Rail Neer Sample Fails Quality Test in Bhopal Division, Gram Flour Also Substandard

A sample of Rail Neer, the packaged drinking water supplied through the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), has been found substandard in the Bhopal Railway Division, according to findings from a routine quality check conducted in July. A sample of loose gram flour used in food preparation also failed to meet prescribed quality parameters.

The development matters because of the scale of the railway system in the region. In 2025-26, the Bhopal Railway Division handled roughly 1.14 lakh passenger journeys every day. Bhopal Junction alone sees more than 150 trains halt daily and has an estimated daily footfall of around 70,000 passengers.

For many travellers, buying food and water at a station is not a choice but a necessity, particularly on long journeys involving children and elderly passengers, during summer heat and brief halts. The purchase rests almost entirely on trust.

Rail Neer is meant to offer a standardised option within this system. Around 5,000 bottles are supplied daily from Mandideep to stations in the division, including Bhopal, Rani Kamalapati, Narmadapuram, Itarsi, Vidisha and Ganj Basoda. At Rs 14 for a one-litre bottle, that supply represents retail sales of about Rs 70,000 a day, or around Rs 2.55 crore over a year if the entire daily supply is sold.

Passengers at Bhopal expressed concern. Karnail Singh, travelling from Punjab, said he bought food and water during a halt at the station but was unhappy with what he received. "The water was not good and the food items were also not good. This is playing with the health of passengers," he said. Another passenger, Dinesh Chandra Pandey, said the answer lay in constant monitoring rather than occasional checks. "Checks should be conducted regularly so that vendors remain alert and stale food is not sold," he said.

Bhopal Division Senior Divisional Commercial Manager Saurabh Kataria said Rail Neer is regularly tested and that after one sample raised concerns, more bottles from the same batch were collected for examination. Samples from the same batch were drawn from Mandideep, Maneri and Ballarshah and sent to Jabalpur to ensure accurate testing, he said. IRCTC officials also reached the spot after the matter came to notice, and around 10 bottles were sent for further testing.

Kataria said the Railways conducts regular checks on food as well. Last year, 765 samples of food items were collected, while 287 samples have been collected so far this year, none of which failed, he said.

Concerns over railway catering extend beyond packaged water. On July 19, 2026, a joint team of the Railway Protection Force, Food Safety and Drug Administration, revenue officials and city police carried out surprise inspections at base kitchens supplying food to railway passengers in Itarsi. Officials checked bread, spices, samosas, vegetables, rice, used cooking oil and other ingredients. Expired and poor-quality food material was seized and destroyed, samples were collected for testing, and one base kitchen was sealed after serious irregularities were detected.

Railway officials say the water issue is being investigated. Passengers, however, say the real test is what reaches the customer. "Officials need to exercise control over all vendors. If officers regularly inspect them, there will be control. Otherwise, things will continue the way they are," another passenger said.