India, June 30 -- At least eight workers were feared killed and another 12 workers suffered severe injuries in a major explosion at a chemical factory in the Pashamylaram Industrial Estate of Telangana's Sangareddy district on Monday morning, the police said.

The incident took place at the production unit of Sigachi Industries Private Ltd, a leading manufacturer of microcrystalline cellulose and other pharma excipients and food ingredients, at around 10 am. "While five workers were charred to death on the spot, three others succumbed to burn injuries at the hospital at Patancheru," a police officer of Patancheru police station said, adding the condition of another two persons was critical.

The exact cause of the explosion was not immedi...