At least eight persons were killed and three others seriously injured on Friday in an explosion at a firecracker factory here, police said.

"At around 4.00 pm, there was an explosion in a licensed firecracker factory in Rasulpur village under Civil Lines police station," Badaun Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Ashok Kumar said.

"Seven persons died on the spot, while one person succumbed to his injuries in hospital. Three injured persons have been admitted to the district hospital. Their condition is serious," he said.

The intensity of the blast was so strong that people sitting in an adjacent cycle shop and some passersby were injured in the incident, the SSP said.

"Two passersby were among those killed," he said.

The district administration had pressed excavators and fire brigades into service for rescue work.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath took immediate cognizance of the explosion and directed the district magistrate of Badaun to take all necessary steps to provide relief to the injured.

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