Ecclesiastical Details

Diocese of Agartala
Heirarchy of the Diocese
Rite:
 Latin
Population:
 3.5million (approximately)
 
Status:
 Diocese
Catholics:
35000
 
Founded:
 11-Jan-96
Diocesan Priests:
 4
  Total area:
10486sq.kms
Religious Priests:
 53
 
Province:
Shillong
Religious Sisters:
 105
 
Region:
North Eastern
Seminarians:
  Patron:
St. Francis Xavier
  Languages: Bengali KokBorok and other dialects
  Civil States: Tripura
Contact Diocese Office :
 Bishop's House P.O. Durjoy Nagar Agartala - 799 009 TRIPURA
Telephone 1:
 0381-2342403 /
Fax:
23 42 969
 
E-Mail Office:
Website:
 
Most Rev. Lumen Monteiro CSC, Bishops of Agartala
Name:
 Most Rev. Lumen Monteiro CSC
Designation:
 Bishops   Canonical Possession: 1996-
Telephone (P):
E-mail (P):
 
Other Present & Retired Ordinaries of the Diocese of Agartala
 
Pilgrim Centres in theDiocese of Agartala
 
Ecclesiastical Institutions
  
Social / Charitable Institutions / Care Centres
Educational Institutions
Parishes:
256
  
Hospitals:
   
Degree Colleges:
1
Major Seminaries:
 
Orphanages:
3
    
Technical Training Centres:
2
Minor Seminaries:
 
Special Schools:
   
High Schools:
27
Monastries:
9
  
Crèches:
   
Lower Primary Schools:
Convents:
27
  
Counselling Centres:
1
    
Presses & Media Centres:
Formation Houses:
3
  
Social Centres:
   
Professional Colleges:
Retreat Centres:
 
Dispensaries / Clinics:
10
    
Parallel Colleges:
 
Physically Challenged:
   
Higher Secondary :
       
Boarding Houses:
   
Upper Primary Schools:
       
HIV / AIDS Centres:
   
Nurseries/Pre-Primary :
       
De-addiction Centres:
       
          Aged & Destitute: 2        
     
       
History of the Diocese of Agartala
  
The beginning of the Catholic faith in Tripura dates back many centuries. Fr Ignatius Gomes a Jesuit priest made the first reference to the Christians of Mariamnagar in Agartala when he visited them in 1683. Fr P. Barbe the pastor of Chittagong visited Tripura in 1843. Holy Cross pioneering missionaries Fr Louis Augustine Verite and Fr Beboit Adolphe Mercier visited Agartala in 1856 and administered sacraments to the Christians in Mariamnagar village. From 1937 onwards priests began to take permanent residence at Mariamnagar. The first parish in Tripura was erected at Mariamnagar in 1939. The first permanent Church (at present the temporary Cathedral) was blessed in 1952. Because of its geographical proximity the Archdiocese of Dhaka continued to cater to the spiritual needs of the Catholics in Tripura till the erection of the new ecclesiastical unit in 1952 namely the Prefecture of Haflong. In 1969 the Prefecture was upgraded to the position of a Diocese with Most Rev. Denzil D' Souza dd as the first Bishop of Silchar which comprised the states of Mizoram and Tripura and the District of Cachar in Assam.By the Papal Bull "Venerabiles Frates Nostri" dated January 11 1996 Pope John Paul II decreed the erection of the Diocese of Agartala. The new Diocese of Agartala which comprises the entire state of Tripura was bifurcated from the erstwhile Diocese of Silchar. Most Rev. Lumen Monteiro csc dd was appointed the first Bishop of the new diocese. He was ordained and installed on May 26 1996. The Diocese of Agartala is dedicated to Christ the Light of the World with St. Francis Xavier as the Patron and its motto being "Lead us Onward".
 
Prelates of the Diocese of Agartala