KOCHI: The Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Council (KCBC) has urged the state government to drop any hasty move to launch a welfare fund for Sunday School teachers, stating that the proposal requires wider consultation and clarity on its structure and should not be pushed through without adequate discussion.
The government appointed Justice J B Koshy Commission, tasked with studying the backwardness of Christians in Kerala and suggesting remedial measures, has submitted its report and it is now under the government’s consideration.
However, the report has not been published so far, and only an unofficial government letter, believed to contain some of the commission’s recommendations, is available in the public domain, KCBC said in a statement.
The council said faith training in the Catholic Church is a dedicated service and not treated as employment, with teachers receiving no wages or remuneration.
Since religious education is the private responsibility of the respective faiths, KCBC maintained that the Catholic Church does not support the idea of a government funded Sunday School welfare scheme.
KCBC flagged concerns over the manner in which the welfare fund idea was introduced during a meeting chaired by the director of the Minority Welfare Department on December 29, 2025, as part of implementing the commission’s recommendations.
The council said the proposal was not one that warranted immediate execution and required careful deliberation.
According to KCBC, religious instruction and faith formation are carried out in different ways across various Christian denominations, and the Minority Welfare Department has not, to its knowledge, conducted any detailed study of this wide and diverse field.
It also said representatives of the Catholic Church had sought a detailed draft of the proposed welfare fund for discussion and study, but instead the department circulated the notification of the existing Madrasa Welfare Fund and sought opinions only on welfare benefits listed under Chapter VI (Clauses 17–27), asking churches to respond by January 16.
KCBC said it was not possible to offer views on benefits alone when key aspects such as the definition of religious teachers, membership criteria, implementation mechanism, governance structure and financial mobilisation had not been shared.
At the same time, it urged the government to design welfare initiatives that address vulnerable sections within the Christian community.
The bishops’ council demanded that the report be made public and that its recommendations be implemented in a phased manner, based on consultations and priorities.