Explosion at Delhi school

Children of India's elite attend the school

The principal of one of the Indian capital's most prestigious schools has said that one student and three staff members have been injured in an explosion.

Thankfully... there were not too many children around

Principal Nina Sehgal

Nina Sehgal, headmistress of the Delhi Public School's Noida branch, told the BBC there was a loud sound in the school's lobby at about 0745 in the morning.

But she ruled out reports suggesting the explosion was caused by a bomb.

The AFP news agency, however, quoted a receptionist at the school as saying she saw someone throw something into the lobby just before the blast.

The school's 4,000 pupils include the children of top bureaucrats, senior politicians and industrialists.

Lucky escape

Ms Sehgal said none of the injuries was serious.

"Thankfully, that's the time for the morning assembly so there were not too many children around," she said.

"But one student and three staff members who were nearby suffered splinter injuries."

Police were not available for comment but reports say they are not ruling out a bomb blast in their investigations.

Receptionist Raji Sethi told AFP that classes were allowed to continue after the incident.

Located in a suburb of Delhi, the school sprawls across 15 acres.