Tag: India

The largest postal network in the world, with over 1.55 lakh post offices, will soon reinvent itself if the Department of Posts (DoP) has its way. In a major reform in the postal services, the DoP is considering a proposal to extend postal facilities through a franchising scheme. Under the Universal Service Obligation, the department has to ensure that rural and far-flung areas are not denied access to postal services. DoP has over 89% of its offices in the rural areas. Post offices in the rural areas are incurring losses more than the permissible levels. In the urban areas, where a minimum of 5% profit is required as per norms, over 50% of the single and double-handed offices are incurring losses. To reduce deficit, the department plans to increase access to postal services. It wants to do this by franchising out its postal outlets. It will begin with a pilot project to assess the impact, sources said.