Post offices to play as Super Market

Moving beyond postal and banking services, Bokaro Head Post Office soon to be turned up into a shopping unit. The department is on move to develop it like Super Market which will sell products ranging from stationery, household goods, appliances, Khadi wear, gift and grocery items in there, informed an official.

"To promote the sale of Khadi products a MoU has been signed between Jharkhand Postal department and Kasturba Khadi Gramodyog. We have planned to sale about 200 Khadi products initially which will shortly go on sale at 13 head post offices across the state including Bokaro, Dhanbad, Hazaribag, Ramghar, Chaibasha and Palamu," said the official.

Besides selling LED bulbs and tubes, philately items, mementos, gift articles, books, tribal art and personalised postal stamps, Honey, Chawanprash including other things at ‘Post Shoppe’, Mobile phones (Penta), solar lanterns with LED bulbs and Gangajal are also on sale here, said Bipin Sinha Marketing Executive.

The Post Shoppe is aimed at bringing various items of selected utility products on sale under one roof.

“Air Conditions, Air coolers, Ceiling Fans and 20-watt tube lights would be on sale here shortly,” added an official.

Gangajal is available at the rate of Rs10 for 110ml, Rs18 for 230 ml and Rs22 for 330ml, the solar-powered lanterns is available at cost of Rs1,650. One can get their personalised postal stamp by paying only Rs300 for 12 tickets while personalised and non-personalised mementoes are available at Rs432 (on rock) and Rs275 (on tiles), Sinha said.

Bokarites will soon be able to book Air and Railway tickets from the head post office Bokaro to any destination in the country’s railway network as well as any air network. These facilities have been already started at several post offices across the country and Bokaro head post office will soon to equip with this facility, informed an official adding “Indian Railways have tied up with India Post for this initiative.”

In a bid to facilitate people post offices are rolling out several services gradually as it has the largest network across the country and would have a good impact, he said. Passport facilities are also available here, he said.