Thiruvananthapuram
District Level Philatelic Exhibition 'Ananthapuripex-2014’
was organised by Thiruvananthapuram North Postal Division on 13th and
14th November 2014 at Bhagyamala Auditorium, Chandrasekharan Nair
Stadium, Palayam, Thiruvananthapuram.
The exhibition was
inaugurated by Smt. K Chandrika, Mayor of Thiruvananthapuran Municipal
Corporation. During the inaugural function, a Special Cover on 125 years
of first Anchal Stamps was released by Smt. Sumathi Ravichandran,
Postmaster General, Mails and Business Development, which was received
by Mayor Smt. K Chandrika. The Special cover was brought out to mark the
completion of 125 years of the release of Anchal Stamps. (Special Cover
approval no. KL-13/2014)
The former Indian State
of Travancore had an independent Postal system called Anchal Service. In
1861 (1036 Malayalam Calender Era) Ayilyam Tirunal Maharaja opened the
Anchal System to the public. The first adhesive Anchal stamps of
denominations 1 Chakram, 2 Chakrams and 4 Chakarams were introduced on
16.10.1888 during the reign of Sree Moolam Tirunal Maharaja. The special
cover depicts photos of the Anchal stamps, with Chakram in Malayalam,
Padmanabhaswami Temple, The Kings procession etc. in the background. The
special cancellation depicts line drawing of the Randu Chakram stamp.
On 14th November 2014 a
Special Cover on 150 years of Fort Mission Girls’ High School was
released by Shri A Thomas Loudraj, Director of Postal Services (HQ). The
cover was received by Smt. Helen Violet L R, Headmistress, Fort Mission
Girls' School. (Special Cover approval no. KL/14/2014)
Fort Girls' Mission High
School, Thiruvananthapuram was founded by Ms. Augusta Mary Blanford of
Church of England Zenana Missionary Society on 3rd November 1864 with
the blessings of Ayilyam Tirunal Rama Varma. The school was initially
known as "Vadake Kottaram Pallikkoodam" and later changed as Zenana
Mission School. On its elevation to the status of Girls' High School in
1951, its name was changed as Fort Girls' Mission High School.
India created history by
becoming the first country in the world to reach the red planet's
orbit in the first attempt and also became the first Asian country to
have sent its space craft successfully into Mar's orbit. The Mars
Orbiter Mission - Mangalyaan was launched on 5th November 2013 and
after completing its ten month long journey, it was successfully put
into Martian orbit on 24th September 2014.
The valedictory function
witnessed the release of a Special Cover on Mangalyaan Indian Mars
Orbiter Mission. The Special cover was released by Smt. Sumathi
Ravichndran, Postmaster General, Mails and Business Development. The
cover was received by Padmashree M. Chandradathan, Director, Vikram
Sarabhai Space Center, Thiruvanathapuram, who was responsible for the
launch of the Indian Mars Orbiter Mission, Mangalyaan. (Special Cover
approval No. KL/15/2014) The cover depicts the Mangalyaan launcher, the
Mars and the Indian Flag. The Special Cancellation depicts the Mars
Orbiter between Earth and Mars.
Awards and prizes were
given to prize winners at the valedictory function. Various competitions
were also conducted during the exhibition. The exhibition also gave the
public a chance to feature on stamps through ‘My Stamp’ facility.
