By Matters India Reporter
New Delhi, June 24, 2026: Pope Leo XIV has appointed Father Anand David Xalxo, 51, as the auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Ranchi, the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India said.
Father Xalxo currently serves as the vicar general of the archdiocese and parish priest of St. Mary’s Cathedral in Ranchi.
Born November 20, 1975, in Mandar, some 30 km west of Ranchi, the state capital, Father Xalxo completed his early education locally before pursuing priestly formation at St. John Vianney Minor Seminary in Kolkata and St. Albert’s College in Ranchi.
He also studied at St. Xavier’s College, Ranchi, and completed his theological training at St. Albert’s.
He was ordained a priest on May 15, 2006, for the Archdiocese of Ranchi.
After ordination, Father Xalxo served as private secretary to Cardinal Telesphore Toppo of Ranchi and later undertook postgraduate studies in hospital administration in Mangalore, southern India.
He held several leadership roles, including associate director of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India’s Society for Medical Education in North India and secretary to the same conference’s secretary general in New Delhi.
He later served as public relations officer, administrator of the Ranchi archbishop’s residence, and director of multiple pastoral and social initiatives in Ranchi.
He has been vicar general since 2024.