Eminent social activist Father Francis D’britto no more

Father D’britto was the author of the Subodh Bible, a translation of the Bible into the Marathi language. He passed away at the Holy Spirit Church at Nandakhal in Vasai, a suburb of Mumbai.

Mumbai, DHNS: Eminent social worker, environmental activist and Marathi writer Father Francis D’britto passed away on Thursday at Vasai in Palghar district. He was 81.

A Catholic priest, Father D’britto passed away at the Holy Spirit Church at  Nandakhal in Vasai, a suburb of Mumbai.

He was the author of the Subodh Bible, a translation of the Bible into the Marathi language. 

Father D’britto had authored over 50 books and was a prolific writer contributing to several Marathi newspapers. 

The priest-author was honoured with the coveted Sahitya Akademi Award.

In January 2020, Father D’britto chaired the 93rd Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sahitya Sammelan in Osmanabad, now rechristened Dharashiv. 

He was also credited for transforming the religious magazine Suvarta which he edited for several years.

Fr Francis D'Britto was born on 4 December 1942.

He was trained in the St Pius College in Goregaon in Mumbai and later went on to do his graduation from the University of Pune. 

He completed the Masters in Theology from Gregorian University in Rome.

Later, Father D’britto joined the Jeevan Darshan Kendra Trust in Vasai as a priest. He also founded the Harit Vasai Sarkshan Samiti and took on the real estate mafia in the Vasai-Virar region. 

Father D'Britto was awarded the Dnyanoba-Tukaram Puraskar for his literary work.