Five children were buried alive while another was critically injured when a huge chunk of soil fell on them at Thaparpur village in rural Patna, police said on Sunday.

"Six children including four girls aged between 10-12 years while digging the earth to construct their huts were trapped into a mud pit and a huge chunk of mud fell on them killing five on the spot. One was critically injured," Superintendent of Police (Rural Patna) Upendra Sinha told PTI.

While those killed in the incident were yet to be identified, the injured child is being treated at a government hospital, he added.