India on Friday cautioned its citizens in China and Hong Kong to take precautions against the deadly atypical pneumonia epidemic that has so far claimed 62 lives and affected over 1,900 in the country.

In a notice posted on the website of the Indian embassy in Beijing, it said that the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome has been reported in parts of southern China, Hong Kong and some other countries over the past month.

It said that travellers to China and Hong Kong should decide after taking into account the travel advisories issued by the World Health Organisation and relevant governments.

While no case of SARS has been reported from the Indian community both places, officials at the Indian missions are monitoring the situation closely and are in touch with the community, official sources said.

In China, SARS has officially been reported in Beijing municipality, Guangdong, Guangxi, Hunan, Shanxi and Sichuan provinces.

The authorities are keeping a close watch on the situation in Hong Knong, where there are over 20,000 Indians.

The Department of Health in Hong Kong reported 26 new cases on Thursday, compared with 23 on Wednesday.

These figures represent a significant decline from the 155 cases reported on Tuesday and 60 reported on Monday.

"This trend suggests that the extraordinary control measures undertaken by the government are working," the WHO said.