Aybak, Jun 15 (IANS): Two miners were killed and 35 others fainted due to gas suffocation in a coalmine in Dara-e-Suf Bala district of Afghanistan's northern Samangan province two days ago, district chief Mohammad Nasim Khyber Shakan said.

"The gruesome incident took place yesterday evening due to the emission of carbon monoxide gas in a coalmine," Khybar Shakan told Xinhua news agency on Wednesday.

All the fainted miners have been taken to a hospital, the official said, adding they are recovering, Xinhua news agency reported.

This is the second incident of its kind since Saturday in Afghanistan. In a similar incident, a coalminer lost his life and another went unconscious due to gas suffocation in a coalmine in Samangan's neighbouring Baghlan province on June 10, police said.

Non-standard mining, poor equipment and unskilled workers to extract the underground treasures, often claim the lives of miners in Afghanistan, according to Afghans.