Nagpur (Maharashtra), May 19 (IANS) At least four policemen and three Maoists, including a woman, were killed Thursday in fierce gun battles in two locations in Maharashtra's Gadchiroli district, police said.

First gunfight took place near Nargonda village. The fight started when rebels ambushed a police team Thursday morning, an official of the Anti-Naxal Squad said here.

Two Maoists were killed when police returned fire, he said.

One policeman of the C-60 battalion, Chinna Vetta, was killed while two others - Sadhu Palli and Shankar Govase - were seriously injured, he said.

In the other gun battle in the same district, two officers, a police man and a rebel were killed near Tadgaon village, the official said.

The identities of the security personnel killed in the second gunfight were not immediately available.

According to the official, both the gun battles started around 9 p.m. and were still going on.

State Home Minister R.R. Patil, who rushed to Gadchiroli, told reporters in the afternoon that the police have recovered the bodies of two Maoists gunned down in the fight.

"The Maoists attacked the police patrols in the forests. We have recovered bodies of two Maoists and at least another eight are reported to be injured. Our operations are continuing," said Patil, who is the guardian minister of the district.

Officials said that one of the Maoists is a woman whose body has been recovered.

Meanwhile, the district authorities have summoned additional forces from the neighbouring Chandrapur district.

A helicopter is also being used to pinpoint the rebel locations, an official said. Gadchiroli is one of the worst Maoist-affected districts in the state.