Union
Communications and IT Minister Kapil Sibal, who also holds the charge of
Department of Posts, has now turned his focus on expanding the scope of India
Post to take on the growing challenge from private courier business and
diversify into banking.
“We
have started the process of formulating the National Postal Policy with a
two-pronged approach — to develop services that assist, facilitate, enhance and
quicken the process of development aimed at inclusive growth, and reposition
India Post to make it a self-sufficient, efficient and cost-effective provider
of these services,” Mr. Sibal said at a meeting organised by the Federation of
Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) on Wednesday.
Acknowledging
the challenge being posed by private courier firms to India Post, Mr. Sibal said
the government would soon start registering these entities as under the present
rules and regulations they were not allowed to do business. “This will give
courier service-providers legal recognition…we are suggesting registration, not
licensing. We have no intention of licensing the courier industry and will only
register them to know the size and status of the industry,” he said.
VAST REACH
Minister
of State for Communications and IT Sachin Pilot said: “With over 1.55-lakh post
offices, 95 per cent of which are located in rural areas, we are well placed to
provide all kinds of services to people across India, particularly those living
in villages and remote locations. We are assisting various government
development programmes, while through banking facilities we can assist the
Centre's initiative of providing financial inclusion to every citizen.”
Notably,
the Department of Posts has already applied for a banking licence from the
Reserve Bank of India, while Mr. Sibal has recently written to Finance Minister
Pranab Mukherjee to expedite the matter.
Mr.
Pilot also pointed out that India Post had undertaken a massive drive to
modernise its post offices to offer global standards of service to customers.
“We need to create viable revenue models and adopt latest technologies for
improving service delivery. India Post is gearing up to face future challenges…
we will adopt various measures to transform the Postal Department in tune with
the changing nature of services,” he added.
Source
: thehindu.com dtd
02/02/2012
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