Sending letters may be passé.
But postmen are still depended on for bringing that odd greeting
card or letter from grandparents, a job-interview letter or a money order.
In a bid to improve quality of services and popularise them, the
postal department will soon make the details of postmen available online. There
will also be information on the localities covered by individual postmen in
Chennai.
The ‘Know your Postman’ concept was developed to build bridges
between customers and postmen. Postmen are mostly anonymous and this measure is
aimed at ensuring better security for residents in urban areas.
At present, details of postmen attached to the Anna Road head
post office and the general post office on Rajaji Salai have been uploaded
on www.chennaipost.gov.in.
Officials of the Chennai city circle said residents may log on
to the website and check the details of postmen who deliver in their area.
Information on nearly 2,300 postmen, postwomen and gram dak
sevaks, who are part-time staff members attached to 110 post offices in the
city and suburbs, would be made available online in three months.
Welcoming the initiative of the postal department, residents
said contact numbers of postal staff who deliver letters in an area regularly
may also be provided for better coordination.
S. Seetha, a resident of Ambattur, said this measure would
benefit people living in individual houses in the suburbs. The department could
also include time of visit or the contact number of post offices, she said.
Officials of the postal department said this measure would
enable them to keep tabs on those who engage outsiders to do their work.
Mervin Alexander, postmaster general (Chennai city region) said
the details of the postmen would also be available at information kiosks in the
post offices.
“We are also training postal staff to be more customer friendly
and develop their soft skills. Postwomen contribute to nearly 10-20 per cent of
the total strength of mail delivery staff,” he said.
On the number of vacancies, he said, there were about 400 vacant
posts in city alone. As of now, part-time workers are engaged to share the
workload of the postmen.
The department is keen on recruiting more postmen on the
outskirts.
A helpline may be provided for residents to complain about
erring postmen.
A staff member in Kodambakam post office was suspended recently
for taking bribes from senior citizens to deliver their old-age pension on
time.
Source : the Hindu
