Dreaded dacoit Nirbhay Gujjar sustained injuries while two of his gang members were killed in an encounter in Uttar Pradesh's Itawah district on Friday, police said.

The encounter took place on the banks of Quari river in the ravines in the wee hours when police, following a tip off intercepted the gang members, District police chief Daljit Singh Chaudhary said.

There was heavy exchange of fire between the police and the gang and going by the magnitude of the firing it appeared that Nirbhay had sustained injuries, Chaudhary said.

A large quantity of arms and ammunition, including live cartridges, were recovered from the spot, he said adding some of the gang members managed to make good their escape taking advantage of the darkness. But two of them were killed.

A massive combing operation has been launched in the area to nab the other gang members and teams from other police stations have also rushed to join the search, he said.

He expressed confidence that despite the difficult terrain, police would be able to liquidate the other gang members soon.