Row-wise dustbins to be installed soon in trains leaving Mumbai

MUMBAI: In a first, the Central Railway (CR) will be placing dustbins next to every row inside long-distance trains to address growing complaints about unclean coaches. A trial period, which began earlier this month, is underway in one of the trains starting from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) and in the next couple of days, it will be extended to four more trains. CR authorities said complaints have come down from the trains undergoing trial run.

For trial run, the CR authorities placed these bins inside air-conditioned coaches of 11057 Mumbai CSMT – Amritsar Express. Senior officials from CR said that dustbins were being placed inside every row, below the windows, in the AC coaches of the 16-coach train. So far, this is implemented in two trains. Two portable bins are placed in between rows, a space which passengers otherwise utilise to keep smaller bags.

“These are leg operated dustbins made of stainless steel, placed under the tray table fixed below the windows. We undertook a trial as well for nearly a fortnight whose responses were excellent. We will be extending this inside other AC coaches of at least four trains in the next two days,” said a CR official on condition of anonymity.

The CR authorities, on their ‘Rail Madad’ app, receive an average of 10-12 complaints daily over unclean coaches in north-bound trains from Mumbai. The CSMT-Amritsar Express train is one of the trains with the largest number of complaints about cleanliness inside coaches. The official said complaints of unclean coaches with overflowing dustbins and accumulated garbage below the seats came down after dustbins were installed. “The on-board housekeeping staff have been instructed to check the bins every hour during the day and replace the garbage cover in case the bin is full,” said the official.

The officials understand there is a threat of these bins being stolen. If it happens, they are considering devising a lock system.

At present, dustbins are only found below the washbasins. These begin to overflow early in the journey and are usually only cleaned at the end. This new plan will be replicated in First AC, Second AC and Third AC coaches of more trains on CR that are being shortlisted. There are 16 LHB coaches on this train of which there are eight AC coaches that includes 3AC Economy and 2AC. The rest are General and Sleeper coaches, which do not have this facility.

Before 2024 ends, the CR will propose to install these dustbins in trains going to Gorakhpur, Patna, Lucknow from Mumbai. The CR officials did not specify the train names but said at least five complaints come from them.

The CR officials said that they will install these dustbins inside all trains starting from Mumbai – both CSMT and Lokmanya Tilak Terminus - before March 2025. Based on the feedback from passengers, Sleeper Coaches will also be considered for installation of row-wise dustbins.