NEW DELHI - A NATIONAL body of bishops on Monday said churches held services in India's Orissa state for the first time since anti-Christian riots swept the region last month.

The Catholic Bishops' Conference of India said the situation was 'slowly returning to normal' but more facilities were needed at makeshift camps where thousands of Christians are sheltering under police guard in the eastern state.

'On Sunday, the usual church services were conducted in (state capital) Bhubaneshwar and elsewhere in Orissa without any serious disturbance,' the Conference said.

But 'the relief camps need more facilities and protection for the people who are still in the grip of fear and loss,' conference spokesman Babu Joseph said in New Delhi.

Sixteen people were killed and 13,000 fled to the camps after anti-Christian riots erupted following the August 23 murder of a popular Hindu leader by unknown gunmen in Orissa's Kandhamal district.

Thousands of others, mostly Christians, are sheltering in forests and the Catholic Bishops' Conference said people still lived in fear in the region.

'In some villages, people continue to live under threat. They think they could be attacked any time. People of Barakhamba (one of the affected areas) said they wanted to relocate themselves entirely,' the spokesman said.

The comments came after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh threatened to use force to put down the wave of anti-Christian attacks.

New Delhi has also promised financial aid to the victims of the anti-Christian clashes, India's deadliest in recent years.

Christians make up 2.3 per cent of India's billion-plus population.

Hindu radicals accuse missionaries of luring poor tribals and low-caste Hindus to convert to Christianity by offering free education and healthcare. -- AFP