Pope Francis said Sunday he will elevate 21 churchmen, including two from India, to the rank of cardinal in a ceremony at the Vatican this summer.
The two Cardinals from India are Archbishop Filipe Neri António Sebastião di Rosário Ferrão - Archbishop of Goa and Damão (India) and Archbishop Anthony Poola - Archbishop di Hyderabad (India), the official Vatican News reported. India got its first Dalit cardinal with the elevation of Rev Anthony Poola, the Archbishop of Hyderabad.
At the conclusion of the Regina Coeli on Sunday, Pope Francis said that on August 27, he will hold a Consistory for the creation of new cardinals, the report said.
He also said that he will meet from August 29 and 30 with all the cardinals to reflect on the new Apostolic Constitution Praedicate evangelium.
Eight of the newly named Cardinals are from Europe, six from Asia, two from Africa, one from North America, and four from Central and Latin America.
The College of Cardinals currently consists of 208 Cardinals, of whom 117 are electors and 91 are non-electors. As of 27 August, the number will grow to 229 Cardinals, of whom 131 will be electors.