Railway Ministry enquires cost implications of deploying adequate housekeeping staff on Vande Bharat

New Delhi, Nov 21 (PTI) The Ministry of Railways has asked Northern and East Central Zones to provide the financial implications of adopting a comprehensive on-board housekeeping service, including on Vande Bharat trains.

The ministry wrote back to general managers of both the zones on November 20, 2025, after they requested a standardised deployment policy for On-Board Housekeeping Services (OBHS) staff in Vande Bharat trains, to provide a clean and comfortable travel environment for passengers.

The ministry said the matter was discussed with the Finance Directorate, which sought details on the financial implications of the proposal, along with details of the current housekeeping facility maintained in Vande Bharat trains, and other similar trains such as Rajdhani Express and Shatabdi.

The ministry urged both the zones to respond by November 25, 2025, for further processing of the proposal.

On May 9, 2025, Northern Railway wrote to the ministry requesting guidelines for the yardstick for deploying OBHS staff in Vande Bharat chair car and the upcoming sleeper trains.

In its letter, Northern Railway said that Vande Bharat Express trains are among the most prestigious services operated by Indian Railways, providing comfort and high service standards to passengers.

"With a strong emphasis on cleanliness and passenger satisfaction, the role of OBHS staff has become even more crucial in maintaining the desired standards in these trains," the letter said.

"Presently, Northern Railway has adopted the yardstick of one OBHS staff per two coaches to maintain cleanliness standards in Vande Bharat trains. However, a uniform and comprehensive policy regarding OBHS deployment in the chair car and sleeper variants of Vande Bharat Express is presently unavailable," it said.

Northern Railway recommended one OBHS staff member per two coaches for both the chair car and sleeper variants of Vande Bharat trains, one linen attendant per coach for the sleeper variant, and one executive housekeeping staff member per train to handle supervisory and coordination needs.

"This standardisation will help ensure consistency in service levels, optimise resource deployment, and reinforce Indian Railways' commitment for providing a clean and comfortable travel environment in its flagship train services," it said.

The East Central Railway (ECR) Zone, which operates Vande Bharat, Namo Bharat and Amrit Bharat trains, wrote to the ministry on May 7, 2025.

The ECR said dedicated staff is required to ensure interior cleaning, collection of leftover items from passenger area, cleaning and mopping of washroom, and disposal of garbage at regular intervals due to extensive utilisation of around 1,000 kilometres, or 13 hours of the daily run of these trains.

"The OBHS guideline issued for normal trains will not meet the expectations of passengers of these trains. These trains require deployment of one janitor for two coaches, with one executive housekeeping staff for Vande Bharat and Namo Bharat; and one janitor for three coaches, with one executive housekeeping staff with attention to unreserved vestibule coaches for Amrit Bharat," the ECR said. PTI JP RUK RUK