Bhopal, May 17 -- The state government has suspended the sub-divisional magistrate, naib tehsildar and sub-divisional officer of police in connection with an explosion at a firecracker factory in the Tonk Kalan area of Madhya Pradesh's Dewas on Thursday that killed at least five workers and injured several others.

Following the incident, authorities sealed the premises and detained factory owner Anil Malviya to investigate the legality of the operations.

Collector Rituraj Singh said the factory had begun producing small firecrackers only 15 days earlier under a newly issued licence. "Preliminary findings suggest the explosion occurred while gunpowder was being manufactured by mixing two chemicals," he added.

The home department said in...