By Fr Kampan Chinnam, India
INDIA – Pope Leo XIV has appointed Bishop Albert Hemrom as coadjutor archbishop of Guwahati, putting the first Indigenous Adivasi prelate in line to lead the metropolitan archdiocese in Northeast India.
The Holy See announced the appointment on Jul 16. Hemrom, 57, has served as bishop of Dibrugarh in Assam since 2019.
He will succeed Archbishop John Moolachira when the pope accepts Moolachira’s resignation. The archbishop turns 75 in December, the age when bishops are required under church law to submit their resignation.
Hemrom is the first Adivasi appointed coadjutor archbishop of Guwahati and the first local priest from the Diocese of Dibrugarh chosen to lead the metropolitan archdiocese.
His appointment strengthens Indigenous leadership in a region where many Catholics belong to Adivasi and other Indigenous communities.
The Archdiocese of Guwahati serves more than 63,000 Catholics in 47 parishes. Its faithful include members of the Garo, Rabha, Bodo, Karbi, Tiwa, Santal, and other Adivasi communities.
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