Farewell to cards as New Year greetings go online

Most citizens use mobile phones, social media sites to convey wishes

Thanks to technology, people bid farewell to 2017 and welcomed the New Year mostly using online platforms.

Display of colourful greeting cards of varying sizes in shops, the most common sight at this time of the year till a few years ago, has quietly disappeared leaving the postal staff and courier boys with not much deliveries to make.

However, some officials printed New Year greeting cards to wish their counterparts and friends.

On the other hand, flower stalls, sweet shops, bakeries and stalls selling colours mushroomed on the roads.

Interrupted

Mobile services went for a toss from 11.45 p.m. to 12.30 a.m. on the intervening night of Sunday and Monday. People were seen busy trying to contact their family members and friends over cell phones, and send greetings through social media sites. Even kids were seen greeting their dear ones on mobile phones.

“Earlier, we sold different varieties of greeting cards. For the last two years, the sale of greeting cards has come down and this year absolutely there was no demand for cards. There was a heavy sale of cakes and sweets,” said a vendor B. Subramanyam.

“My mail got jammed. I got more than 150 mails on New Year greetings with colourful photos. I received several messages too,” said an engineering student S. Srivalli.

Many people preferred to remain indoors watching programmes on New Year events telecast by various channels, while youth were seen enjoying the celebrations at various clubs on Sunday night.

Bakeries, sweet and flower stall owners illuminated the shops and a heavy crowd was seen at many of these outlets in the city.