Sir,

Letters strengthen  relationships.  A simple sentence means so much when it is scribbled on the paper. Waiting for that letter to reach, anticipation, waiting for reaction it means so much more than a person can think. In letters each words shows emotions. Each sentence makes them feel. During the 80’s, the Bollywood song ‘Dakiya daak laya’ was very popular but the present scenario is just very different.

I visited Boring Canal road Sub Post Office and Kidwaipuri C.B.S Sub Post Office for revenue stamps, but there were no revenue stamps the office person who sat in Sub post office to supply for these stamps, said there are crisis of stamps for more than 5 days.

The staff of Kidwaipuri C.B.S Sub Post Officer says the culture of writing and sending letters has vanished away. Only one or two people come to post letters. The letter boxes which would be seen in every locality about two decades ago, have vanished.Even the culture of sending money orders have faded away the internet and E-banking has changed the entire culture.

At one side post offices are trying to provide advanced services to customers such as providing ATM card services etc but on another side, the condition of the post offices in Patna is bad. The shortage of revenue stamps has been posing difficulties for citizens. Without revenue stamps it is not possible to keep accounts of expenditure or payments in cash for over Rs 5000.

Post offices are visited by stamp collectors, but even these are a dying breed.

Due to lack of market orientation and absence of competitive spirit, the Indian postal service, a premium public service, has yielded ground to private couriers.

Santosh Kumar a Bata Patna resident says  the Indian postal system has a vast infrastructure providing the ultimate ‘access’ for poor people to basic services, the last mile connectivity both .The basic service are not just the delivery of letters and postcards, but the money order as well. For which most poor people and literate people depended.

Receiving a letter was one of those moments that defined a good day but today, the significance of post offices in Patna is almost vanishing.

Yours Truly,

Nihal Kumar Dutta

Newsnet Intern

  Bihar, Patna