India Post is more than just the ubiquitous red boxes

India Post is more than just the ubiquitous red boxes

India Post is more than just the ubiquitous red boxes

When some migrant labourers were stranded in far-flung Shillong during the lockdown, postmen using handheld POS machines and Aadhaar-authenticated payment system ensured that they received their direct benefit transfer money.
From delivering life saving drugs to reaching personnel protection equipment to hospitals, besides pension payments and banking services, India Post has used its vast network to ensure uninterrupted supplies and combat the crippling impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

It is using an array of transport systems, from Blue-Dart cargo flights to special parcel trains being run by railways.
The 1,000 ATMs that have been deployed by the department has come in handy for ensuring banking services while the 3 lakh Grameen dak sewaks armed with micro ATMs have fanned out across the remotest parts.

Data on different metrics provides a sense of the mammoth operations. From March 24 to April 13, nearly 14 lakh speed posts were booked, about 2.43 lakh parcels used its network and nearly 11 lakh electronic money orders were registered. From March 24 to April 15, nearly 1.3 banking transactions were carried out, totalling Rs 21,000 crore. On an average, one lakh AePS transactions were undertaken and Rs 10 crore disbursed among the needy and the poor at their doorstep.

“When the lockdown was announced, there was apprehension that our operations would grind to a halt but the department reinvented itself and become even more people-centric and compassionate,” said another official.