Sources said the mishap occurred in Hunumant Mal hamlet of Surgana taluka on Saturday evening when one of the boys tried to put a battery-like object in his mouth and it exploded.
According to police from Surana police station, all four children were playing in the courtyard of the huts when their parents had gone to work.
Police identified the injured children as Virean Ramesh Chothave (9), Aayan Ramesh Chothave (7), Pundalik Jainath Chothave (7) and Mangesh Prabhakar Chothave (8).
While Virean was critically injured, others sustained minor injuries.
After hearing the sound of the explosion, people nearby rushed to the spot and took the children first to Surgana Primary Health Centre and from there to Nashik Civil Hospital.
Critically injured Virean was further shifted to Adgaon Hospital. The condition of the other three boys is reported to be stable. (UNI)
