ASIA/INDIA - Bishop of Punalur appointed

Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) – The Holy Father Benedict XVI, on May 8, 2009 appointed Fr. Selvister Ponnumuthan, of the clergy of the Diocese of Neyattinkara, acting Rector of St. Joseph's Pontifical Seminary in Carmelgiri, as Bishop of Punalur (India).
The new Bishop was born on August 10, 1956 in Viraly-Utchakkada (Kerala) in the present Diocese of Neyattinkara, which at the time belonged to the Diocese of Trivandrum of the Latins.
He was ordained a priest on December 19, 1981, first for the Diocese of Trivandrum and later in the new diocese of Neyattinkara. After his ordination, he was given various ministries in the area of pastoral care and formation. Since 2008, he has served as Rector of St. Joseph's Pontifical Seminary in Carmelgiri.
The Diocese of Punalur, erected in 1985, is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Trivandrum of the Latins. It has a surface area of 5,052 km sq, with 3,000,000 inhabitants, 46,815 Catholics, 33 parishes, 54 priests (38 diocesan and 16 religious), 41 religious brothers, 6 seminarians, and 246 religious. (SL) (Agenzia Fides 8/5/2009)