With the curtains down on the 163-year-old telegraphic service, a memorable chapter has drawn to a close. The telegram was not only the quickest means of communication. It was more affordable than telephone calls. The medium was widely used to relay important and urgent messages and to convey good and bad news in the most pointed of phrases.
During the war days, when troops were moved from one station to another at short notice, the messages “Arrived safely,” “I am safe,” and “Coming soon” were standard and brought hope and cheer to the family of the sender. The famous Zimmermann Telegram drew the United States into World War I, changing the course of history.
N.J. Ravi Chander,
Bangalore
The telegram will remain but a memory for many of us and an unknown entity for future generations. It marks the end of an era in the history of communication. The telegram inspired novelists like R.K. Narayan. For many, the arrival of a telegram invoked fear as, often, it heralded bad news.
Sharada Sivaram,
Chennai
Although the telegram has become history, it was once part and parcel of people’s lives. While bidding adieu to one of the most celebrated communication services, there is only one promise to be made — Dear Telegram, you will remain in our memory forever.
Sowmiya R. Prasad,
Coimbatore
The photograph on page one (July 15) was heartrending. The telegraph service in India has called it a day after 163 years. The previous generations know the significance of it. New communication devices have rendered the telegraph service obsolete. The present and future generations will have to contend with stories to know the significance of the telegram.
Vasumathi P.B. Varadhachari,
Thanjavur
The telegram in the earlier days was sent through the Morse code. The Morse key took a back seat with the advent of teleprinters. When Store and Forward Telegraphy came into play, the point-to-point tele-printer communication was also relegated to the background.
Emails, chat facilities and SMSs provide instant communication. The technology of the earlier era has thus been consigned to history. There is nothing to feel bad about it as better communication facilities are available at the click of a button.
S. Suryanarayanan,
Chennai
