Arunendra Kumar has been appointed the new Chairman of the Railway Board. Member (Mechanical) at the Board, Kumar was holding the additional charge of the CRB since July 1. His appointment comes into force from Wednesday.
Kumar will still continue to hold the charge of Member (Mechanical), as no decision has been taken on his replacement. Posts of Member (Staff) and Financial Commissioner are also lying vacant for quite some time now. Nine posts of General Managers and more than a dozen DRMs are also to be filled up.
An officer of the 1976 batch of the Indian Railways Service of Mechanical Engineers, Kumar joined the Railway Board as Member (Mechanical) on May 1 this year. Prior to this, he was General Manager of the South East Central Railway (SECR).
Kumar has been in charge of maintenance of a variety of locomotives, coaches and wagons over a career of more than 35 years both in Workshops and open line.
He has several innovations to his credit in the area of locomotive and coaching maintenance. As General Manager, SECR, Kumar managed the heaviest freight operation in the Country. As Divisional Railway Manager, Mumbai Central he successfully managed maintenance and operation of all trains and infrastructure over Mumbai Division.
Kumar has contributed significantly in various policy formulations at Railway Board while working as Advisor (CC) & Additional Member Production unit during his earlier stints at the top body of Railway.
An athlete and Badminton player, Kumar has featured on National Geographic Channel in the serial “Seven Mega Cities of the World” and holds a record of longest live TV Interview by a Railway Officer on National TV Channel.