Ten babies were killed in a maternity unit in the Indian state of Maharashtra early yesterday when fire tore through a major hospital, a doctor said. 

Staff rescued seven of the newborn infants at the Bhandara district hospital but were beaten back before they could get to the 10 others, Pramod Khandate, a senior doctor, told AFP.

All of those who died were aged between a few days and three months, according to reports.

The cause of the fire is not known yet.