At least 18 miners have died and one is severely injured after an explosion at an illegally-operated coal mine in India’s northeastern state of Meghalaya, police say.
Rescue operations are on and some people are still feared trapped, police say, adding that the blast occurred around 11:00 local time (5:30 GMT) on Thursday in the East Jaintia Hills of the state.
Superintendent of the state police Vikash Kumar told reporters that the accident happened due to rat-hole mining – a hazardous method which involves the use of dynamite to break open narrow tunnels through which workers crouch to extract coal.
Rat-hole mining has continued in the state despite a blanket ban in place, activists say.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced financial assistance of 200,000 rupees ($2,215, £1,636) for the deceased and 50,000 rupees for the injured.
The blast – which happened inside the mine – was suspected to be caused by dynamite, police say.
The mine was located in a forested area 72km (45 miles) away from state capital Shillong.
Kumar says 18 bodies have been recovered so far and one person with severe burn injuries has been admitted to a hospital in Shillong. He, however, says it is not yet clear how many more workers might be trapped underground.
The police are yet to identify the people who owned and operated the mine, while a case has been registered against unidentified people, Kumar says. They are also yet to ascertain identities of the victims.