RAIGARH-AMBIKAPUR, DIOCESE of. - Established on 13 Dec. 1951, it is situated in north-eastern India, comprising the civil districts of R. and Surguja, FRANCHI (v.), and the small former kingdom of Sarangarh, detached from the diocese of Nagpur and civilly belonging to the district of R.
The diocese takes its name from the city of R., with 20,000 inhabitants, at its southern extremity and its most populous centre, and from the town of A., situated in the centre, with 8,500 inhabitants. It is suffragan to the archdiocese of Calcutta. It has an area of 34,325 sq. km., and borders on the dioceses of Ranchi, Allahabad, Nagpur, Sambalpur, and the apostolic prefecture of Jabalpur. There are 65,828 Catholics and 8,998 catechumens, and approximately 8,000 Protestants. The remainder of the population, 1,549,780 inhabitants, consists in equal proportion of Hindus and animists. Twenty Fathers and four scholastics of the Society of Jesus, 21 nuns, and 83 catechists work there. There are already 116 elementary schools, 7 middle schools and one secondary school, 5 colleges for girls and 5 for boys. There are 6 mission stations, 5 churches with attached presbyteries, and 100 chapels. Nor are social and charitable works lacking, with dispensaries, clinics, and catechumenates, or pious associations.