More Christians have lost their lives for their beliefs in India.

Five believers were killed in India recently, including 25-year-old Suman Munda, CBN News reports.

Munda was found dead near her home in the Khunti district of Jharkhand on July 19.

A month prior, another Christian, Ramji Munda, 27, was found dead in the same district.

"It is a matter of serious concern because the state witnessed a Christian man killed only last month in the same district," says local bishop Binay Kandulna.

Kandulna wants to see religious tolerance across India.

"Persons of faith are a creation of God and we have to respect all," he says.

"Some vested interests groups are trying to target minorities in the state to spread hatred among various faiths who are otherwise peace-loving people."

Voice of the Martyr's Todd Nettleton says persecution is on the rise in India.

"If it was one village or one state, and you could kind of say, ‘Yeah, things are really hard there, but look at these other places,’ but when you see people in four different states within such a span of time being killed, it really reflects the attitude and the atmosphere for Christians all over India," Nettleton says.

Nettleton believes the government is under pressure, as it is led by Hindu nationalists. This, he says, leads to feelings that people can "get away with" fatal persecution of Christians.

In 2018, 447 cases of persecution against Christians were reported to Persecution Relief, a group that works to help believers in India. 527 cases were recorded in 2019.

According to the Open Doors World Watch List, India is the tenth-worst country for the persecution of Christians.