Bangalore 1 May 2020 (CCBI): Most Rev. Mar Mathew Anikuzhikattil (78) Bishop Emeritus of Idukki Syro Malabar diocese passed away on Friday, 1 May 2020 at 1.38am at Medical Mission Hospital, Kolenchery, Ernakulam district, Kerala. He had been under treatment for aged-related ailments for the last few years. The funeral details are awaited.
Bishop Mar Mathew Anikuzhikattil was born on 23 September, 1942 at Kadaplamattom, near Pala in Kottayam district. He was ordained priest on 15 March 1971 at the age of 28. He was appointed as the first bishop of the diocese of Idukki at the age of 60, when it was erected by Pope St. John Paul II on 15 January 2003 by separating eight foranes of the diocese of Kothamangalam. He was ordained Bishop on 2 March 2003 by Bishop Mar Mathew Pothanamuzhi. He was retired from the pastoral governance of the diocese of Idukki at the age of 75 on 12 January, 2018.
He was the former Chairman of the KCBC Commission for Family, Laity and Women. He was in the forefront of protests against Kasturirangan and Gadgil reports on Western Ghats. He had always acted as the voice of farmers and working class in the high ranges of Kerala. He is a priest for 49 years and a Bishop for 17 years.