New Delhi: At least 62 persons are killed and more than 40are injured when a train from Karachi to Rawalpindi caught fire in Pakistan'seast Punjab province on Thursday. The passenger train, Tezgam, caught fire nearthe city area of Liaquatpur, a Pakistan Railways official confirmed. The firewas caused when a gas cylinder being carried by a passenger exploded, he said.

The fire destroyed three of the train carriages, includingtwo economy class carriages and one business class. Pakistan Railways MinisterSheikh Rasheed said, "Two cooking stoves blew up. They were cooking, theyhad (cooking) oil which added fuel to fire." "Most deaths occurredwhen people jumped off the train," he said.

He added men from a 'Tableeghi Jammat' were travelling inthe carriage where the incident occurred. "Bogies were severely damaged bythe fire and they have been detached from the rest of the train," he said.

Rasheed added the fire had been extinguished and coolingefforts were underway.

According to an official, there were a total of 207passengers in the three bogies that were completely gutted in the fire. Thegruesome accident charred the bodies that made it difficult to identify thepeople who died in the accident. Meanwhile, the process of cooling the expresstrain is currently underway.

Prime Minister Imran Khan while expressing his condolencesdirected the authorities to ensure the provision of best medical treatment forthe injured.

This is the second major train accident in Pakistan thisyear. In July, 24 people were killed, when the Akbar Bugti Express travellingfrom Lahore to Quetta collided with a stationary freight train at the WalharRailway Station in Sadiqabad Tehsil of Punjab province.

(With agency inputs)