Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy and four others have been killed, officials in the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) confirmed on Thursday, more than 24 hours after his helicopter went missing in a densely forested area.

"The bodies have been recovered. They will be taken to Hyderabad for post-mortem," a PMO official in New Delhi said shortly after the mangled remains of the Bell helicopter were found on a hilltop in Kurnool, about 200 km from here.