The Police force has disclosed that 24 people have been injured in a cylinder explosion at a crowded labour colony in the northern Indian state of Punjab Thursday.

A police official explained that, the explosion took place when some laborers were cooking in one of the makeshift houses in New Smart Colony in the Giaspura area of Ludhiana city.

“The gas cylinder had first caught fire and exploded when the laborers tried to put it out using water. Onlookers who had gathered near the house sustained injuries following the explosion, he said, adding that the condition of five is said to be serious. A probe has been ordered into the incident,” the official said.