'Postal dept should offer common services'

Bengaluru: April 3, 2015: DHNS

The postal department should leverage its vast network of post offices to extend common services such as Direct Benefit Transfer and MNREGA, said Union Minister of Communications and IT, Ravi Shankar Prasad.

Prasad was speaking after releasing the special cover on Golden Chariot and inauguration of the ATM, Parcel and Packing Centre, Post Shoppe, and the Circle Processing Centre at the Chief Post Master General, Karnataka Postal Circle, in Bengaluru on Thursday.

1.25 lakh post offices

He said there were 1.25 lakh post offices in the country and that these offices could extend common services, aside from acting as tourist guide centres.

He said the postal department should imbibe technology to provide better services in ensuring that mails, money orders, parcels and speed posts reached in time.

Karnataka Tourism Minister R V Deshpande said his department was hoping to tie up with the postal department for a variety of programmes. He said the postal department had suggested to his department to develop the post office (a heritage building) on Museum Road in the City into a museum.

Earlier, Chief Post Master General Ramanujam highlighted the problems faced by the Karnataka Circle with regard to air mail cargo. He said the Karnataka Circle despatched two aircraft full of cargo every day. However, in the recent years, the private airlines the department was dependent on, had become highly unreliable.

He said the Railways had been putting pressure on the postal department that it would withdraw its rail mail services.

ATM services

The Karnataka Postal Circle has been allotted 76 ATMs for the year 2014-15.

So far, 65 ATMs have been set up. An additional 17 ATM locations have been scheduled for operation by May.

The ATM at Bengaluru GPO is the first to go live in the country.

Source : http://www.deccanherald.com/