Are you one of those who think twice before shrouding yourself in the blankets that the railways provide because they stink? Well, that’s because they are washed once in 2 months.
This revelation, comes from Minister of state for Railways Manoj Sinha, admitted in the Rajya Sabha on Friday that the blankets given were unhygienic and were washed once in 2 months.
The minister was responding to a query raised in the upper house regarding the quality and hygiene of the linen supplied in the railways.
However, it is only the woollen blankets that are not washed. The bed sheets and pillow covers are washed daily, he added.
Vice President and House Chairman Hamid Ansari commented on the issue saying that people might have to start carrying their own bedding in such cases, to which Sinha remarked that it was a “good advice”.
To add on to this, Sinha said that in two years’ time, 85% of the passengers can get cleaner linen because Railways is in the process of getting 25 more mechanized laundries.
In its defense, Railways responded to Sinha saying that the blankets cannot be washed regularly, which is why an extra clean sheet of linen is provided to every passenger to cover it, reported The Times of India
It added that the blankets were “sanitized” once every 15 days to kill germs and odour. It has also started a bedroll take away scheme in which passengers can pre-book online by paying Rs 110 for one bedsheet or Rs 140 for two bed sheets and a pillow, which can also be taken home after the journey, TOI reported.