Three of a family, including two children, were killed after a cooking gas cylinder exploded in their home in Kalahandi district Wednesday, police said.
The deceased persons have been identified as Champa Meher (42), her 8-year-old daughter Sunita and son Anup (5).
The incident occurred at Thanata village when Champa Meher was preparing breakfast for her children in a gas oven.
The impact of the blast was so severe that the house has also been badly damaged, SDPO Surendra Satpathy said.
Fire brigade personnel and police recovered the charred bodies and investigation was in progress, Satpathy said.