Amidst the public grumblings over frequent mail delivery failure, Ukhrul Sub-Post Master (SPM) Md Muhamad Khan has expressed helplessness over the continuing practice of hoarding mail items by postal staffers.
The postal officer told media persons during an interaction at his office on Thursday, he is aware of the inconveniences faced by our customers due to failure in mail delivery. He said he has been asking his postal staffers to deliver mails to the addressees. “But I’m helpless when they are not willing,” Khan said.
Town residents have complained the local postmen have often failed in their duties in delivering various postal items including speed post, registered letters and ordinary letters including bank cheque books to the address of the customers.
As one customer related, he had to collect his bank cheque books sent by UBI bank from the sub-post office after 5/6 months since the postman concerned had failed to deliver the mail containing the cheque books.
He said he could collect it only after he managed to obtain the tracking number from the bank on the advice of others.
It is learnt that every time he enquired at the counter, he was asked to provide the tracking number which he had no idea where to collect earlier. “But the fact is the postman had hoarded the mail without delivering for such a long period,” he said, adding the mail had all the details of the address.
According to Postal Assistant, Monish, postal workers should deliver all items of mail/parcel weighing less than 5 kg to the addressees under their respective beats.
“Only for those items weighing above 5 kg, postmen will ring up the customers and inform them to collect the items from the office by themselves,” he said.
Responding to a query, Md Muhamad Khan said that frequent failure in delivery has little to do with staff shortage, which currently pertains only to non-provision of an additional postal assistant.
“The existing strength of postmen is sufficient to carry out door to door delivery of mails, if only they are willing to,” he continued.
He informed under the sub post office, there are four departmental staffers including SPM and PA, two multi task staffers, five contractual postmen under Gram Sadak Seva (GSS) and a booking helper as extra departmental assistant (EDA).
“Our major requirement at present is provision of the additional PA and other workforce including postmen as departmental staff,” the postal officer said.
Meanwhile, a large pile up of postal packages could be seen dotting the floor of the office chamber. The packages which are yet to be dealt with, were said to have just arrived.
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