Bird flu has infected 21 people and killed six people in total

The city of Shanghai, where two of the three new cases were reported, banned racing pigeons and sale of pet birds.

The third newly infected person is a 55 year old working in a chicken farm in the province of Anhui man, said the official news agency New China.

The Chinese Ministry of Education has also called on schools to "protect the health" of students by teaching them the importance of washing their hands and maintaining hygiene in canteens.

The television showed disinfection classrooms in Shanghai before returning students on Sunday after the discharges associated with the festival of the dead.

Ten of the 18 people infected were reported in Shanghai, four died. Two new cases were announced on Saturday, then two again this Sunday.