Central Mail Exchange yearns for facelift

by Carol Aloysius

The Central Mail Exchange (CME) sea and air parcel dispatching section urgently needs a facelift.

A recent visit there to ship a parcel of books to Australia was an eye-opener to the Sunday Observer. We found that the unit, which is one of the most important sections of the new post office down D.R. Wijewardene Mawatha, has no name board, leave alone a sign or arrow indicating to the public that this is where they have to come to post a parcel abroad or receive one from a foreign country.

After making several inquiries, we finally arrived at our elusive destination and were directed to a dimly lit room festooned with cobwebs, several old desks, behind which a number of officers were working. Some of them were having their breakfast at their work stations, as there is no lunch room for the staff, we were told. The few antiquated ceiling fans seemed hardly adequate on a hot day.

The only chairs in the room were those occupied by the staff, forcing customers including disabled persons, to stand in long queues on a busy day. The single toilet is shared by men and women as there is no separate toilet for women.The only redeeming factor was the efficient and friendly service provided by the overworked staff.

"Although we charge the cheapest rates to send a parcel abroad, very little publicity seems to have been given to this fact", a spokesman for the unit said.

Citing an example, he said, whereas they charged Rs. 9,635 to post a 30 kg package to Italy, most private couriers charged much higher rates. "Every parcel is hand-delivered (whether by sea or air) by our agents once it reaches its destination, and we provide express delivery as well", he pointed out. He said people continue to patronise private postal agencies increasingly despite their high charges because they were being advertised. "Some 50 to 100 people visit the counter daily, but there is no shelter for them. On rainy days, not even a vehicle can enter this place as it gets flooded. We have appealed many times to the authorities to remedy these shortcomings, but nothing has happened," he lamented.

"We hope remedial measures will be taken soon as this premier postal building badly needs a facelift". Over to the powers that be.