Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw disclosed in the Rajya Sabha on 25 July 2025 that only one of the two bedsheets packed in every Indian Railways bedroll kit — issued to passengers travelling in air-conditioned classes — is washed after a single use. The revelation has prompted fresh scrutiny over hygiene standards on the national rail network.

What the Bedroll Kit Actually Contains

Each standard bedroll packet distributed to AC-class passengers comprises two bedsheets, one pillow cover, and one hand towel. According to Vaishnaw, the first bedsheet is intended to be spread over the sleeper berth, while the second serves as a cover layer between the passenger's body and the blanket — ensuring the blanket does not make direct contact with the traveller.

'This blanket cover sheet is washed after single use,' the minister stated in his written reply to a parliamentary question. The berth sheet, by implication, is not subject to the same single-use wash protocol — a distinction that has raised pointed questions among rail users about how laundry staff differentiate between the two sheets once they are collected.

Why Passengers Are Asking Questions

The disclosure has triggered concern primarily on two counts: first, how attendants can reliably identify which of the two visually similar sheets functioned as the blanket cover; and second, why the sheet that a passenger actually sleeps on does not receive the same single-use laundering treatment. Critics argue the current system places hygiene assurance on an operationally difficult distinction that is hard to enforce at scale across Indian Railways' vast network.

Measures to Improve Linen Quality

Vaishnaw outlined a series of steps the ministry is taking to raise laundering standards. 'Whito-meters' — devices that measure the whiteness and cleanliness of fabric — are now deployed across all mechanised laundries, alongside CCTV cameras to monitor operations in real time.

A pilot project using automated AI-camera stain-detection technology has been launched in laundries at Pune Division, Central Railway, and the Jaipur and Jodhpur divisions of North Western Railway to assess the quality of washed linen before it is repackaged for passengers.

Notably, blanket covers are now being provided to all AC-class passengers on trains operated by North Western Railway and on the newly launched Vande Bharat Sleeper Train running between Kamakhya and Howrah as a pilot initiative — a move the minister said has been 'widely appreciated.'

Linen Lifespan Under Railway Rules

The minister also detailed the codal life — the prescribed service duration — of various linen items under existing Railway rules. Handloom bedsheets have a codal life of 12 months, while Polyvastra bedsheets last 24 months. Pillow covers and face towels are replaced every nine months, and pillows and blankets have a codal life of 24 months each. Items found unserviceable are withdrawn and replaced in line with prescribed norms, Vaishnaw said.

What Happens Next

The AI-camera pilot, if successful, could be scaled across other railway divisions, potentially tightening quality control at the laundry stage before linen reaches passengers. Whether the ministry will extend the single-use wash protocol to both bedsheets — rather than just one — remains an open question that rail users and opposition members are likely to press further.