BENGALURU: In a move aimed at enhancing the efficiency of the delivery process by the postal department, the Karnataka Postal Circle plans to open 32 Integrated Delivery Centres across the state by July 1.
This will benefit the public as the department aims to increase the number of doorstep deliveries to two, from the single delivery done at present.
Karnataka has 58 head post offices and 1,741 sub post offices. All head post offices and about 50 per cent of sub post offices deliver letters and parcels.
Chief Postmaster General, Karnataka Circle, S Rajendra Kumar told TNIE, “A total of 16 of 32 centres we plan to launch by July 1, will be in Bengaluru. Post offices delivering letters have unique pin codes, with bigger cities having multiple pin codes, and 4 or 5 pin codes will be serviced from a single facility.”
Apart from efficiencies of scale, this system would negate the effect of incorrect pin code use by the public, he explained.
This is part of a nationwide attempt to streamline and improve the delivery process, the CPMG said. “All the beats at these centres would be mechanised. Automation will be introduced. Major e-commerce providers have staff to carry out multiple deliveries per day to a location. Initially, we are looking at increasing the number of daily deliveries to two, from the single delivery done now by our delivery staff,” he added.
These integrated centres would come up inside existing big post offices where there is space, and would be billed ‘Brownfield centres’. “GPO, Basavanagudi, JP Nagar, Chamarajpet and Peenya Post are among the offices selected.
We also have small post offices or land in places like Doddanekkundi and Chandra Layout, which we will transform into such centres,” Kumar said. Additionally, creating Greenfield centres (fully new) will happen later, he added. These centres are aimed at facilitating the department face growing competition from private courier services as well as e-commerce firms which operate during holidays and Sundays too.