Jun 27, 2011 04:27 PM
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The Speed Post service was started in 1986 by the Postal Department of India to attract customers who had been weaned away by the courier services which had just begun to burgeon at that time. It was meant to be a national and international delivery service that was supposed to perform like a courier service and ensure speedy and efficient service.
Since its inception, the achievements of Speed Post have been a mixed bag. Sometimes deliveries have been very prompt; at other times there have been inordinate delays, and in rare cases, items have been lost or damaged en route*. Many of the failures could have been avoided had some postal employees been more dedicated and if they had been held accountable.
One of the greatest strengths of Speed Post is the immense network that it commands. Almost every village in India, no matter how remote, has its own Post Office, and so delivery is possible to every nook and cranny of the country. This is in sharp contrast to the courier services, whose services are limited to the larger cities. The rising popularity of online shopping and teleshopping could have been a gold mine for Speed Post, but this has not been the case as many online sellers do not trust Speed Post to deliver items to their customers in time. This lack of trust is not unjustified, as the service often fails, and no reimbursement is possible due to the mountains of red tape which protect every government establishment. I once wanted to send a packet to Secunderabad, but the computer at the Post Office could not find the city on its database! Eventually a workaround was arrived at, but it is things like these that put off prospective customers. People also avoid Speed Post because they do not know enough about it. This, in turn, is because the government does not believe in spending money on advertising to tell people about the services it offers. For all these reasons, most rural customers cannot take advantage of online shopping, and the Postal Department misses out on a badly needed shot in the arm.
If the Postal Department would wake up (this is like asking Kumbhakarna to wake up!) and take steps to bring its databases up to date, speedily redress failures and offer a guarantee of timely and safe delivery of items, perhaps more people would consider using Speed Post. Finally, though this is a personal opinion, we Indians should try to help the Postal Department out of the dire straits in which it has landed itself. One way in which this can be done is by trying out Speed Post. Of course, full co-operation by the Postal Department is vital if this is to yield any useful results. It will be a sad day for the nation if the Postal Department becomes defunct.
