By Felix Anthony

Guwahati: In the wake of rising number of Covid cases in North East India, the Catholic Church of the region has formed a core team to respond to the crisis.

The primary task of the team, set up during an online meeting on May 18, is to coordinate the Catholic Church’s various activities in the region, said Father G P Amalraj, the deputy secretary of North East India Regional Bishops’ Council (NEIRBC) and the meeting’s convener.

The core team will form various task forces with each assigned with a particular area of focus, like finding hospital beds for the Covid patients, supplying food and relief materials to the patients and to their relatives, counseling and monetary assistance to those in need, Father Amalraj explained.

Appreciating the initiative, NEIRBC president Archbishop John Moolachira of Guwahati, said, “Having a core team will help us avoid duplicating our efforts and also to reach out to more people in our region.”

A total of 27 participants attended the hour-long online meeting.

Expressing concern over a huge number of deaths of priests and women religious across India, NEIRBC secretary Bishop James Thoppil of Kohima advised everyone to take safety measures while carrying out relief efforts.

“It is sad that we have lost more than 150 priests and much more number of women religious in our country. The northeast region too has lost some very young priests to the pandemic. It is important that we take care of ourselves while going about serving the people,” he added.

Bishop Thoppil said the council will send a letter of advice to be followed by all priests and women religious while on Covid duty.

The people in the region’s tea garden villages are the worst affected. “The formation of the core team will help us reach out to them in the last villages,” said Father Sebastian Ouseparampil, the director of North East Diocesan Social Service Society, who will head this core team.

Other members in the team are Father Melvil Pereira, the Guwahati regional superior of Jesuits, Brother Varghese Mandapam, provincial of Montfort Brothers, Sister Escociana Vaz, the regional secretary of Conference of Religious India, Father Jayaprakash, director of Bosco Reachout, Father Tom Mangattuthazhe, regional secretary of Ecumenism, Father Roy George, director of AIDA (All Nagaland, Manipur, Assam Integrated Development Association), Dimapur, and Jonas Lakra, the zonal director of Caritas India.