India has the largest
postal network in the world with 1,54,939 post offices as on March 31, 2015, of
which 1,39,222 (89.86%) are in the rural areas. At the time of independence
there were 23,344 post offices.
Following are some interesting revelations
from India Post’s annual report 2015-16.
1.
The
government has decided to digitise 1.5 lakh post offices across the country,
which includes 1.3 lakh post offices in rural areas.
2.
One
can buy exclusive collection of postal stamps offered by India Post on
e-commerce websites like Snapdeal and Shopclues. Philatelic products are also
available at e-post office – an e-commerce portal of India Post. Through its
e-commerce portal, India Post also provides select postal facilities using the
web. The department has generated revenue of Rs 24.31 lakh between April 2015
and December 2015 by selling postal stamps.
3.
India
is one of the earliest active members of the Universal Postal Union (UPU), a
specialised agency of the United Nations, having its headquarters at Berne,
Switzerland.
4.
There
are more than 33.03 crore account holders of the savings scheme of the
department.
5.
The
outstanding balance under all the savings schemes and saving certificates in
Post Offices are over Rs 6,19,317.44 crore.
6.
Money
transfer service of India Post enables instant international money remittance
to customers in India sent from 195 countries on real time basis. This service
is operational in association with Western Union from 9,942 post office
locations and MoneyGram through 6,070 post office locations.
7.
To
ensure safe and timely delivery of goods, the department has signed an
agreement for supply and installation of GPS devices in 990 mail vans. GPS
devices have already been installed in 926 mail vans.
8.
India
Post ATMs have been installed in more than 500 locations across the country.
9.
The
department has earned revenue of Rs 2,247 crore during the period April 2015 to
December 2015 registering a growth of 15% compared to corresponding period last
year.
10.
The
department has 38 heritage buildings having architectural value.
