Colonial era in India had been a period of exploitation of natural resources and human potentialities. Human intelligence needs a good harnessing mechanism. Without this human beings remain merely exploited and kept as slaves. This was the picture of India during the British rule. Things remained without much change even after a few years of independence. Exploitation, fear of the overlords, poverty to name a few causes led to fear and backwardness among the masses. It was here that the Christian missionaries came to the picture by establishing academic institutions and thereby ameliorating the poor and freeing them from fear and bondage. One such visionary was Rt. Rev. Dr. V. R. Fernandes, the then Bishop of Mangalore. Considering the academic needs of the Canara region, Dr. Fernandes founded the Catholic Board of Education, Mangalore in the year 1932. Over the years the Board has grown mammoth in size and at present it manages Medical, Nursing and Engineering colleges, 5 First Grade Colleges, 13 Pre-University Colleges, 36 High Schools, 151 Primary Schools and 3 Technical Institutes. The Founder’s dream of educating the masses has been effectively implemented by the succeeding Bishops of Mangalore.

Shirva is a village town located at about 20 kms away from Udupi which dots the coastal line of Karnataka. This village has a population of 10 to 12 thousand people. A majority of them are Catholics. The place is known also as ‘Manchakal’ and is famous for ‘Mangalore Jasmines’ (though it is a misnomer as the flowers are not from the port town but from Shirva). Needless to say that the area, being rural, is primarily agricultural. Granite quarrying is another important financial activity of the place.