Q How is the Postal Department coping up with the unprecedented rush to deliver the EPIC cards and other poll related material?
A The Telangana Postal Circle, with an extensive network of 6269 post offices, catering to a population of approximately 4.01 crore is ensuring that the entire voter base of Telangana, comprising roughly 3.06 crore citizens, cast their votes. In the GHMC limits alone, where approximately 74 Lakhs voters are concentrated, nearly 120 post offices are dedicated to ensuring the timely delivery of EPIC cards and facilitating the booking of ETPBs.
Q How is the department handling the rural outreach?
A With over 91% of the post offices strategically located in rural areas a dedicated team of 17,015 staff members are on the job covering an average area of 18.05 sq km and catering to 5,636 individuals per post office, showcasing our unparalleled reach.
Q How many EPIC cards and other related material has been handled by the post offices so far?
A So far 32,54,266 EPIC cards have been booked through post offices, with nearly 11 lakh EPIC cards booked since September this year. Our delivery percentage stands at 80%. This speaks volumes about the meticulous planning and execution by the Telangana Postal Circle. Arrangements are made by the Postal Department for liaison with the District Level Election officers to meet the huge surge in the booking of EPIC cards and ensuring planning for the delivery of the ETPBs and Postal Ballots.
Q Has the department pioneered any technology to improve its efficiency in handling the huge volumes?
A One of the striking innovations introduced is the round-the-clock booking of EPIC cards. Extra manpower has been deployed to ensure 100% prompt and timely delivery. The introduction of DARPAN 2.0 in 5441 rural branch post offices, equipped with 5G-enabled smartphones, has revolutionized the process. Branch postmasters now promptly capture delivery data, further enhancing efficiency. To further streamline operations, the ‘Bring Your Own Device’ concept has been introduced, encouraging staff to use their smartphones for precise capture of delivery data.
Q Can you elaborate the steps to ensure secure parcel handling by the staff?
A The EPIC cards booked are transmitted to two National Sorting Hubs in Hyderabad and Warangal and five Intra Circle Hubs located in Karimnagar, Khammam, Mancherial, Nalgonda and Nizamabad within 24 Hours of their receipt. The Postman Mobile Application is being used by the delivery staff to ensure instant pre-delivery alerts and capturing GPS coordinates of the delivery location. Proper care is also being taken to handle the returned articles carefully which is happening due to non-availability of the voter in the address mentioned in the EPIC card.
Q How is the department coordinating with the Election authorities?
A Special arrangements have been made at 119 post offices in 33 districts for timely delivery of postal ballots to the concerned Returning Officers on daily basis. Close coordination is being maintained between Postal and ECI officials at Central, State, district and constituency levels and both are working together to serve the voters.
I must thank the Election Commission which has provided us data of EPIC cards in soft copy for easy booking, extending invaluable support for cash conveyance for payment of Aasara pensions in the State. I should say the Postal department is the silent hero in this electoral saga.
