At least 20 people died in a gun battle between police and alleged timber smugglers in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday, a local police chief said.
Deputy Inspector General M. Kantha Rao said his officers had opened fire "in self-defence" after challenging a group of over 100 suspected smugglers in a remote forest.
"The police opened fire on the smugglers and found nine bodies in one position and 11 bodies in another," he told AFP.