Twelve of them were non-official chairmen, including political appointees picked by Nitish Kumar's predecessor Ram Vilas Paswan. They have been sacked with immediate effect. Five zonal boards had junior railway officials as chairmen, who have now been posted back to the parent organisation.

Chairmen of only two recruitment boards Chandigarh and Jammu and Srinagar survive the revamp. The two had been selected by the Union Public Services Commission (UPSC).

The boards will now be chaired by senior railway officers with ``proven integrity''. The revamp extends to member secretary and assistant secretary on the recruitment boards, who too would be replaced by railway officers.

The boards which recruit class three employees will also have their authority curtailed. ARailway Recruitment Control Board (RRCB) will be set up with a member of the Railway Board as its chairman. The control board will issue policy instructions to the recruitment boards and ensure that they function properly.

In fact, duplicates of all answersheets in written tests conducted by recruitment boards will be sealed and sent to the control board for independent evaluation if considered necessary. Candidates will write their tests on specially issued sheets, which ensure a carbonless copy.

Even the computer agencies and printing presses engaged by the recruitment boards will be replaced, Nitish Kumar told mediapersons. He also announced intensifying vigilance checks on the functioning of the boards.

At his press conference, Nitish Kumar avoided mentioning specific complaints against recruitment boards. But for years, there have been allegations that the recruitment process was not transparent enough and that money changed hands often.