It was with the excitement of doing something new that the little children, who have grown up in a world ruled by the Internet and smart phones, wrote down loving messages for their parents on a postcard.
For the Class III students from Aditya Vidyashram, the visit to the Head Post office was a familiarisation with the old world. They listened in rapt attention as the postal staff explained to them the various processes from the time a letter is dropped in the post box till the time it reached destination — the hands of the addressee.
The educational visit was arranged by the Department of Posts as part of Digital India Week. More than 450 children from seven schools visited six post offices under the Pondicherry Division, including those in Puducherry, Villupuram, Gingee and Tindivanam, on Friday, with some visits also scheduled for Saturday.
“The children were given a walk through of the sections like the delivery section and stamps section, and got to see philatelic stamps, inland letter cards and post cards,” said N. Shanti, Head Post Master at the Puducherry Head Post Office.
“The visits are expected to help children get familiarised with the functioning of the post office. It also helps the Department of Posts introduce children to its various schemes, especially the Sukanya Samriddhi scheme,” said V. Kumar, Assistant Superintendent of Posts, Pondicherry Division.
The Sukanya Samriddhi scheme, a special savings deposit scheme, is for girls up to ten years of age.
e-initiatives
Though school visits have been organised in the past, the tie-up with the Digital India Week has allowed the Department of Posts to showcase its initiatives like eMO (electronic money order) and ePOST (a combination of electronic transmission and physical delivery of messages).
It also encourages children to convince their parents to invest in the different financial services offered by the Department of Posts, said Mr. Kumar.
Makeover to suit modern times
Post offices in India are also adapting to a changing world and looking at other means for financial sustenance, said Mr. Kumar. “Project Arrow has been conceived to modernise post offices in India, including those in rural areas. Post offices now offer various financial schemes with attractive interest rates, and simplified processes. They are just like any bank, and are user-friendly,” he said. In fact, the postman plays an important role in the transformation that is taking place.
For initiatives like the Sukanya Samriddhi scheme, it is the postmen who provide information to customers and encourage them to open accounts, he added.
The Pondicherry Division which includes Villupuram and Tindivanam has opened 45,000 Sukanya Samriddhi accounts, said Mr. Kumar.
