In a highly concerning revelation, the Indian Railways has disclosed the washing schedule for the bedding provided in the air-conditioned coaches – raising serious questions about the cleanliness and hygiene of blankets, pillows, and bedsheets that passengers use during the journey. Passengers in AC coaches are typically provided with bedding neatly packaged in brown envelopes placed on their seats. While the bed sheets and pillowcases are usually stark white in colour – giving the impression of cleanliness, the darker hues of the blankets – often black or dark brown -leave much to be desired in terms of visible hygiene.
The RTI reply from the railways says that blankets are laundered once a month, or sometimes twice, depending on their condition – meaning they go weeks without being washed despite being used daily. What happens when bedding goes unwashed for a long time? According to experts, your body produces 25+ gallons of sweat in bed every year and sheds nearly 30-40,000 dead skin cells daily. And so, the combination of sweat, saliva, dandruff, dead skin cells, and even food particles makes it the optimal environment for a whole host of deadly pathogens like bacteria, fungi, viruses, and even tiny bugs to grow uncontrollably.
Studies say in just two weeks, a pillowcase can have nearly 40 times as much bacteria as a pet bowl - whilst sheets have 5.4 times more bacteria than a toothbrush holder. Serious side effects of unwashed bedsheets, pillowcases Not washing o.
