Pope Francis appoints bishop Alangaram Arokia Sebastian Durairaj as the new Archbishop of Bhopal who served as the bishop of Khandwa since 2009.The appointment came into force after accepting the resignation of Archbishop Leo Cornelio, who has reached the retirement age of 75.
Archbishop Cornelio served the Bhopal Archdiocese for 14 years and he is a member of Society of the Divine Word (SVD). The newly appointed Archbishop Durairaj is also from the same community, He served as the Procurator of the Congregation, Prefect of Students at SVD Juniorate in Palda, Spiritual Director at Khrist Premalaya Regional Philosophate, Bhopal, Rector of SVD Philosophate before he was appointed as the bishop of Khandwa.
Bishop Durairaj, 64, holds a Master’s degree in counseling from Loyola University in Chicago and a Doctorate in Counsellor Education at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh(USA).