National Post Day is celebrated on
October 10 every year and it is an extension of World Post Day, which is
celebrated on October 9. National Post
Day is celebrated to mark the role played by the Indian postal department in
over 150 years.
Importance
Technology has made our lives
easier and faster. Smartphones, computers have made it easier for people to
contact each other, irrespective of the distance, in a much faster way.
However, this was not the case few years ago. It still is not the case for many
who are not as privileged as others. For them, sending a post is a much more
accessible way of connecting with their loved ones. Few years ago, that was the
only way. That is why writing letters was an important form of communication.
People used to eagerly wait for letters from their family members who lived in
villages or cities. In many cases, the post man played an important role in
connecting people by helping those who could not read or write. The Indian
postal department has played an important role for several years and is still
doing it.
Indian postal service
Postal service was introduced in
India by the British. It was founded in 1854 by Lord Dalhousie. Currently, it
functions under the Ministry of Communications and is the most widely
distributed postal system in the world.
The post office delivers mails,
remits money in the form of money orders (which is the only way of sending
money for many Indians). They also run small savings schemes, provide life
insurance coverage under Postal Life Insurance and Rural Postal Life Insurance.
It also plays an important role in discharging government services such as
payment of pensions to senior and retired citizens. Wages under MGNREGA is also
distributed through post offices.
India has 23 postal circles and 9 postal zones including Army Post Office. Post offices in Indian follow a 6-digit PIN Code system, which was introduced in India in 1972.