On July 29, 1968 the mission area of Sagar was entrusted to the CMI congregation and it was at first directly under the Prior General. Some CMI members together with Msgr.Clemens Thottungal CMI, the first Exarch of Sagar, reached Sagar on October 27, 1968. In a short time they made remarkable achievements in missionary activities. The area was then handed over to the Devamatha
Province, Thrissur and was called Sagar Mission. In 1972, Fr.Diego Kodankandath CMI, was appointed its first Mission Superior and Carmel Ashram in Sagar Cantt. was built in 1974. Sagar Mission was raised to the status of a region on December 4, 1977 and was named St.Paul Region. The insightful and significant leadership of the regional superiors paved the way for an impressive and continuous growth of the region. The St.Paul Region was raised to the status of a Vice-Province by the General Synaxis on January 3, 1991.
St.Paul Vice-Province was solemnly inaugurated on January 25, 1992, the feast day of the conversion of St.Paul, its heavenly Patron. St.Paul Vice-Province crossed a very significant milestone when it was accorded the status of full-fledged Province by the General Synaxis on August 29, 1996 and the provincial administration was accommodated at the newly constructed provincial house - CMI Bhavan, Padariya, Bhopal - on the Mount Carmel Day, July 16, 1997. Later, VI Provincial Synaxis held in 2005 decided to shift the official residence of the provincial administration to the CMI House at Govind Garden, Bhopal, which was already functioning as the annexe to the Provincial House at Padaria. In the same year the Prior General assigned the whole civil state of Madhya Pradesh as the operational area of St. Paul Province. | 
A Brief History