Postmen get smartphones to track deliveries online

Postmen get smartphones to track deliveries online

An internet package embedded in the phones helps the postmen update information on delivery of bar-coded mails, such as registries, speed posts and money orders. Delivery of ordinary mails, which do not have a bar code, cannot be tracked.

Postmen work on their smartphones in Haldwani on Saturday.(HT Photo)

Haldwani : Postmen of Haldwani and Dehradun have got smartphones to monitor postal deliveries online, a move by India Post to improve existing services by harnessing technology.

Uttarakhand postal services director VK Singh said the project covered only urban centres of Haldwani and Dehradun because of better internet connectivity.

The postmen of the urban centres of the two cities have been given smartphones that operate on the Android system.

An internet package embedded in the phones helps the postmen update information on delivery of bar-coded mails, such as registries, speed posts and money orders. Delivery of ordinary mails, which do not have a bar code, cannot be tracked.

Under the project, the postmen download an app, called ‘Postman’, using smartphones. The app, created by the postal department, is linked to the central server and the delivery details are fed into it.

“This app is of convenience to us as the deliveries are updated online; we do not have to stay in office till late in the evening to get information about deliveries,” said Ram Singh Rautela (53), a postman of Haldwani.

“In case of loss of connectivity, information is fed later on when the connectivity is restored.”

Lakshmi Dhar Bhatt (57) has learnt to operate the smartphone he has got. “It is not as difficult as it seemed and I am operating the app, which is very user-friendly.”

Rautela said, “The technology used is very simple.”

In an age when the postman gets fewer mails to deliver, India Post has exploring avenues to stay relevant. At post offices in urban areas, bio-data can be posted on a job portal and mobile SIM cards can be recharged.

India Post started offering e-products after revenue from traditional products dwindled. E-money orders have been launched for transfer of cash at the click of a button.