Control of RPF shifts from member, Traffic to Railway Board chairman:

After months of an internal tug of war, the control of the Railway Protection Force has been wrested from the member, Traffic, the operational head of Indian Railways, and will now be with the Railway Board chairman.

The order on the change of guard was issued yesterday.

Incidentally, the current Member Traffic (MT), Mohd Jamshed retires today.

Officials said the member, Traffic is responsible for all operational aspects of the national transporter.

Therefore, the Board member was earlier considered to be in the best position to deploy the force depending on the situation, they said.

Speculation had been rife for months on the issue, but Jamshed was apparently stonewalling a change in the control of the force.

The RPF, a central armed police force, is under the railway ministry. It is mandated to protect passengers and railway property.