Tag: India Post

Rising ATF prices: Good news for postal department, bad for private couriers

Posted by | Jul 14, 2008 | |

The over 50 per cent increase in the price of aviation turbine fuel in the past six months could bring good news for the Indian Postal Department.

As all airlines have raised carriage charges, private couriers have increased their tariffs 8-20 per cent. India Post, on the other hand, has not tinkered with its tariffs at all.

As a result, India Post’s tariff is 70 per cent cheaper for domestic destinations and 30 per cent cheaper for international destinations.

Department of Posts officials said this would help them raise volumes, more so since any tariff hike will not happen till the next Union Budget in 2009. When asked if this will burn a hole in the department’s pocket, the officials said India Post was still making money on its courier service.

Some private courier service operators said they do not see any huge swing of business in favour of India Post.

Meanwhile, India Post is gearing itself for a makeover to provide stiff competition to the private courier services.

Admitting that a lot of companies were not aware of the service offering provided by the department of post, the official said, “We are now looking at strengthening our marketing and sales by making the potential customers aware of the services we provide.”

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Speed Post & Express Parcel to cost 20 pct more (India)

Posted by | Jul 7, 2008 | |

India Post is planning across-the-board hike in the rates of its mailing, courier and freight services. The rate hike, which comes after nine years, would be applicable to services like speed post, express parcel post and logistics post, and would be in the range of 15-20 pct.

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Postmen to have beat codes for fast delivery of letters

Posted by | Jun 30, 2008 | |

The Postal department has introduced a postman beat code along with the pin code for fast delivery of letters and parcels. The new service was introduced all over the country a few months ago.

Haryana Postal Services Director Manisha Bansal Badal said, “The scheme was introduced in Haryana in March and has helped a lot in delivering letters and parcels in time.”

The scheme was introduced in the city last week. Badal, who has served as Senior Superintendent of Post Offices in Ludhiana, said, “Any one who is posting a letter is supposed to write the pincode and the postman beat code of the area where the letter is being sent. This will help in delivering the letter to its destination soon. While sorting out the letters, the postal employees will just read the postman beat code of the city and put that letter in his tray. This way the time, which the postal employees used to take earlier for reading the whole address, is saved.”

The city has 14 delivery offices of the Postal department from where about 300 postmen collect the postal articles for delivery every day. So there will be about 300 postman beat codes.

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Government to regulate courier sector, Bill likely in monsoon session

Posted by | Jun 19, 2008 | |

The government will soon amend the Indian Postal Act to bring courier companies under the ambit of this Act, a move that may hit hard the private players but could prove to be a shot in the arm for the Indian Postal Department.

According to sources, the Communication and IT Minister A Raja has given a go-ahead to the department to place the amendment in the Cabinet soon and the amended Act will be introduced in Parliament in the forthcoming Monsoon session.

If approved, this would bar the private courier service providers from carrying packets weighing below 500 grams and could give a major blow to the courier companies which earn a major share of their revenues from letter and packets weighing below half a kilogram.

However, this would also give a chance to both the parties — private courier service providers and India Post– to have business partnership with each other.

Department of Trade officials said this could prove to be a win-win situation for both parties and added that through business partnership India Post will earn more revenues to become self- sufficient.

The government said the India Post Office (Amendment) Bill is being given final touches and is likely to be introduced in the monsoon session of Parliament.

The government is also planning to bring in a regulator called the Mail Regulatory and Development Authority to monitor this sector better.

Department of Trade, which is poised for a face-lift with new schemes in its kitty, also has plans to expand its basket of financial services and may remodel some of the post offices into postal finance marts.

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India Postmaster: 'Post offices across India to be interlinked soon'

Posted by | Jun 17, 2008 | |

All the post offices across the country will be inter-linked in about a year’s time, a senior postal department officer said here on Tuesday.
Soon, the Indian Post will also function as a full-fledged banking organisation, he said, adding postal department was also considering to rent out prime spaces it had at several places for retail and other business.
Kumar said the postal department has also tied up with ‘Kerala Spices Board’ under which, one can place an order through the postal department for getting spices delivered at their doorsteps by post.
Besides, the department had also tied up with Assam tea and Tirupati prasad so that one can get these materials through post, he added.
Kumar said the department was also forging ties with telcos like BSNL, Reliance, Vodafone and Airtel to provide range of services and products like ‘Retail post’ and ‘Bill Mail Service’ verification of addresses and delivery of bills.
The post offices already distributes coins of denomination rupee one and two on the behalf of RBI, he said adding that the department was also reaching out to universities and institutions for the sale of their prospectus and other material under ‘Retail post.’

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