The ‘Messiah’ of Dediyapada is No More: How Spanish Priest Father Berechi Changed Thousands of Lives in Gujarat

Narmada | Gujarat — Father Berechi (Father Gumersindo Bereciartu, S.J.), who dedicated his life to the tribal community of Dediyapada and the entire Narmada district and who awakened the spirit of service, breathed his last in his native Spain. Father Berechi, a Spanish Jesuit priest dedicated 54 years of his life to the tribal communities of Dediapada and the Narmada district in Gujarat.

The entire district community is feeling a great sense of sorrow and grief. The work done by a foreign father for the education and economic upliftment of the tribal community for 54 years will always be remembered.

Father Berechi was born on February 20, 1935 in the province of Loyola, Spain. Since childhood, Father Berechi, who had a religious and helpful spirit, joined the Society of Jesus on September 14, 1952. During his studies, he wrote a wonderful sentence for himself: “Be wise, work a lot, but always do it for Jesus Christ.” In 1960, he was selected to serve in the Society of Jesus in Gujarat and left by ship. Finally, on December 19, 1961, he reached the land of Gujarat, India and from then on his life was dedicated to the tribal community of Dediyapada.

His main goal was to establish an educational institution and do social upliftment work for the tribal community. He always said, “Since I came to Dediapada, my inspiration was to provide education to the tribals. Because the expenses of my studies were borne by someone I had never met.” 

With this inspiration, his aim was to stop exploitation and provide education to the tribals, which he did in the true sense. Initially, he started a hostel for tribal children at Dediyapada and then a primary school. With the help of donors from Canada, a magnificent school building was built and in the year 1985, he established St. Xavier’s English Medium High School, Dediyapada, setting a milestone in the field of education. Apart from this, with the support of the Gujarat government, he also started ashram schools at Nani Singloti, Relwa and Bogaj, so that even children from far away could get education.

He was always vigilant for the tribal youth to reach high positions. With this vision, he started an English medium K. G. School at Dediyapada in June, 2013 and also started standard-1 in 2015. His last wish was that standard-11 should be started before he passed away, which was truly fulfilled. Father Berechi was not limited to education alone, but he also made tireless efforts to uplift the tribal community economically. With a vision for economic upliftment, he took the advice of Late Dr. Varghese Kurien, founder of Amul Dairy. Following this advice, he started a scheme for milch cattle and started ‘The Dediyapada Milk Mandali’ with the aim of getting a fair price for milk, which became a big relief for the rural economy. Apart from this, he built pals (bundharas) for the tribal people of Dediyapada to store water in their fields through the ‘Anaaj Yojana’. As a reward for this hard work, he successfully tried to eradicate poverty by giving people grains and oil instead of cash.

After serving Gujarat for almost six decades, Venerable Father Berechi S. J. passed away on 12 December 2025 at the age of 90 in his hometown of Loyola, Spain. With his demise, Narmada district has lost a true guide and a devotee of service. The tribal community will always remember him with devotion.