New Delhi, Aug 29 : As tension remains high in the communally sensitive Kandhmal District of Orissa with reports of sporadic incidents of violence, around 30,000 Christian missionary run schools and colleges across the country have decided to remain closed on Friday to protest the violence against their community.

The call for a total shutdown came after Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh described the violence in Orissa as a “national shame”.

A delegation of the Catholic Bishops'''' Conference of India (CBCI) on Thursday called on the Prime Minster and appealed to him to conduct an independent inquiry into the killing of VHP leader Laxamananda Saraswati.

Dr. Singh assured the bishops that the Central Government was in touch with the State Government and that every effort would be made to restore normalcy in the state,'''''''' the Prime Minister''''s Office (PMO) release said.

The PM said there would be a compensation of Rs 3 lakh for the families of those killed while the delegation demanded a law on the lines of the SC and ST atrocities act to protect minorities from harassment.

Later the Prime Minister spoke to Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and urged him to take immediate steps to stop the violence in the state and restore normalcy.

Dr. Singh has also asked him to provide protection to the Christian minorities in Orissa and also to provide immediate relief to the affected people, particularly children.

Meanwhile, the Chief Minister told the State Assembly that free kitchen and relief camps were operating in six block areas while security personnel were asked to conduct flag marches to ensure peace and harmony among the people and claimed that the situation in Kandhamal was returning to normalcy. 

In a move to quell the violence, the former DCP of Cuttack has been posted as the new superintendent of police of Kandhmal.

Besides calling for nationwide rallies and school shutdowns, the bishops have also called for a nationwide day of prayer and fasting on September 7 in support of Christians in the state and for communal harmony and peace.

The CBCI, the National Council of Churches of India, the Orthodox Church and the Evangelical Fellowship of India have given the call for closure of all educational institutions for a day.

In a backlash to the killing of the VHP leader and four others on Saturday night, the violence has claimed ten lives in Orissa so far.

While the police are still carrying out investigations into the killing of the VHP leader, people of the region are living a panic- gripped life.

A Red alert has been sounded in the affected areas, and the authorities have appealed to the people to help them to restore normalcy.

The remote and forested Kandhamal region is rife with religious tension, with hardline Hindus accusing Christian priests of bribing poor tribals and low-caste Hindus to change their faith.

The region is also a stronghold of Maoist rebels, and police say that there is evidence to link the rebels to last week''s murder.

Police sources say that by attacking the Hindus, the Maoists are trying to win support among the region''s poor tribes, many of whom have converted to Christianity.

Shoot-at-sight orders were issued on Wednesday in eight blocks -- Phulbani, Baliguda, Tumudibandh, Raikia, Nuagaon, G Udaygiri, Tikabali and Sankarakhol of Kandhamal District. (ANI)