Vatican City: Pope Francis has appointed Bishop John Rodrigues of the Diocese of Pune as the Archbishop-designate with succession rights to the Archdiocese of Bombay, India’s largest diocese, spanning 10,103 square kilometers. The Vatican made the announcement on November 30, 2024. Bishop Rodrigues will assume leadership as Cardinal Oswald Gracias, the current archbishop, steps down upon turning 80 on December 20. The transition will see Bishop Rodrigues taking residence at the Mumbai Archbishop's House on January 25, as confirmed by Cardinal Gracias.

Born on August 21, 1967, in Mumbai, Bishop Rodrigues was ordained as a priest for the Archdiocese of Bombay on April 1, 1998. He earned a licentiate in systematic theology from the Pontifical Lateran University in Rome (2000–2002). His episcopal journey began as an Auxiliary Bishop of Bombay, a role he assumed in May 2013, followed by his consecration on June 29 of the same year.

Since March 25, 2023, he has served as Bishop of Pune, overseeing a diocese that includes Pune, Satara, Solapur, Sangli, and Kolhapur, home to about 90,000 Catholic faithful as of 2021. Before this, he spent a decade as an Auxiliary Bishop in Bombay and has been a member of the Biblical Commission of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI) since 2019.

After a year and a half in Pune, Bishop Rodrigues is set to return to Bombay, taking on the mantle of leadership in a diocese deeply rooted in his ecclesiastical journey.