Sinnakallipatti villagers in Tamil Nadu pool Rs 7 lakh to build post office
COIMBATORE: Heeding to the appeal made by staff, residents of Sinnakallipatti near Sirumugai pooled around Rs 7 lakh and constructed a building to house the branch post office in the village. The building was inaugurated by the village head on Sunday.
Branch Post Master SV Senthuraa told TNIE, "When I joined the post office in March 2021, the building was in a dilapidated condition and many post accounts were inactive. To educate people about various postal services including postal accounts, I along with assistant branch post master G Sindhu Barkavi conducted an awareness campaign in Sinnakallipatti village and its surrounding villages of Nadhegoundenpudur, Kallakarai and Karuppagoundenpudur.
We also informed people about the poor condition of the post office and requested them to build one. As a result, around 250 new accounts have been created and the residents decided to construct a new building."
"The people also helped us to shift the post office to a temporary building in the village without rent. The village head coordinated the people and they constructed a new building for the post office," she added.
The village head, R Suresh, who coordinated the people, told TNIE, "Our village is located on the border of Coimbatore and Erode districts and if the department decided to shift the office to another place, it will affect the villagers. So, we conducted a meeting with the people and explained the situation of the post office, following which people pooled around Rs 7 lakh and constructed the new building. We completed the building within six months. Besides, we have also ensured water in the facility. "
A top officer from the postal department told TNIE, "Most of the branch post offices in rural areas are working in rental spaces and post-masters have to give the rent amount from their own pockets. Constructing a new building for a branch post office is a central government policy decision."