Diocese of Sindhudurg

Contents

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Sindhudurg (Dioecesis Sindhudurgiensis) in India was created on 5 July 2005, when it was split from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Poona.[1][2] It was a suffragan diocese of the Archdiocese of Bombay until 25 November 2006, when Pope Benedict XVI transferred it to the newly established Metropolitan province of Goa and Damão. The parish church in Sawantwadi, dedicated to Our Lady of Miracles, serves as the cathedral for the diocese.[1]

The diocese covers an area of 21,099 km2 of the state Maharashtra, covering the districts Sindhudurg, Ratnagiri and Kolhapur except the St. Francis Xavier parish in Kolhapur City. Neighboring dioceses are the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman to the south, the Diocese of Belgaum to the southeast, to the east the Diocese of Poona, to the north the Archdiocese of Bombay, and to the west is the Arabian Sea.[1]

Present day

As of 2023, the total population in the diocese is 5,791,485, of which 19,835 (0.3%) are Catholic.[3] The diocese is divided into 21 parishes and 5 missions.[1]

The first bishop of the diocese was Anthony Alwyn Fernandes Barreto, appointed by Benedict XVI upon creation of the diocese in 2005 and serving until his resignation in 2024.[2][3] Barreto came from an aristocratic family from Goa which had been knighted by the King of Portugal during Portuguese rule. It has been reported that Barreto's inheritance from his ancestry has been transferred to the diocese to purchase land to build schools.

On 14 February 2026, Pope Leo XIV announced the appointment of Francisco Antonio Agnelo Jacinto Pinheiro as the second bishop of the diocese. Pinheiro was previously a priest of the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman.[4]

References

  1. 1.[1.2][1.3][1.4]"Diocese of Sindhudurg, India 🇮🇳". GCatholic. Retrieved 2026-08-10.
  2. 2.[2.2]"Agenzia Fides - ACTA OF THE HOLY SEE - ASIA/INDIA - The Pope creates new diocese of Sindhudurg and appoints first Bishop". www.fides.org. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2026-08-10.
  3. 3.[3.2]"Sindhudurg (Diocese) [Catholic-Hierarchy]". www.catholic-hierarchy.org. Retrieved 2026-08-10.
  4. 4."Pope Leo XIV Appoints Rev. Francisco Antonio Agnelo Jacinto Pinheiro as Bishop of Sindhudurg". CBCI - Catholic Bishops' Conference of India. Retrieved 2026-08-10.