{"id":1703,"date":"2025-07-25T04:33:14","date_gmt":"2025-07-25T04:33:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/railtravels.org\/?page_id=1703"},"modified":"2025-07-25T04:33:14","modified_gmt":"2025-07-25T04:33:14","slug":"disposable-pillow-cover-in-trains-disposable-napkins-in-trains","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.reilsolar.com\/train\/disposable-pillow-cover-in-trains-disposable-napkins-in-trains\/","title":{"rendered":"Disposable Pillow Cover in Trains | Disposable Napkins in Trains"},"content":{"rendered":"

Disposable Pillow Cover in Trains \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>Disposable Napkins in Trains<\/strong><\/p>\n

Railway Introduce New Disposable Pillow Covers and Napkins<\/strong><\/p>\n

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA<\/strong>
\nMINISTRY OF RAILWAYS<\/strong><\/p>\n

RAJYA SABHA<\/strong>
\nQUESTION NO 1914
\nANSWERED ON 28.12.2025<\/p>\n

Disposable pillow covers<\/strong><\/p>\n

1914 Dr. Banda Prakash<\/strong>
\nWill the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state :-
\n(a) whether Railways plan to introduce new disposable pillow covers and napkins to improve passenger amenities and hygiene standards in trains;
\n(b) whether a CAG report mentioned that unhygienic condition of blankets, used by several railway passengers during their train journey, was caused because of not washing them for up to six months, even through the directive is to wash them every one or two months; and
\n(c) if so, the details thereof along with the steps taken to enhance passenger amenities as well as cleanliness?
\nANSWER<\/p>\n

MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS (SHRI RAJEN GOHAIN)<\/strong><\/p>\n

(a) Disposable napkins have been introduced in AC Coaches in place of hand \/ face towels on cost neutrality basis. However, there is no such plan for introducing disposable pillow covers.
\n(b) & (c) As per earlier instructions, blankets were required to be dry cleaned or washed once in two months. CAG in its report no. 14 of 2017 has mentioned that at a few depots, blankets were not dry cleaned and\/or sanitised as per schedule.
\nSpecifications of blankets for AC coaches have been recently reviewed and improved, washing frequency increased to once in a month, and their service life reduced from 4 years to 2 years, with aim to provide cleaner and more hygienic blankets to passengers.
\nSome of the other major initiatives taken by Indian Railways towards improvement in passenger amenities and cleanliness in trains are as follows :
\n(i) Upgradation of coaches including toilets in identified rakes of existing trains under Project Swarn and Project Utkrisht, and introduction of improved passenger services such as Humsafar trains and Antodaya trains.
\n(ii) Provision of dustbins is being done in non AC coaches also in addition to the AC Coaches.
\n(iii) Provision of health faucets in all new AC and non-AC coaches, in addition to mug with chain arrangement.
\n(iv) Pace of installation of Bio-toilets in Coaches has been intensified. It is planned to install bio-toilets in the entire BG coaching fleet of Indian Railways by 2019.
\n(v) Cleaning of coaches, including toilets, is done at both ends including mechanised cleaning through professional agencies at around 145 coaching depots.
\n(vi) On Board Housekeeping Service (OBHS) has been provided in more than 1050 pairs of trains including Rajdhani, Shatabdi and other important long distance Mail\/Express trains for cleaning of coach toilets, doorways, aisles and passenger compartments during the run of the trains.
\n(vii) \u2018Coach Mitra\u2019 facility has been introduced in about 1000 pairs of OBHS trains. \u2018Coach Mitra\u2019 is a single window interface to register coach related requirements of passengers such as cleaning, disinfection, linen, train lighting, air conditioning and watering of coaches.
\n(viii) To improve the quality of washing of bed linen, mechanized laundries have been set up at 57 locations in the railways.
\n(ix) Pest control treatment of coaches and rodent control measures are regularly done as per schedule.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the official and passenger-informed summary on disposable pillow covers, napkins<\/strong>, and general linen hygiene in Indian Railways<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

\n

\ud83e\uddf4 Disposable Pillow Covers & Napkins<\/h2>\n
    \n
  • In December 2025<\/strong>, Parliament confirmed that disposable napkins<\/em> have been introduced in AC coaches<\/strong>, replacing reusable hand\/face towels for hygiene and theft prevention\u2014but disposable pillow covers have not<\/em><\/strong> been implemented system-wide yet.<\/li>\n
  • Trials occurred in late 2025 on two Rajdhani services (Howrah\u2013New Delhi & Sealdah\u2013New Delhi), where disposable pillow covers began being used.<\/li>\n
  • As of 2025\u201322, some divisions began offering fully disposable bedroll kits<\/strong>\u2014including bed sheets, blanket, inflatable pillow, pillow cover, napkin, masks, sanitizer, etc.\u2014priced from \u20b9150 to \u20b9300<\/strong>, on selected premium trains.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
    \n

    \ud83e\uddfc Linen & Cleaning Policy: What Actually Happens<\/h2>\n
      \n
    • Bedsheets and pillow covers are supposed to be washed after every journey<\/strong>. Blankets and pillows, however, are cleaned much less frequently:\n
        \n
      • Officially once every 2 months<\/strong>, though some reports from CAG and others suggest washing frequency increased to monthly<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
      • Widely reported passenger observations confirm poor sanitation: blankets often reused from previous journeys and washed infrequently.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
      • According to travellers:
        \n

        \u201cOnly the pillows covers and white bed sheets are supposedly washed after every journey\u2026 blankets are washed once in two months.\u201d
        \n\u201cThe pilllow and blanket are only washed when they get very dirty\u2026 bedsheets, pillow cover and napkin are washed.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        \n

        \ud83d\udd04 Practical Traveler Experiences<\/h2>\n
          \n
        • Replacing Pillow Covers<\/strong>: Passengers have successfully requested fresh pillow covers from attendants even mid-journey.<\/li>\n
        • Sealed Bedroll Kits<\/strong>: In some cases, kits come sealed\u2014reducing theft and assuring hygiene\u2014though standards vary between trains.<\/li>\n
        • In 3AC, many passengers observe:
          \n

          Fresh bed sheets are given, but the blanket and pillow may belong to previous users<\/strong>. Blankets are generally not replaced or washed before reuse.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

          \n

          \ud83e\uddfe Summary Table<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
          Item<\/th>\nStatus \/ Frequency<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
          Disposable Napkins<\/td>\nIntroduced in AC coaches (replacing towels)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
          Disposable Pillow Covers<\/td>\nTrial basis only; not yet system-wide<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
          Disposable Bedroll Kits<\/td>\nOptional purchase (\u20b9150\u2013300 price range)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
          Bed Sheets \/ Pillow Covers<\/td>\nWashed after every journey<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
          Blankets & Pillows<\/td>\nWashed once every 1\u20132\u202fmonths; reused across trips<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n
          \n

          \u2705 Tips for Travelers<\/h2>\n
            \n
          • If pillow covers look unclean, ask the attendant<\/strong> for replacement.<\/li>\n
          • Consider buying a sealed disposable bedkit<\/strong> if available on your train.<\/li>\n
          • Use the second bed sheet as a protective layer over blanket<\/strong> to maintain hygiene.<\/li>\n
          • Carry personal items like small clean towels or sanitizer for extra comfort.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
            \n

            Would you like assistance locating availability of disposable kits on your specific train, or help filing a laundry\/cleanliness complaint via RailMadad? Let me know!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

            Disposable Pillow Cover in Trains \u2013\u00a0Disposable Napkins in Trains Railway Introduce New Disposable Pillow Covers and Napkins GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS RAJYA SABHA QUESTION NO 1914 ANSWERED ON 28.12.2025 Disposable pillow covers 1914 Dr. Banda Prakash Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state :- (a) whether Railways plan to introduce new […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":102,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1703","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reilsolar.com\/train\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1703","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reilsolar.com\/train\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reilsolar.com\/train\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reilsolar.com\/train\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/102"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reilsolar.com\/train\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1703"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.reilsolar.com\/train\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1703\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reilsolar.com\/train\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1703"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}