Six people, including two eight-year-old boys, were killed and seven others injured in a firecracker explosion in eastern India, police officials said today.
The explosion took place late last night in Barberia village, 55 kilometers (35 miles) south of Calcutta, said police superintendent D.K. Ganguly.
The blast ripped through the residence of one of the organisers of a local festival, who had hired a group of firework-makers to prepare crackers for the event.
Asked if the organisers had sought the necessary permission to make the firecrakers, Mr Ganguly said: "We are probing the matter."
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India's firework industry has long been cited as one of the worst exploiters of child labour.
AFP