Jaipur, Dec 14 (IANS): At least 10 people were killed when a tanker carrying chemicals caught fire and exploded after a collision with a truck packed with motorcycles, police said Sunday.
The Saturday night incident near Chandwaji, over 40 km from here, led to the closure of the Delhi-Jaipur highway until 7 a.m. Sunday.
Twelve people were injured and admitted to the NIMS Hospital where two of them were stated to be in critical condition.
"The chemical tanker overturned, caught fire and exploded," a police officer told IANS. Three people died instantly.
"The explosion and fire were so severe that five other vehicles, including a car on the other side of road, also caught fire," he added.
"We had to close the traffic on the Jaipur-Delhi highway till 7 in the morning." After hours of diversion, traffic has been restored on the highway.