17 killed in blast at explosives factory in western India

By Ahmad Adil

NEW DELHI (AA) - At least 17 people were killed and 18 others injured after a blast at an explosives factory in India's Maharashtra state, officials said on Sunday.

The incident happened in Raulgaon village in the state’s Nagpur district and "rescue operations have been accelerated," the state's chief minister, Devendra Fadnavis, wrote on US social media company X.

He said 18 people were also injured and were promptly shifted to Nagpur.

“Orders have been issued for a thorough investigation into this incident,” he said.

This is the second major incident in India in the last 24 hours. On Friday, 21 people died after an explosion in a firecracker manufacturing unit in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh.