Railway Board may revise station cleaning policy; seeks feedback from zones

The Railway Board said it is considering revising two earlier instructions on cleaning of railway stations. Under the existing guidelines, mechanized cleaning contracts are limited to NSG-1 (Non Suburban), NSG-2, NSG-3 and SG-1 (Suburban) stations to help reduce housekeeping costs.

The second guideline allows Divisional Railway Managers (DRMs) to introduce mechanized cleaning at stations of tourist, religious or cultural importance. However, the number of such stations is capped at five or 15 per cent of NSG-4 and below category stations in a division, whichever is lower.

In a letter dated August 5, 2026, to General Managers (GMs) of all zonal railways, the Railway Board said it is considering reviewing the existing rules that require outcome-based cleaning contracts for railway stations. It is also examining a proposal to switch to a manpower-based contract system for station cleaning.

Under the existing outcome-based cleaning contract system, contractors are responsible for maintaining the prescribed cleanliness standards at railway stations, regardless of how many workers they deploy.

However, under the proposed manpower-based contract system, contractors will instead be required to deploy a fixed number of cleaning staff at each station.

Meanwhile, the national transporter has implemented Clean Train Station (CTS) scheme at 63 stations, covering around 2,800 trains. Under the scheme, a dedicated team of staff equipped with cleaning equipment carries out cleaning of coach toilets and washbasins and collects garbage from train’s dustbins during halt time.