Railways to provide disposable, eco-friendly bedrolls in AC coaches

Ajith Athrady New Delhi, DH News Service, Nov 5 2017, 1:21 IST

It has begun providing disposable towels and pillow covers in the newly-introduced Bandra-Nizamuddin train and would replace blankets with

The Railway would distribute disposable and eco-friendly linen in the air-conditioned coaches, following complaints of dirty bedrolls and towel thefts.

It has begun providing disposable towels and pillow covers in the newly-introduced Bandra-Nizamuddin train and would replace blankets with cotton sheets.

Depending on the success of the experiment, the disposable linen will be provided in all other trains, said a railway official here, adding that the material used to make the sheets and towels is biodegradable and chemical-free cotton.

Following the Comptroller and Auditor General's rebuke over complaints of dirty bedrolls, the railways has been using innovative ideas to address the issue.

In some air-conditioned coaches, it has stopped distributing blankets and has started regulating the temperature to obviate the need for cover.

While the 'no blanket' rule has been in place in the AC coaches of the Jammu Mail, the railways is also gathering data from passengers on the viability of obviating blankets.

"Once we know how many of them ask for blankets and how many would like to go without one, we will decide on extending the distribution of disposable sheets," the official said. Attendants are reluctant to distribute towels to the passengers of the air-conditioned coaches as they are afraid of theft. "Railways always gets complaints that passengers take away the towels while alighting the train," the official said, adding that the cost of the stolen towel is recovered from the attendant's salary.

Disposable linens also save railways the cost of washing the bed covers and towels. While it spends Rs 55 on each bedroll, it charges the passengers only Rs 22, an official said.