The Railway Department has temporarily suspended the reservation of seats in the sleeperette compartments in the night mail trains, the Sri Lanka Railway Station Masters' Union (SLRSMU) said.

They said the maintenance of sleeperette compartments was done by the Prisons Department. It used to clean the bed covers, pillows and mattresses in the compartments, the Union said.

"Due to spreading of COVID-19 virus within the Prisons Department, it had announced that the maintenance to the compartments had to be suspended," they said.

The Railway Department has not made a permanent or temporary solution for this. Therefore, commuters have to face inconvenience due to this.

The SLRSMU appealed to the responsible authorities to take immediate action to ensure the commuters are not inconvenienced. (Chaturanga Samarawickrama)