Thiruvananthapuram/New Delhi, March 21 (IANS) A suspected explosive was found in the cargo compartment of a Kingfisher flight that arrived here from Bangalore, police said. The civil aviation ministry has ordered a probe into what officials admitted was a security lapse.

A Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) official found the suspected explosive, the size of a cricket ball and wrapped in a newspaper, shortly after the plane landed at 8.25 a.m., Thiruvananthapuram police chief M.R. Ajith Kumar said.

'This was found in the cargo compartment. It is a suspected explosive and investigations are on,' Kumar told reporters.

The discovery was made after the passengers had alighted. The aircraft has been cordoned off by security personnel.

'We are investigating how this happened. Certainly this is a security lapse. The suspected explosive is now with experts and investigations will reveal what exactly it is,' Kumar added.

A civil aviation ministry official told IANS in New Delhi: 'We have ordered a probe into this serious lapse of security. The Bureau of Civil Aviation Security is investigating.'

The BCAS is the regulatory authority for civil aviation security in India.