The mangled remains of the vehicle that carried the gelatin sticks and the mutilated bodies of blast victims gave ample indications of the impact of the explosion.

Kadapa Superintendent of Police K Anburajan told PTI over phone that the blast occurred when a consignment of gelatin sticks was being unloaded at the limestone mine on the outskirts of Mamillapalli village in the district.

Of the ten victims, only six could be identified as the remaining were fully dismembered, according to Porumamilla Inspector of Police K Mohan Reddy.

The deceased belonged to Pulivendula Assembly segment, the native of Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy.

''It is a licensed limestone mine and certified operators had brought the consignment. The blast occurred when the sticks were being unloaded,'' Anburajan said from the accident site.

The cause of the mishap could not be established immediately as the workers at the site were killed in the explosion.

Chief Minister Reddy spoke to Kadapa district officials and enquired about the incident.

He expressed grief over the death of the workers and extended sympathies to the bereaved families, a CMO release here said.

Leader of the Opposition N Chandrababu Naidu too expressed shock over the mishap and demanded that the victims' families be paid an ex-gratia of Rs one crore each, on par with what was given to the victims of styrene vapour leak in the LG Polymers unit in Visakhapatnam last year.

Jana Sena chief K Pawan Kalyan said in a statement that the news of the tragedy disturbed him.

He demanded that the government pay ''justifiable compensation'' to the kin of the victims as they were poor, eking out a livelihood working in the mines.

Kalyan sought a thorough inquiry into the safety measures being implemented in mines.

Police registered a case under the Explosive Substances Act against the mine owner C Nageswara Reddy and launched an investigation.