The 30-share barometer, which gained 265.39 points in the previous session, tanked 486.88 points, or 2.64 per cent, to below the psychological 18,000 points level at 17,952.60, with all sectoral indices trading in the negative zone with losses up to 2.73 per cent.
In a similar fashion, the wide-based National Stock Exchange Nifty index lost 150.55 points, or 2.79 per cent, to 5,380.95 points.
The trading sentiment on the domestic bourses turned extremely weak large after the Japanese Nikkei tumbled by over 10 per cent amid fears of a meltdown at a nuclear power plant, brokers said.
Overnight losses in the US market also dampened the sentiment, they added.
Japan`s Nikkei was down by 10.11 per cent, while Hong Kong`s Hang Seng was down 3.88 per cent in morning trade today. The US`s Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 0.43 per cent down in yesterday`s session.