Customers To Get Bank-Like Services In Postal Department? Major Changes You Need To Know
Reports state that over 86,000 post offices have been upgraded so far. (Image: File Pic)
The new system will provide a customer-friendly interface and OTP-based verification for delivery. (Image: File Pic)
Reportedly, customers will now be able to make digital payments while booking speed post. (Image: File Pic)
India Post has also started the Digipin service, which will work as DIGIPIN in place of traditional PIN code. (Image: File Pic)
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Hans India
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India Post announced that it will merge its 50-year-old Registered Post service with modern speed post. As the curtains slowly draw on one of the most iconic services of Indian postal history, it's worth pausing for a moment to reflect on what we're leaving behind read more From September 1, 2025, Resgistered Post, a 50-year-old service, once valued for its reliability, affordability, and legal weight among office-goers, will be officially discontinued. AI-generated Image for Representation When was the last time you wrote a letter? Some of us can faintly recall writing one, maybe a postcard mailed on a holiday or a letter to a distant cousin. For Gen Z, licking a stamp and sealing an envelope may be something they've only seen in movies. It's 2025, a world ruled by WhatsApp messages and endless email threads, so it's no surprise that the art, and even the need, for handwritten letters has quietly faded into nostalgia. Yet, there was a time when letters carried emotions across cities, when the wait for a postman was filled with anticipation. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD But that era is sadly drawing to a close. Earlier this week, India Post said it would merge the 50-year-old Registered Post service, once valued for its reliability, affordability, and legal weight among office-goers, with the faster and more modern Speed Post service. An Indian postwoman wearing her new blue saree uniform empties a post box in New Delhi, 01 October image/AFP As the curtains slowly draw on one of the most iconic services of Indian postal history, it's worth pausing for a moment to reflect on what we're leaving behind and the rich legacy it has been carrying for centuries. Pigeons, horses & more: A look at India's ancient postal system Long before the British set up a structured postal system, ancient India had its own creative ways of staying connected. Messages were sent through runners, horse riders, and even pigeons. One of the earliest known postal systems can be traced back to the Mauryan Empire, during Emperor Chandragupta Maurya's reign (circa 321–297 BCE). Historical accounts suggest messages were often sent through pigeons, who became a trusted network of communication across the vast empire. Amazingly, this pigeon post system remained in use for centuries. In fact, in April 1948, then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru used a pigeon to send a message from Sambalpur to Cuttack regarding arrangements for a public meeting. The service continued until as late as March 2008, when Odisha officially retired its last pigeon post. The pigeon post system remained in use for centuries. Police in India's Odisha are preserving a flock of carrier pigeons for use when disasters sever communication links. File image/Reuters But pigeons weren't the only messengers. India's ancient postal network evolved significantly under the Delhi Sultanate. 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They primarily carried official dispatches, used by kings, emperors, and administrators to maintain control over distant provinces. The British Empire's postal revolution To consolidate its hold over the Indian subcontinent, the British East India Company did more than fight battles — it built systems of control. And at the heart of that control was communication. In the 17th and 18th centuries, the Company developed its own postal system known as 'Company Mail' across its territories. The first regular postal service started in Calcutta (now Kolkata) in 1766 under Lord Clive, then Governor of Bengal. By 1774, the city had a General Post Office that charged two annas per 100 miles. Similar offices opened in Madras and Bombay in 1786. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Under Warren Hastings, who succeeded Clive as Governor-General of India, the postal setup in Bengal became more structured. A Postmaster-General was appointed, and postage charges were introduced for private letters. By 1789, the East India Company had a network of daks (postal runners)— or dauriyas — connecting administrative homes to key towns. A postman leaving his office to deliver posts in Amritsar on Tuesday. File image/ PTI These dak runners, who often came from marginalised caste groups and ran for miles through forests and rivers to deliver letters, According to an Indian Express report citing a study Dak Roads, Dak Runners, and the Reordering of Communication Networks of historian Chitra Joshi, writes that these runners were not only 'loyal but remarkably efficient', navigating difficult terrain and even braving tigers, as noted in official records. A major transformation came in 1854 under Governor-General Lord Dalhousie, who introduced uniform postage rates and helped pass the India Post Office Act. This laid the foundation of India's national postal service, officially launched on October 1, 1854. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD By the early 20th century, India's postal system had become a cornerstone of communication and efficiency. Before independence, there were around 23,000 post offices. But in the decades that followed, the network grew at an incredible pace, reaching nearly 1.5 lakh post offices by 1978. Workers of India Post deliver parcels through Shikara postal service at Dal lake in Srinagar on October 12, 2022. File image/AFP Bollywood's love affair with letters As the postal system expanded, every town, village, and mohalla had its own postman, whose arrival was often awaited with the same anticipation as a festival. This emotional connection was also reflected in Indian pop culture. Songs like 'Dakiya Dak Laya' from the 1977 film Palkon Ki Chhaon Mein romanticised the postman's role in village life. Some were even as heart-wrenching as the one in Border (1997), where the postman delivers a letter to a soldier's family, the very 'chitthi' that confirmed his death. The song 'Sandese Aate Hain' from the same film became an anthem for longing and love, echoing the emotions of families waiting to hear from loved ones at the frontlines. 'Chitthi Aayi Hai' from the film Naam (1986) also captured the ache of homesickness. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The song Even Irrfan Khan's popular movie The Lunchbox (2013), rekindled that nostalgia of handwritten letters and missed connections. Beyond cinema, philately, the collection of postal stamps, became a popular hobby in Indian households. India Post even capitalised on this with special edition stamps marking historic events, freedom fighters, festivals, and even cinematic milestones. A stamp of India Post featuring Rajesh Khanna in 2013. Image courtesy: Wikimedia Commons Old letters, new challenges Today, India Post operates as a commercial arm of the Indian government, with over 160,000 post offices, more than 130,000 of which are located in rural India. 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The Hindu
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Bengalureans overcome with ‘nostalgia' as India Post discontinues Registered Post, one of its oldest services
Even in the era where online communication is predominant, there are many who continue to use the services of India Post. Recently, when it was announced that the Registered Post services will soon (September 1) be discontinued and merged with Speed Post services, those in Bengaluru who use the service are concerned. Registered Post, one of the oldest services of India Post, has long been a reliable source of communication related to court, governance, submission of college applications, personal letters, etc. due to its addressee-specific delivery system. According to a source in the General Post Office (GPO) of Bengaluru, at least 8,000 to 10,000 Registered Posts are sent through the GPO every day. 'The service is in great demand, especially among advocates, government officials, and banks. People trust the service so much that they even send bank cheques through Registered Post,' the source said. With the Speed Post being an address-specific delivery system (where anyone available at the address can collect it), regular users of Registered Post worry about the implications. 'For us advocates, especially in cheque bounce cases, the law requires that notices be sent to the accused within 30 days. Without the acknowledgment that Registered Post provides, it becomes difficult for both advocates and the court to ascertain timely delivery. If the alternative, which is the Speed Post in this case, proves to be unreliable, then it will create unnecessary hurdles in the legal system,' explained Samhita Vinod, a practicing advocate from the city. However, India Post has taken to social media to allay the worries of customers and clarified that the benefits of Registered Post will continue to be available with Speed Post. It said that while Speed Post Letter and Speed Post Parcel will provide address-specific delivery, items booked as Speed Post with registration will be delivered specifically to the addressee. It will also provide real-time delivery updates, end-to-end online tracking, OTP-based security delivery, and other features. 'We are modernising, not erasing,' the social media post said. While for many, the merger of Registered Post with Speed Post caused worries due to technical reasons, for many others, the news brought back memories of a time when Registered Post was the only reliable source of communication. 'My husband was in the army several decades ago and back then, a Registered Post brought many emotions with it. Even if there were any casualties, it would be communicated through the post only. Luckily, I have never received such news through it, but it remained a constant channel of communication between my husband and me during his stint in the army. I was mildly disappointed when I learned that a service that was so significant to many others like me would soon be a thing of the past,' said Parvathi Kumaran, a senior citizen from Rajajinagar.
