At least 14 children have been killed after the roof of an under-construction tutoring centre collapsed in Pakistan.

Eight further children were injured and taken to hospital after the incident in the eastern city of Lahore, officials said.

Rescuers were continuing to search through the debris as more children could be trapped underneath the rubble, according to senior police official Faisal Kamran.

He said the tutoring centre was inside an ageing building and that the roof of an unfinished second floor collapsed, apparently due to poor-quality construction.

The owner of the tutoring centre and a second person have been arrested, Mr Kamran added.

Witnesses said ambulances and rescue workers rushed to the scene after the collapse.

Residents also joined the search, using shovels and their bare hands to remove rubble in an effort to reach children trapped beneath the debris.

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Hours later the bodies of the children were handed over to their families and parents wept over the loss of their children, according to reports.

Dozens of mourners were seen gathering outside the victims' homes to offer condolences.

"We don't know whose home to visit first to offer condolences for the loss of their children," Zafar Iqbal, who lives nearby, said as he moved from one bereaved family's home to another nearby street.

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari offered condolences to the families of the victims in a statement, saying he prayed for the speedy recovery of those injured and adding that effective safety measures were needed to prevent similar tragedies.

Building collapses are common in Pakistan, where construction standards are often poorly enforced, resulting in many structures built with substandard materials and safety regulations frequently being ignored to reduce costs.