Her flat was on the third floor of a residential building in Basant Vihar in Kadma police station area, they added.
A massive fire broke out as a result of the explosion, which firefighters brought under control within 30 minutes, Sub-Divisional Officer of Dhalbhum Piyush Sinha said.
All the residents of the apartment were rescued safely, he said.
Police recovered the victim’s body, and sent it to the MGM Hospital for post-mortem.
Her husband Om prakash Gupta, who was in office when the accident happened, rushed home upon receiving the news, and fainted after learning about his wife. He was admitted to the Tata Main Hospital, police said.
Other residents of the building rushed out in panic after the accident, and in the process, two persons sustained minor injuries.
Gupta’s flat was ravaged by the fire, police said.