KATHMANDU - The Nepal government has revised the official death toll from the country's 10-year civil conflict, increasing it by more than 3,000 after new casualties came to light, an official said Tuesday.

A nationwide task force launched when the war ended in 2006 to investigate and record casualties has so far uncovered more than 16,000 deaths, the official told AFP, adding that the toll may rise further.

"So far we have recorded at least 16,278 deaths during the armed conflict, while the previous estimate was around 13,000," said Dhurba Gaida, secretary of the task force.

"The death toll has increased because more people in the villages lodged complaints about losing relatives during the conflict."

The task force also found that 70,425 people were displaced by the conflict, although most have now been able to return home.

Nepal's decade-long civil war between Maoist rebels and the state ended in 2006 with a UN-brokered peace agreement.

Since then the country has seen tumultuous change, with the ultra-leftists winning landmark polls, abolishing the 240-year-old monarchy and declaring Nepal a secular state before their government fell in May.

But the ensuing political upheaval has resulted in delays to the peace process and there is growing concern about the lack of progress on key issues such as the integration of Maoist former fighters into the army.

Gaida said the task force had now completed 90 percent of its work but was still working to verify some claims and would publish its final findings in six months.