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Diocese of Asansol

Asansolen(sis)

Latin rite diocese in West Bengal, India, created by Pope John Paul II on 24 October 1997 by bifurcation of the Archdiocese of Calcutta, coming into existence on 12 March 1998. It is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Calcutta, with the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Asansol as its seat. The see is vacant following the end of Bishop Elias Frank's tenure in June 2025.

The see

Rank
Suffragan diocese
Tradition
Latin Church
Erected
24 October 1997
Latin
Asansolen(sis)
Patron
Saint Francis Xavier
Annuario code
001000737

The see in figures

Catholics
29,345
Population
14,069,000
Catholic shareof the people living within its bounds
0.2%
Priests
69
Catholics per priest
425
Extent
12,500 km²
Catholics per km²
2.3

Figures as recorded in the register, from the Annuario Pontificio and the see's own published statements. Shares and ratios are computed from the two figures shown beside them.

The bishop

The register holds no ordinary for this see. Where a chair is vacant the vacancy is the fact, and it is recorded rather than filled in. See the bishop.

The cathedral

Cathedral of the Sacred Heart, Asansol stands in Asansol, the church that holds the cathedra from which this see takes its name.

On what a cathedral is, see the cathedral; every see church on earth is gathered at the cathedrals.

The province of Calcutta

A suffragan of Archdiocese of Calcutta.

The sees of this province:

On how the Church is ordered into provinces, see the diocese.

History

Within India's ecclesiastical province of Calcutta, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Asansol (Latin: Asansolen(sis)) has its seat in the city of Asansol.

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Sources

The see's own website · Wikipedia

Compiled from the published statements of the see and the references of the Holy See, among them the Annuario Pontificio. Corrections: hello@catholicintelligence.com.