Why do Indian Railways use white bedsheets? Check details

Indian Railways is the country's largest public sector transportation system. With over 68,000 km of track, Indian Railways is the 4th largest railway network in the world. Indian Railways is also the most important railway line operated by a single government. Most people prefer rail travel due to several factors including comfortable travel and low fares. Rail travel is preferred especially when it comes to long distance travel. Indian Railways is implementing various features for the convenience of passengers.

In that way, blankets and pillows are provided to passengers traveling in AC coaches of Indian Railways. These blankets and pillow covers are washed daily and given fresh to every passenger traveling on the train.

Have you ever noticed that the bedsheets and pillow covers provided to you are always white when you travel in AC coaches of Indian Railways? Indian Railways always provides bed sheets and pillows for your journey.

This is not a coincidence but a well-planned strategy of the railways. Let's see the reason behind it.

Indian Railways operates a large number of trains on a daily basis, and thousands of bedsheets and pillowcases need to be used every day. These pillow covers and blankets are provided to passengers in AC coaches.

Used blankets are collected back for cleaning. Special machines are used to clean these blankets. That is, these bed sheets and pillow covers are cleaned by special machines equipped with large boilers that generate steam at a temperature of 121 degrees Celsius. The bed sheets are subjected to this steam for 30 minutes, ensuring that they are completely disinfected.

White bed sheets are found to be most suitable for such harsh washing conditions. They respond well to bleaching, which is essential for maintaining hygiene and cleanliness. White color does not fade even after being subjected to harsh washing process and high temperature. But other fabrics will start to fade easily. By choosing white bed sheets, Indian Railways ensures that the linen provided to passengers is not only clean but also visually appealing.

Moreover, if different colored bed sheets are used, they need to be cleaned separately to prevent the colors from mixing when they are cleaned together. But this problem does not exist in white blankets. There is no problem even if you bleach them together. White fabrics are easy to maintain compared to other colors.

The color does not fade even after repeated washing. White colors remain clean and bright even after bleaching and frequent washing. Therefore, the railways use white color to ensure that the bedding provided to the passengers is not only hygienic and germ-free, but also aesthetically pleasing. This is the main reason why Indian Railways provides white blankets and pillow covers.