From correspondents in Uttar Pradesh, India, 05:30 PM IST

Armed men barged into an ice cream factory here early Tuesday, locked up several workers in a refrigerated truck and escaped with Rs.500,000, the police said Tuesday.

The attackers beat up around 30 workers after overpowering the watchman. The workers were then forced to get into the refrigerated van, after which its door was tightly shut, the police said.

But the guard escaped and alerted the police. 'It was the workers' good luck that a police team reached the spot immediately,' an officer said.

(Staff Writer, © IANS)