Nangal (Punjab), March 20 (IANS) Two engineers and a labourer were killed and one seriously injured in a furnace blast in state-run National Fertilizers Limited (NFL) factory in this Punjab town, police said.

According to police, the deceased were identified as Mahinder Singh Anand, Deepak Chabbra (both of them engineers) and labourer Jarnail Singh.

'The blast occurred due to the leakage of ammonia gas. According to the workers present inside the factory, there was a strong vibration followed by a loud blast,' a police official said.

'Three of the employees were killed on the spot due to severe burn injuries while one was shifted to a hospital in Ludhiana.'

Employees of NFL were quite upset over this accident.

'This accident has happened only due to the laxity of the senior officials working here. All of them know that equipments installed have already lasted their life and need an immediate replacement but nobody is bothered,' an NFL engineer said requesting anonymity.

Nangal is around 100 km from state capital Chandigarh.