Annai Vailankanni Shrine in Chennai Elevated to Minor Basilica

CHENNAI, September 21, 2026: The Annai Vailankanni Shrine at Besant Nagar in the Archdiocese of Madras-Mylapore has been elevated to the status of a Minor Basilica by Pope Leo XIV, recognising its longstanding role as a centre of pilgrimage, prayer and pastoral ministry.

The papal decree was formally proclaimed on September 21 during a solemn celebration attended by thousands of priests, religious and lay faithful from Chennai and other parts of Tamil Nadu.

The ceremony began with a procession of archbishops, bishops and priests at 5.30 p.m., followed by a Solemn High Mass presided over by Archbishop George Antonysamy of Madras-Mylapore. Bishops from Tamil Nadu and neighbouring states concelebrated the Eucharist.

Monsignor Andrea Francia, Chargé d’Affaires ad interim of the Apostolic Nunciature to India, represented the Holy See and proclaimed the decree elevating the shrine to a Minor Basilica.

Dated April 25, 2026, the decree was issued by the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments and signed by Cardinal Arthur Roche, Prefect of the Dicastery, and Archbishop Vittorio Francesco Viola OFM, Secretary.

The decree was proclaimed in Latin by Msgr Francia, in Tamil by Fr E. Arulappa, Rector of the shrine, and in English by Fr Vincent Chinnadurai, Rector of Santhome Cathedral Basilica.

Among the Church leaders present were Bishop A. Amalraj of Ootacamund, Bishop Prakash Sagili of Khammam, Bishop Johannes Gorantala OCD of Kurnool, Bishop L. Anandam of Sivagangai, Bishop P. Ambrose of Vellore and Bishop Sebastian Pozhiaparambil of the Syro-Malabar Diocese of Hosur. Fr Stephen Alathara, Deputy Secretary General of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India, also attended.

Public representatives, including J.C.D. Prabhakar, Speaker of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, and Maria Wilson, Minister for Finance, Tamil Nadu, were also present.

From a Thatched Chapel to a Shrine

In his homily, Archbishop Antonysamy traced the shrine’s development from its humble beginnings in 1970, when a small thatched chapel was established through the initiative of Fr P.T. Arulappa. Fishermen and their families gathered there to pray before Our Lady of Good Health.

The chapel subsequently developed into a brick church and later a shrine. A belfry was added, followed by the construction of a larger church in 1985. Over the years, the shrine expanded with facilities including the Eucharistic Chapel, Reconciliation Chapel, grotto, Mother Mary’s Square and Stations of the Cross.

It was recognised as an Archdiocesan Shrine in 2005. The present Shrine Church was solemnly blessed and dedicated in 2021.

Archbishop Antonysamy described the elevation as another chapter in what he called the shrine’s “incredible journey of faith and grace”. He urged the faithful to look beyond the basilica’s physical structure and become “living stones” of the Church.

He also called on them to make the basilica a place of welcome and encounter that transcends boundaries of religion, region, caste and language.

Msgr Francia similarly said the elevation should be understood not merely as an honour but as an invitation to deeper communion with God, Mary, the universal Church and the local Church.

The Annai Vailankanni Shrine continues to serve pilgrims through faith formation, evangelisation, Eucharistic devotion, reconciliation and social outreach. Its elevation gives formal recognition to its continuing role as a significant centre of prayer, pilgrimage and pastoral ministry.

By Catholic Connect Reporter