No curtains, blankets in trains amid coronavirus outbreak: Railways

 In the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, the Indian Railways has issued orders to all its zones to withdraw blankets and curtains from AC coaches as they are not washed every day.

Other items in the bed roll, including bedsheets, towels and pillow covers, are washed every day, it said. The railway board has also instructed that the minimum temperature in the coaches be set at 24-25 degrees Celsius.

"Adequate publicity should be given regarding this precautionary measure so that passengers are suitability prepared," it said. "All curtains and spare blankets to be washed, dried and stored in clean and dry storage facility. 100 per cent fresh washed linen to be provided in sealed packets as per existing instructions," it said. The railways will ask passengers to bring their own blankets through SMS and IVRS.

It has also instructed its personnel to intensively clean coach fittings such as grab handles, window grill, bottle holders and charge points as they are touched by thousands of passengers every day. Officials said liquid soap, napkin rolls and disinfectant chemical will be provided to passengers by the housekeeping staff on board.

In AC coaches, attendants have been told to not recirculate used linen. They have been advised to maintain vigil for passengers with cold and cough and segregate the linen used by them, an official said.  While blankets for AC travellers are washed twice in a month, the curtains are cleaned once every fortnight.

READ: Coronavirus Pandemic: Fake Hand Sanitiser, Mask Factory Sealed In Noida; 4 Held