China on Wednesday for the first time admitted to killing a Tibetan 'insurgent' involved in the recent pro-independence protests in Lhasa even as it drew flak for punishing 30 people, including six monks, in the continued security clampdown in the restive Himalayan region.

A policeman and the suspect were killed in a gun-battle after the police tried to arrest an alleged pro-Tibet rioter, in Dari County, Qinghai province, the state media reported.

The attempted arrest was linked to a riot in the area last month by 'insurgents seeking Tibetan independence', Xinhua news agency said.

The worst anti-China protests in two decades erupted in Lhasa, the capital of Tibet [Images], on March 10 and soon spread to surrounding areas. Beijing [Images] claimed 20 people had died and nearly 1,000 were injured in the violence, but Tibetan groups put the death toll at 200.

Xinhua said that a 'handful of people' incited herders to riot in Hongke Town, Dari County on March 21.

'After a month-long investigation, the police moved yesterday to arrest the suspected leader. The suspect resisted arrest and gunfire broke out,' it said.

'In the ensuing gunbattle, the officer was killed. Later, the suspect was also killed by the officers,' the agency added.

Chinese authorities on Tuesday announced that 30 people, including six Buddhist monks, had been sent to jail for their roles in violent protests in Lhasa on March 14.

China claimed that the proceedings had been open and attended by more than 200 people, but United States-based group Human Rights Watch said it was concerned that the defendants had not received a fair trial.