India, March 2 -- At least 18 workers were charred to death, and 24 others were injured, most of them critically, in a powerful blast that tore through an explosives manufacturing factory in Maharashtra's Nagpur district on Sunday morning, police said.

The explosion occurred at the detonator packing unit of SBL Energy Limited, a mining and industrial explosives manufacturer, at Raulgaon in Katol tehsil between 7 AM and 7.15 AM.

With one more person succumbing to injuries during treatment later in the day, the death toll has mounted to 18, a police officer said, adding that 24 injured workers are undergoing treatment at two hospitals in Nagpur.

The bodies were charred beyond recognition, and samples of the family members were being take...