Ten patients were killed, and several others were injured in a fire accident at the intensive care unit (ICU) of a government hospital in India's western city of Ahmednagar on Saturday, Indian news agency ANI reported citing district officials. 

The incident, now doused, is the latest in a series of such fires, some blamed on short circuits in electronic equipment, that have killed dozens of patients this year, including some in the richest state of Maharashtra, home to Ahmednagar.

The cause of Saturday's fire is under investigation, said state health official P.D. Gandal, adding that just seven of the 17 ICU patients could be rescued from the blaze.

"Two patients are critical, and five are stable," Gandal noted.

On Twitter, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday expressed anguish over the deaths, and offered condolences to the bereaved, adding, "May the injured recover at the earliest."

(With input from Reuters)