Rev. Fr. V.M. Thomas Vattathara, SDB
Distinguished educationist, HRD consultant, youth worker, social reformer, and visionary builder of institutions. A Harvard graduate in Educational Administration, Planning and Social Policy, Fr. Thomas has dedicated his life to the transformative motto: “Building Dreams, Shaping Lives and Influencing Society.”
Harvard & Global HRD
Master's degree in Educational Administration, Planning and Social Policy from Harvard University. Certified HRD trainer by the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD).
Institution Builder
Spearheaded DBYES in 1991 and established the flagship 15-acre red-brick Don Bosco Institute campus at Kharghuli, inaugurated by Hon’ble Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh in 2004.
Grassroots Innovations
Pioneered Bosco Barefoot College at Boko, the Deprived Urban Children (DUC) Project, and CARE literacy programs, empowering thousands of dropouts and rural youth.
Public Leadership & Peace
Visiting faculty at LBSNAA Mussoorie (training IAS officers), Secretary of North Eastern Education Commission, Red Cross secretary, and recipient of the 1990 Sankardev Social Work Award.
The Genesis: Roots and Six Decades of Service to Assam
Born in Kerala in 1951 into a devout family steeped in prayer and values, Fr. V.M. Thomas Vattathara arrived in Assam in 1962 as a young boy. For over six decades, Assam has been his home and the heartbeat of his mission. In 1978, he was ordained a priest of the Salesians of Don Bosco (SDB), committing his life to the holistic care, education, and social upliftment of young people across the eight states of Northeast India.
Guided by the Salesian educational tradition of Saint John Bosco — built on the three pillars of Reason, Religion, and Loving-Kindness — Fr. Thomas envisioned an educational movement that went far beyond textbook rote learning. He resolved to create a sanctuary where the most marginalized, rural, and vulnerable youth would receive world-class vocational training, moral grounding, and employment dignity.
"Anything that the mind can conceive, can achieve. To give the best to the least is not an act of charity — it is our fundamental duty to human dignity."
— Rev. Fr. V.M. Thomas Vattathara SDBAcademic Distinction & Global Human Resource Development
Believing that visionary social leadership must be matched with world-class professional competence, Fr. Thomas pursued advanced studies at Harvard University, graduating with a specialization in Educational Administration, Planning and Social Policy. This experience broadened his global perspective on institution building, systemic reform, and developmental strategy.
As a certified HRD Trainer accredited by the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD), Fr. Thomas brought professional management development to Northeast India. He served as a visiting faculty member at premier national and regional institutions, including:
- Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA), Mussoorie — training probationers of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and civil services on grassroots development.
- Assam Administrative Staff College (AASC) — conducting leadership, governance, and management workshops for senior administrators.
- Gauhati University — mentoring postgraduate educators and developmental researchers.
- Meghalaya Administrative Training Institute (MATI) — building capacities of state officers and community leaders.
Creation of Don Bosco Institute (DBI), Guwahati
In 1991, Fr. Thomas founded the Don Bosco Youth Mission and Educational Services (DBYES) to address the soaring youth unemployment and educational disparities across the region. Recognizing the need for a comprehensive regional centre for human resource development, he envisioned a dedicated campus that would symbolize excellence and hope.
Through tireless mobilization of international partnerships, state agencies, and civil society, this vision materialized into the iconic 15-acre red-brick campus of Don Bosco Institute at Kharghuli, Guwahati, perched gracefully above the Brahmaputra River. On November 22, 2004, the institute was officially dedicated to the youth of the nation by Hon’ble Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh.
Under his stewardship, DBI became a benchmark of skill education, pioneering short-term and diploma training in Computer Applications (CCA, DCA), Graphic Designing, Computerized Accounting (Tally), Hardware & Networking, Primary Teachers Training, Hospitality, Beauty & Spa, and Web Technologies.
Grassroots Innovations: Barefoot College, DUC & CARE
Fr. Thomas has always maintained that institutional greatness is measured by its outreach to the weakest. His grassroots initiatives stand as testimony to this ethos:
- Bosco Barefoot College (Boko): Conceived and actualized a non-formal technical institution where rural school-leavers without formal academic degrees were trained as solar technicians, motor mechanics, tailors, and sustainable farmers.
- Deprived Urban Children (DUC) Project: Addressed the plight of street children and rag-pickers in Guwahati, establishing day shelters, nutritional support, bridge schools, and educational rehabilitation.
- CARE Literacy Programme: Dispatched literacy workers into underserved tea garden hamlets, rural villages, and violence-affected relief camps across Assam, empowering thousands of first-generation learners and women.
State Honours & Peace Leadership
In 1990, the Government of Assam honoured Fr. Thomas with the prestigious State-Level Sankardev Award for Social Work in recognition of his extraordinary contributions to education, sports, and socio-economic transformation.
Throughout the ethnic and political tensions of the 1990s and 2000s in Northeast India, Fr. Thomas acted as the Convenor of regional Peace Initiative forums. He facilitated crucial dialogues, reconciled ethnic groups, and provided humanitarian relief to thousands of displaced families, establishing DBI as a trusted, neutral sanctuary of peace and solidarity.
He also served as Secretary of the North Eastern Education Commission, guiding educational policies across hundreds of regional schools, and as Secretary of the Junior Red Cross (Assam Branch). Later, he served as the Salesian Provincial of the Guwahati Province, overseeing educational and pastoral missions across Assam, Meghalaya, and the region.
Historic Archival Gallery
Key photographic moments from Fr. V.M. Thomas's pioneering journey, including delegations with national leaders, Mother Teresa, and youth outreach programs.
