Ashwani Lohani to succeed AK Mittal as new Railway Board chairman

New Delhi: Ashwani Lohani has been appointed as the new Chairman of Railway Board, replacing AK Mittal who stepped down from the post following the Kaifiyat Express derailment.

Lohani has been named as the Railway board's chairman on Wednesday.

About Ashwani Lohani:

• Ashwani Lohani is Indian Railway Service of Mechanical Engineering (IRSME) officer, former Chairman and Managing Director of Air India.
• He holds a Limca Record for having four engineering degree equivalents-- Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Metallurgical Engineering and Electronics & Telecommunication Engineering from Institution of Engineers, India.
• He has also been named in the Guinness Book of World Records for successfully running the ‘Fairy Queen Express’, the world’s oldest working steam locomotive.
• Lohani has also served as DRM, Delhi Division; Director, National Rail Museum; Chief Administrative Officer, Rail Alternate Fuels; Commissioner and Managing Director of Madhya Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation and Chairman and Managing Director India Tourism Development Corporation.

Also read: Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu offers to resign | Meets PM

Former Chairman of the Railway Board, Ashok Kumar Mittal on Wednesday resigned from the post, in wake of a number of rail accidents and derailments in the Indian Railways. Mittal submitted his resignation to Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu, official sources said.

Railway Minister Suresh prabhu has also offered his resignation from the ministry, taking the moral responsibility of the two train accidents in a week. He, however, has been asked to wait by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.