(ANS – Rome) – The General Council has approved the creation of a new Province in India. From the division of the Guwahati Province  dedicated to “Mary Help of Christians” and canonically erected in 1959, that of Silchar has come into existence and will begin officially on 24 May.

The wealth of vocations and the size of the territory of the Guwahati Province have been the reasons for the creation of a new Province based on Silchar, in the State of Assam (INS). The Province, to be dedicated to “Blessed John Paul II” will include the States of Tripura, Mizoram and part of those of  Meghalaya and Assam and from the ecclesiastical point of view the archdiocese of Shillong and the dioceses of Nongstoin, Jowai, Agartala and Aizawl.

In the new Province of Silchar there will be 210 Salesians, of whom  24 are students of Theology, 32 postnovices and students, 9 outside the Province and  11 novices. There will be 26 canonically erected communities  and 8 foundations non- erected. For initial formation there will be the prenovitiate, the novitiate and the theologate.

During the next intermediate session of the Council the first Provincial for INS will be appointed.

The Guwahati Province (ING) will have 225 Salesians (students of  theology 25, postnovices 40, University students 11, and those outside the Province 15, novices 12), 24 communities canonically erected and  5 non-erected. Territorially it will cover  the States of  Meghalaya and Assam and the archdiocese of Guwahati and the dioceses of Tura, Bongaigaon, Tezpur and Diphu.

With the erection of the Province of Silchar the number of  circumscriptions in the South Asia Region rises to 12

Published 27/01/2012