India's Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the government of the eastern state of Orissa to submit a report on measures taken to protect the lives and property of Christians under attack by Hindu groups in the region.

At least 16 people have been killed in Hindu-Christian clashes in Orissa after a Hindu leader belonging to the right-wing Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) group was killed August 23 in the central district of Kandhamal.

The high court asked the Orissa state administration to explain steps it had taken to control violence and protect people in the state, the NDTV network reported.

A three-judge panel headed by Chief Justice KG Balakrishnan directed the state government to file the report by Thursday.

The court also asked the Orissa government to reply whether it had granted permission to the VHP for a rally in the state on Friday, which Christians fear could lead to further violence.

The court heard a petition filed by Raphael Cheenath, archbishop of Orissa's Cuttack town.

The petition sought an inquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation into the killings of Christians and damage caused to churches and other institutions in Kandhamal.

It also sought the involvement of the National Human Rights Commission, to conduct an investigation into which organization was behind the Kandhamal violence.

Violence flared after the VHP leader Laxmananda Saraswati was fatally shot by suspected Maoist rebels.

Hindu activists attacked Christians and torched churches, alleging that Christians killed Saraswati because he opposed religious conversion in the state. Christian organizations denied the allegations.

More than 3,000 police and security forces were deployed in the troubled areas, but attacks on churches have continued and more than 12,000 Christians have fled to refugee camps.

Communally sensitive Kandhamal - with a population of 600,000, including 150,000 Christians - has witnessed numerous clashes between Hindus and Christians in the past.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh described the violence as a "national disgrace."

Christians said more violence was reported in Orissa since Tuesday with a church being destroyed and about 100 Christian families fleeing.

Local media reported that the situation in the worst-affected Kandhamal and Koraput districts was improving.

"But the possibility of fresh violence can never be ruled out," Orissa's police chief Pradeep Kapur, who is camping in Kandamal, told the IANS news agency. "We are here to intervene promptly if such things happen."

In a related development, India told the Vatican that it was capable of dealing with the situation and restoring law and order in the state.

The message was conveyed by senior officials of the Indian foreign ministry to the representative of the Holy See in New Delhi, Archbishop Pedro Lopez Quintana, the IANS reported.

Quintana and others from the Holy See mission in New Delhi met Indian officials last week after the Vatican issued a statement expressing concern over the attacks on Christians and others as a "sin against God and humanity."