At least three suspected Naxalite leftwing rebels were killed in an encounter with government forces in the southeast Indian state Andhra Pradesh on Wednesday night, said local media Thursday.

The fighting took place in a forest in the district of Visakhapatnam on Wednesday evening, when a patrol party of police detected the movement of suspected Naxalite rebels and asked them to surrender, local daily Indian Express online quoted officials as saying in Hyderabad, the state capital of Andhra Pradesh.

Three rebels, including two women, were killed and several others fled the spot. An AK-47 was recovered from one of the slain rebels, believed to be a rebel commander.

A massive search and combing operation has been launched in the area to nab the remaining rebels.

The Naxalite rebels are estimated to have 10,000 members who attack government officials and police forces in about 10 states, mostly in poor rural areas in central and eastern India.