Twelve post offices networked:

Modernisation of Postal Department

By Mohammed NAALIR

The Postal Department has networked 12 post offices under the first phase of its networking project. Beyond its traditional services, the Department is gradually turning into a modern telecommunication service provider.

The State owned Postal Department which was earlier dependent on a few services has expanded its boundaries with the introduction of modern telecommunication technology.

The Postal services Minister Jeewan Kumaratunga officially launched the networking from Piliyandala post office last week, introducing seven types of services, namely registered mail and parcel tracking service, utility-bill payment service, address verification service, e-mail to post and post to e-mail service, mail forwarding service and mail holding services.

The Central Postal Exchange in Colombo, Moratuwa, Mt. Lavinia, Piliyandala, Kalutara, Kurunegala, Anuradhapura, Balangoda, Chilaw, Galle, Badulla and Nittambuwa post offices have been networked. The Postal Department plans to network another 200 post offices in three months and to complete the networking of 645 main post offices by June next year.

Now the Postal Department will be able to provide various services to customers as a result of networking.

Senior Lecturers Faculty of Information and Technology of University of Moratuwa, Visaka Nanayakkara, Chathura de Silva, Shehan, Malaka Walpola, Project Director, Udaya Kasthuri, Software Engineers, Chandana Bandara, Mahesh Shanaka and Lasantha Fernando worked tirelessly to successfully network the post offices.

The Postal Department, on a concept of Minister Jeewan Kumaratunga under the "Mahinda Chinthanaya" national development concept implemented postal networking nearly two years ago. President Mahinda Rajapaksa had allocated Rs. 600 million for this project.

Postal Services Minister Jeewan Kumaratunga while addressing the launch of network at the Piliyandala Post Office described the networking as a turning point in the history of Postal Department.

The Postal Department and people are two inseparable factions. The networking of post offices will help further bridge the gap between the city and the village, the Minister pointed out.

Mail tracking service, Utility-bill payment, demand payment, address verification, E-mail, mail forwarding and mail holding services are available to the networked post offices, Minister Kumaratunga said.

Minister Kumaratunga noted that the Postal Department earlier provided a limited number of services to customers, such as delivery of letters and parcels, sale of stamps and sending money orders. Beyond all these traditional services, now the Postal Department is able to provide various other services to customers as a result of networking.

In addition to these services available in the post offices, the Ministry plans to introduce various other services for the convenience of customers, the Minister said.

Minister Kumaratunga expressed confidence that the Postal Department will turn into a prominent telecommunication service provider in Sri Lanka soon.

"We have the ability to solve all problems prevailing in the Postal Department with the introduction of new software," Minister Kumaratunga said.

Unwanted delays, missing of letters and parcels can be prevented, the Postal Services Minister said.

Minister Kumaratunga recalled that the service provided by the Postal Department even during the conflict period. The Postal Department is the only department which linked the North with the South.

Sri Lanka Post (SLP) has a history over 200 years. It serves the people from city to village. Because of its impartial service it has won a prestigious name among people. During the 1798s five post offices were set up in Colombo, Galle, Mannar, Jaffna and Trincomalee. Captain A Kennedy was the Postmaster General in Sri Lanka during this period.

Sri Lanka Post is the primary communication mode of people in remote villages till then to now. This service must be improved to meet the growing demand which has arisen resulting from globalisation.

Providing a limited number of services is not sufficient to meet the demand of a commercially globalised world.

There are over 22,000 employees in the Postal Department. The Department is running its islandwide service with help of these employees. With a view to provide efficient and effective service to customers, Sri Lanka Post has absorbed the modern telecommunication knowhow. Delivery of letters and parcels, cancellation of stamps and issue of post cards were the services provided by post offices. Passing all traditional services, the SLP has turned into an institution which provides modern services to customers with the help of modern communication technology.

Post offices will be developed with all modern telecommunication facilities. Now various needs of the customers can be fulfilled by the post offices, according to the Postal Services Ministry, sources.

The sources said that there are nearly 645 main post offices, 3,408 sub, 499 agency, 159 rural agency, 58 estate agency post offices throughout the country.

Altogether the Postal Department plans to provide 18 types of services including the recently introduced services.

The Postal Services Ministry said that working project of post offices were started two years before. With the absorption of modern telecommunication technology the Postal Department is turning into a giant in the telecommunication market.

The Postal Services Ministry said that the Government, semi-Government institutions and business institutions will benefit. The introduction of such services at the post offices will end the monopoly of private sector in the telecommunication market.

The sources pointed out that for the past few decades the postal service of this country has lagged behind due to the introduction of modern technology in communication sector. The Government has laid a strong foundation to rebuild the postal service with the assistance of the Treasury. The only productive means to develop the postal service is to penetrate other markets expanding the area without depending on a few services.

The Postal Department plans to introduce various other services such as mail logistics, virtual fax service, regional service, philatelic service, prepaid account, scangram, video calling service and postal shopping service via post offices.

The mail and logistic service will be highly reliable. In case of any losses or damages were caused to the corporate customer, he will be offered another package of bulk mails. Virtual fax service will be more profitable to business institutions which receive a nominal number of fax messages each month. It will minimise the cost of maintaining a separate fax line. A business institution or a customer willing to obtain this service must register with the Department of Post (DOP). The DOP will then provide a fax number.

The SLP will introduce e-Money order system shortly. Even though money order is the key income source of SLP it is outdated. The demand payment will allow customers to make payments to entities, who accept payments for various tasks through money orders in existing system.

Regional service: as the SLP is close to public, it has a capacity of providing many innovative services. Potential areas of service are, booking of hotels and guest houses and medical booking, e-ticketing for buses and trains, e-auctioning service, mail marketing, application processing, acceptance services and classified advertisements.

These services will be available online.

Philatelic service: many services can be provided to stamp collectors. First day covers, old and new stamps, different types of stamp albums, stamp handling equipment and other items of interest to philatelic collectors can be displayed in the website.

Philatelic service will provide the facility to maintain the innovatory of all stamps and philatelic items with valuable information.

Prepaid account will be a good alternative for credit cards. Prepaid account is a very simple concept. The rural community will have some difficulties in getting credit cards. Any customer can create own prepaid account by visiting the nearest post office. The account can be used for any transaction at anytime.

Mail forwarding will be most important to people who live in rented or leased houses and shift from place to place frequently. Under this concept SLP will deliver all mail correspondence to new addresses.

Scangram will be most effective when compared to telegram service. The scangram will eliminate all problems prevailing in telegram system. The customer who is willing to send a telegram will have to fill in the form and write the telegram message on the form. This will be scanned and sent to the relevant post office to be delivered to the customer.

Address verification: proof address is a must for many post paid services. In several cases the customers face difficulty of providing newly dated bank statements.

The SL Post will provide an online address verification. Once registered, the organisation can log into the system and get the address verified. Individuals as well as corporate organisations will benefit.

The customer need not provide billing proof, instead he must submit the verifying address.

Telephone, mobile phone, electricity, water supply, TV broadcasting, Internet service, and other regular payments like insurance premiums, institute fees, fines and membership fees can be paid via online at post offices.

email to postal and postal to email is more useful to the families of those who work abroad, where the families might not have Internet email facilities. The messages will be delivered very fast and confidently. The user need to have a prepaid account to enjoy this service.