest city and financial centre. Pakistan is the 33rd-largest country by area. Bounded by the Arabian Sea on the south, the Gulf of Oman on the southwest, and the Sir Creek on the southeast, it shares land borders with India to the east; Afghanistan to the west; Iran to the southwest; and China to the northeast. It shares a maritime border with Oman in the Gulf of Oman, and is separated from Tajikistan in the northwest by Afghanistan's narrow Wakhan Corridor.