BENGALURU: The launch of The Evening Post Office (TEPO) as a separate unit inside the premises of the Museum Road Post Office generated much interest among the public. Six months down the line, it has not received much patronage and is generating meagre revenue for the postal department. This has resulted in the shelving of plans to introduce more TEPOs across the city and state.
During a visit to TEPO last Wednesday night, the duo manning the office, postal assistant Vinay C S and Manjunath, who goes by the designation of ‘multi-task staffer’, were the only ones inside this tastefully decorated office. A postman dropped in from the Railway Mail Service to pick up mail bags. TEPO is open to the public from 1 pm to 8.30 pm.
Chief Postmaster General, Karnataka Circle, S Rajendra Kumar told TNIE, “The data for the last six months reveals a total of 3,026 transactions, which works out to an average of 20 transactions per day. The revenue generated per month is around Rs 50,000.”
Conceding that the revenue was not high, the CPMG said they plan to sell more (postal-related) items at TEPO to draw crowds. “We will be selling rakhis as well as special rakhi envelopes here for the upcoming Raksha Bandhan. This is one of the plans we have in mind to boost footfall here. We also plan to utilise social media to create awareness,” the CPMG said.
Asked about the initial plan to open up more such TEPOs in Karnataka, Prasad said, “The footfall seen here is not very encouraging. Moreover, we have extended transaction hours for the public at our post offices in the State. So, there is no need as of now to open separate evening post offices.”
Vinay, who mans the counter, says, “The few visitors who drop in are delighted that such a service functions till late night. I think most people are not aware of its existence and more publicity is required.”