New Delhi, Aug 11 - A swine flu scare gripped India Tuesday as the contagious disease spread to newer areas and claimed three victims, taking the nationwide death toll in just nine days to 10.

A Malaysian coach taking part in an international badminton tournament in Hyderabad was the first known foreigner to fall victim to the disease that has triggered panic in some cities.

A worried Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad urged chief ministers to take urgent steps to tackle the H1N1 disease that was unknown to India till the first case was reported May 16.

The latest to die of swine flu were a 13-year-old girl in Pune, the worst hit city where five people have died, a 63-year-old woman in Mumbai, and a seven-year-old girl in Vadodara.

Azad, who has immersed himself in the war against swine flu, telephoned some chief ministers Monday night and some Tuesday morning to warn that complacency could lead to disaster.

Officials said he discussed with them urgent measures needed to combat the spread of the virus that has affected 960 people in India.

He also met senior bureaucrats tasked to visit various state to help contain the spread of the virus that originated in Mexico and has sparked a global scare.

Even as Minister Azad held a high-level meeting in New Delhi, Shruti Gavde, who tested positive last Saturday, died in Pune's Sassoon Hospital, barely hours after pharmacist Sanjay Tilekar died there Monday night.

A student of A.D. High School in Pune, Shruti had been admitted to Sassoon Hospital Sunday in critical condition.

In the Maharashtra capital Mumbai, Shahida Warsi died at a private hospital. 'The deceased was from Thane and had been brought to Mumbai for treatment,' said Additional Municipal Commissioner Manisha Mhaiskar.

She had been brought to Mumbai's Noor Hospital in Byculla five days ago for treatment.

In Gujarat's Vadodara town, a girl died in a government hospital after being under ventilator for two days. She had been brought in for treatment Aug 7, said Health Minister Jaynarayan Vyas.

'The girl had no history of how she contracted the virus,' Vyas said.