Jakarta, March 24 (IANS) An earthquake measuring 6.3 on the Richter scale hit Indonesia's North Maluku province on Sunday, but a tsunami alert has not been issued.

The quake struck at 1.37 p.m., with the epicentre recorded at 139 km northwest of Jailolo and the shallow at 10 km under the sea bed, a disaster agency official told Xinhua news agency.

"We didn't issue a tsunami alert as this quake had no potential for it," he said.

There were no immediate reports of any damage or injuries.

--IANS ksk/bc