Punjab circle of postal dept disburses Rs 562 crore through Aadhaar-enabled payment system

The Punjab circle of the postal department has disbursed Rs 562 crore at the doorsteps of people so far using the Aadhaar-enabled payment system, a senior official said on Monday.

''Especially during Covid, this facility proved to be a boon for the people as they could withdraw money using AePS (Aadhaar-enabled Payment Service). Through Aadhaar-enabled payments, we have so far disbursed Rs 562 crore and more than 25 lakh transactions have been done,'' Postmaster General, Punjab Circle, Manisha Bansal Badal told a news conference here.

She was briefing the media about various postal activities being undertaken during the National Postal Week which began from October 9.

The Punjab postal circle has 13 postal divisions.

On Monday, camps were organised in various schools and colleges to spread awareness about the benefits of savings and insurance among the youth.

Badal said efforts are being made to open 'Sukanya Samriddhi' accounts of all girl children and Public Provident Fund scheme accounts of boys by organising camps in government and private schools.

On October 13, Aadhaar awareness camps will be organised by postal department employees at schools, colleges, residential colonies and government offices to facilitate people for Aadhaar enrolment and updations at their doorstep.

Special focus will be made on mandatory Aadhaar updations of children aged 5 years and 15 years, she said.

Exporters can use the postal channel of exports for sending the commercial parcels out of the country, she said, adding that simplified procedures have been put in place to facilitate exporters.

''In comparison with last year, this time in our circle there has been 68 per cent growth in booking international articles,'' said Badal.

Punjab circle was one of the three circles across India which booked more than 1 lakh international articles, including Rakhis, in July 2022, she said.

She also said that under 'Har Ghar Tiranga' campaign earlier this year, more than 1.8 lakh national flags were sold by the post offices in Punjab circle.

Department of Posts has also started a very innovative service called 'Click and Book' facility.

Customers can register themselves on India Post portal and book their articles online, generate receipts and also get the articles picked up from their doorstep by paying a requisite fee online.

Now the facility of Police Clearance Certificate is also available through nine Post Office Passport Seva Kendras from October 10 onwards.

For expediting delivery of articles within Punjab, 53 dedicated vehicles have been deployed in Punjab circle for carrying mail within the state.

''These vehicles are GPS-enabled and their movement is being monitored online by postal officers at various levels. Due to this initiative, Punjab circle is trying to deliver 100 per cent articles in major cities of Punjab within D+1 (D being the date of booking plus one day),'' she said, while adding this has helped Punjab Postal Circle to add many new corporate customers, industrial houses and educational institutes.

Postman Mobile App (PMA) is being used by staff to give real-time delivery updates.

Even ordinary letters posted in letter boxes are now digitised and monitored through Nanyatha Mobile App, she said.

For better delivery experience, the concept of Nodal Delivery Center for parcel is implemented in Punjab Circle and at present 12 NDCs are functional in major cities with dedicated postman staff on mechanised two- and four-wheelers.

''We are trying to develop post offices as a single stop solution for all kinds of customer centric services. India Post envisions post office as an entity where customer needs and requirements are being met in a single visit,'' she said.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)