‘Post offices have become multi-functional, hi-tech ’

VARANASI : The postal department was not only delivering letters and money orders, but also providing various other services, all under one roof, said Postmaster General, Varanasi region, Krishna Kumar Yadav on Thursday.

Addressing the mega mela of postal services organised by Varanasi (East) Postal Division at Sarnath, Yadav said facilities like savings, insurance, Aadhaar, passport, common service centre, India Post Payments Bank, Kashi Vishwanath Prasad and sale of Gangajal were available in post offices.

Yadav said that even today, post office savings schemes were popular and people were making safe investments in them since generations. So far 28.70 lakh savings accounts, 5.21 lakh IPPB accounts and 2.55 lakh Sukanya Samriddhi accounts had been opened in Varanasi region till now. As many as 686 villages had been made Sampoorna Sukanya Samridhi Gram. Underlining the leading role of the postal department as a valuable tool for the safe future of girls and women empowerment, he said that for their bright future, they need to be strengthened financially and socially from now on. To make it, ‘Sukanya Samridhi Yojana’ launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi under ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’ was playing an important role.

Yadav said postmen and Gramin Dak Sevaks were working as mobile banks through India Post Payments Bank. Now no one needed to go to the bank or ATM to withdraw the DBT amount in their bank accounts or amount lying in their bank accounts. All beneficiaries or bank account holders could withdraw money from their Aadhar-linked bank account through a postman. The benefit of Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana could also be availed through a postman. Aadhaar was necessary to take advantage of various schemes of the government, so now the mobile number linked to Aadhaar could also be updated through the postman.

Senior superintendent of post office, Varanasi East Division, Rajan said that the Department of Posts was trying to make people aware of various postal schemes. More than 2,000 post office savings bank accounts and ‘ Sukanya Samriddhi accounts of 500 girls were opened during the Daak Mela.

A maximum of Rs 1.5 lakh can be deposited in a financial year in the Sukanya Samriddhi account.

Up to 50% of the deposited amount can also be withdrawn after the girl child attains the age of 18 years or has passed class 10.

The maturity period of the account is 21 years from the date of account opening. However, it can be closed at the time of marriage after the girl child attains the age of 18 years.