Mangaluru: Seven more crows were found dead at different places in the city on Monday, amid fears of bird flu spread in neighboring Kerala.

Official sources said the samples from the crows were collected and sent for testing.

Three crows were found on the road near Pacchanady dumping yard, two near Shaktinagar housing colony and two more near Kuppepadavu school road, the sources said.

Health department officials visited the spots and collected the samples.

Six crows were found dead at Manjanady near here recently and samples collected from them had tested negative for bird flu.

Karnataka Health Minister K Sudhakar had said on January 9 that there was no case of bird flu in Karnataka and all tests done so far have turned negative.

Bird flu has been reported in parts of Alappuzha and Kottayam districts in neighboring Kerala, prompting officials to cull birds, including ducks and chicken there.

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Ghaziabad (UP) (PTI): A 55-year-old criminal wanted in the case of rape and murder of his four-year-old niece was killed in a police encounter late on Sunday night in Uttar Pradesh's Ghaziabad district, a police official said on Monday.

In the joint operation carried out by the police and Crime Branch, the accused Jeeshan, carrying a cash reward of Rs 50,000, allegedly opened fire to evade arrest, resulting in injuries to two personnel, the police said.

According to the police, at around 12 noon on April 11, Jeeshan allegedly lured the child from outside her home on the pretext of buying her toffees. He took her to his room, where he allegedly raped her and subsequently strangled her to death. Following the crime, the accused carried the body on his shoulders and dumped it under a car on an 80-foot road in the Shalimar Garden police station area before fleeing.

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Two days ago, his presence was captured on CCTV footage at Delhi railway station when he was trying to flee out of Delhi. The police received a tip-off that the accused was scheduled to meet someone near the Banthla canal in Loni, the police said.

Following this, a team of the Teela Morh police station barricaded the area, and began checking. They spotted the suspect and signalled him to stop. Upon seeing the police, Jeeshan attempted to flee. Finding himself encircled by the police, he allegedly opened fire on the police team. The police fired in self-defence, in which the accused sustained gunshot wounds. He was rushed to a hospital, where doctors declared him dead, the police said.

ACP Shalimar Garden Atul Kumar Singh said that the accused was killed in retaliatory firing and the injured policemen -- head constables Amit and Iqbal -- are out of danger.

The body of the deceased has been sent for a post-mortem examination, Singh said, and added that the police have recovered weapons and cartridges from his possession.