Project to print stamps expedited

by Chanuka Mannapperuma

The Postal and Telecommunication Sector, has taken all measures to ensure that there would be no stamp shortage this year. The sale of stamps is the major revenue to the sector and the government will take steps to expedite the project to print stamps in Sri Lanka in the near future.

A project to meet the demand will be launched by the Postal and Telecommunication Ministry. The Ministry has planned to launch the project due to the shortage of stamps last year.

The Ministry spokesman said,the Government Press would supply only 16,850,000 stamps per year although the requirement is around 345 million. "We should have a stock of at least 1,470 lakhs of stamps which is sufficient for six months," the spokesman said.

The stamps are printed in Madras by Security Printers, one of the seven best printers in the world. "Already we have ordered 206 million stamps which will be sufficient up to September this year."

The Postal sector gets 86 percent of the profit (Rs. 2,000 million) per year from stamps. The public needs 125,000,000 stamps in the following denominations of the Rs. 5, 5,000,000 of Rs. 3, 50,000,000 of Rs. 10, 40,000,000 of Rs. 20, 5,000,000 of Rs. 100 and 1,000,000 of Rs. 500 per year, statistics revealed.