Rev. Dr. Leslie Clifford D'Souza named new Archbishop of Udupi Diocese
Udupi: Pope Leo XIV has appointed Rev. Dr. Leslie Clifford D’Souza as the new Archbishop of the Udupi diocese. He is currently serving as the priest of the Our Lady of Health Church in Shirva.
The appointment was officially announced in Rome on January 31 at 12 noon (4.30 pm IST) and simultaneously at the Milagres Cathedral in Kalyanpur, Udupi district.
Rev. Dr. Leslie began his education at Saraswati Mandir Senior Secondary School, Uchila (1969–1976), followed by his secondary education at Government Fisheries High School, Yermal (1976–1979). He completed his pre-university studies at Purna Prajna College (1979–1981).
He pursued priestly formation at St. Joseph’s Inter-Provincial Seminary, Mangaluru, where he studied philosophy and obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Mysore (1982–1985). He later earned a Bachelor’s degree in Theology from the Pontifical Urbaniana University, Rome (1986–1990).
Rev. Dr. Leslie holds a Master’s degree in English Literature from the University of Mysore (1991–1993) and a Diploma in Depth Psychology and Formation from the Bangalore Institute of Psychology and Training (1993–1995). He further completed a Licentiate in Theology (1997–1999) and a Doctorate in Moral Theology (1999–2003) at the Catholic University of Louvain, Belgium.
He was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Mangalore on May 10, 1990. His priestly ministry began as an assistant priest at Holy Rosary Church, Kundapura (1990–1992), and later at Holy Cross Church, Kulasekara, Mangaluru (1992–1995).
He served as a professor and formator in moral theology at St. Joseph’s Inter-Provincial Seminary, Mangaluru (1995–1997), and continued as a visiting professor until 2013.
Rev. Dr. Leslie later served as parish priest of St. John the Evangelist Church, Pangla/Shankarpur (2010–2017), and Mount Rosary Church, Kalyanpur–Santekatte (2017–2022). During this period, he also held the responsibility of coordinator of educational institutions.
Since June 2022, he has been serving as parish priest of Shokamata Church, Shirva, and as coordinator of Don Bosco and St. Mary’s educational institutions. He has also played a key role in the administration and governance of the Diocese of Udupi.
He served as Secretary of the Council of Priests from 2022 to 2025 and currently holds multiple responsibilities, including Principal Religious Teacher of the Shirva Zone, Advocate of the Diocesan Tribunal of Udupi, and member of the Advisory Board (2023 to present).
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
