At least four people were killed and four others were critically injured in a firecracker blast at a house under Bhusandapur village in the Tangi police station area of Khordha district on Monday, the police said.
The incident took place about 40 kms from Bhubaneswar. Firecrackers were being manufactured at a house for the upcoming Holi festival when the blast took place, a police officer said.
The police further said four other persons sustained severe injuries in the incident.
The reason behind the blast is yet to be ascertained.
Khordha Collector K Sudarshan Chakravarthy said the critically injured were shifted to the DHH and were being attended to by a special team of doctors.
"I received information about the mishap around 10.45 am and the fire services, local police and revenue teams were sent to the spot immediately. The critically injured were shifted to the DHH where they are being attended to by a special team of doctors. Now, the top priority is to provide the best medical care to the injured persons," Mr Chakravarthy said.
He further said action will be taken on the basis of the probe report.
"We will conduct a thorough probe to find out from where they had procured the raw materials and why they were making the firecrackers in the house. Action will be taken on the basis of the probe report," he added.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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