India Post to organise philatelic exhibition to honour Gandhi

India Post is set to organise a two-day philatelic exhibition here beginning on Wednesday to celebrate the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, an official said on Monday. The exhibition, named 'Gandhi Pex-2019', will be held on November 20 and 21 and is being organised to promote philately in the Union Territory, Director, Postal Services, Jammu and Kashmir Circle, Gaurav Srivastava told reporters here.

It is also aimed at connecting with the public especially the younger generation and school students, he said. While the main focus will be the display of stamps issued by the Department of Posts on Gandhi, there will be around 15,000 rare stamps on display carrying many interesting topics including Harry Potter, Princess Diana, Hollywood, railways, environment, fauna of Kashmir, defence services, animal kingdom, beautiful birds and other exciting themes, Srivastava said.

"These stamps are the treasures that one should not miss out on. Two special covers and a set of 10 picture postcards on Gandhi will be released by Jammu and Kashmir Circle which will be the highlight of the exhibition," the official said. The director said a workshop on philately will be held for students on both the days which will guide them on the art of stamp collecting, what and how to collect and how to arrange and display stamps.

"There will also be a replica of a post office which will display the different services including a new one introduced by J&K Postal Service," he added. Srivastava also informed that letter writing competitions and special cover design contests on the theme 'Save Environment' will be held on both the days for school students.

The three best letters and special cover designs will be awarded prizes, he said. A quiz contest will also be held on general knowledge and current affairs for school students including one round on postal services.

Each school will be allowed to send one team comprising two members to participate in the quiz. The winner will get the chief postmaster general's trophy and an award, Srivastava said. The 'My Stamp' facility will be available on both days of the exhibition to let people get personalised stamps with their photographs on it, he said.

The postal services director said it is a great opportunity for the people of Jammu to see rare and memorable stamps of India released on Mahatma Gandhi.

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