Lok Sabha Question No. 260 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-12-12
Subject: Post Offices in Rural Areas
Ministry: COMMUNICATIONS
Asked by: JAYSHREEBEN  PATEL

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT OF POSTS

## LOK  SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 260 TO BE ANSWERED ON 12 th   DECEMBER, 2018

## POST OFFICES IN RURAL AREAS

- †260. SHRIMATI JAYSHREEBEN PATEL:

Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state:

- (a) the number of post offices in the country at present along with the number of post offices located in villages and cities out of the same;
- (b) the State-wise number of post offices set up in villages, tehsil and at district level during the last three years;
- (c) the total budget allocated for the said purpose during the last three years;
- (d) the population based international norm for providing facility of post office and the rank held by India in this regard;
- (e) the details of facilities provided to public at post offices; and
- (f) the number of digitized post offices in the country along with the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE (IC) OF THE MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS & MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS (SHRI MANOJ SINHA)

- (a) Madam, the number of post offices in the country as on 31/03/2018, State and UT-wise in villages and cities, is at Annexure-I.
- (b) The State-wise number of post offices set up in villages, tehsils and at district level under the Scheme 'Rural Business & Access to Postal Network' during the years 2015-16, 2016-17 and 2017-18 is at Annexure-II.
- (c) The budget allocated for these post offices during the last three years is at Annexure-III.
- (d) The Government is not aware of any established population based international norms for providing facility of post office.
- (e) An indicative list of various types of public facilities (products/services) available in the post offices is at Annexure-IV.
- (f) 1,28,767 Branch Post Offices and 25,585 departmental post offices have been digitized/ computerized in the country as on 06.12.2018. The details of the same are at Annexure-V and Annexure-VI respectively.

| ANNEXURE-I   | ANNEXURE-I                | ANNEXURE-I                                                       | ANNEXURE-I                                  | ANNEXURE-I               |
|--------------|---------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------|--------------------------|
| S.No.        | Name of the States/UTs    | (as on 31-03-2018) No. of Post Offices in villages (Rural Areas) | No. of Post Offices in cities (Urban Areas) | Total No of Post Offices |
| 1            | Andhra Pradesh            | 9,707                                                            | 783                                         | 10,490                   |
| 2            | Assam                     | 3,631                                                            | 381                                         | 4,012                    |
| 3            | Bihar                     | 8,625                                                            | 459                                         | 9,084                    |
| 4            | Chhattisgarh              | 2,898                                                            | 289                                         | 3,187                    |
| 5            | Delhi (NCT)               | 83                                                               | 471                                         | 554                      |
| 6            | Gujarat                   | 8,116                                                            | 776                                         | 8,892                    |
| 7            | Dadra& Nagar Haveli       | 37                                                               | 1                                           | 38                       |
| 8            | Daman & Diu               | 14                                                               | 4                                           | 18                       |
| 9            | Haryana                   | 2,318                                                            | 375                                         | 2,693                    |
| 10           | Himachal Pradesh          | 2,661                                                            | 131                                         | 2,792                    |
| 11           | Jammu & Kashmir           | 1,508                                                            | 191                                         | 1,699                    |
| 12           | Jharkhand                 | 3,190                                                            | 270                                         | 3,460                    |
| 13           | Karnataka                 | 8,624                                                            | 1,039                                       | 9,663                    |
| 14           | Kerala                    | 4,177                                                            | 877                                         | 5,054                    |
| 15           | Lakshadweep               | 4                                                                | 6                                           | 10                       |
| 16           | Madhya Pradesh            | 7,473                                                            | 807                                         | 8,280                    |
| 17           | Maharashtra               | 11,381                                                           | 1,233                                       | 12,614                   |
| 18           | Goa                       | 203                                                              | 53                                          | 256                      |
| 19           | Arunachal Pradesh         | 273                                                              | 29                                          | 302                      |
| 20           | Manipur                   | 644                                                              | 57                                          | 701                      |
| 21           | Meghalaya                 | 465                                                              | 26                                          | 491                      |
| 22           | Mizoram                   | 349                                                              | 35                                          | 384                      |
| 23           | Nagaland                  | 302                                                              | 28                                          | 330                      |
| 24           | Tripura                   | 633                                                              | 78                                          | 711                      |
| 25           | Odisha                    | 7,615                                                            | 600                                         | 8,215                    |
| 26           | Punjab                    | 3,408                                                            | 411                                         | 3,819                    |
| 27           | Chandigarh                | 9                                                                | 42                                          | 51                       |
| 28           | Rajasthan                 | 9,679                                                            | 632                                         | 10,311                   |
| 29           | Tamil Nadu                | 10,226                                                           | 1,817                                       | 12,043                   |
| 30           | Puducherry                | 57                                                               | 38                                          | 95                       |
| 31           | Telangana                 | 5,280                                                            | 531                                         | 5,811                    |
| 32           | Uttarakhand               | 2,513                                                            | 210                                         | 2,723                    |
| 33           | Uttar Pradesh             | 15,747                                                           | 1,924                                       | 17,671                   |
| 34           | West Bengal               | 7,658                                                            | 1,110                                       | 8,768                    |
| 35           | Andaman & Nicobar Islands | 85                                                               | 15                                          | 100                      |
| 36           | Sikkim                    | 197                                                              | 12                                          | 209                      |
| Total        | Total                     | 1,39,790                                                         | 15,741                                      | 1,55,531                 |

|                |                                                                                                  |                                                                                                                                          |                                                                                                                              | ANNEXURE-II                                                                                                                  |
|----------------|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Access Sl. No. | to Postal Network' during the last Name of State/UT                                              | three years Number of Branch Post Offices (BOs) and Sub Post Offices (SOs) set up in villages, tehsils and district level during 2015-16 | Number of Branch Post Offices (BOs) and Sub Post Offices (SOs) set up in villages, tehsils and district level during 2016-17 | Number of Branch Post Offices (BOs) and Sub Post Offices (SOs) set up in villages, tehsils and district level during 2017-18 |
| 1              | Andhra Pradesh                                                                                   | 6                                                                                                                                        | 8                                                                                                                            | 15                                                                                                                           |
| 2              | Assam                                                                                            | 7                                                                                                                                        | 0                                                                                                                            | 3                                                                                                                            |
| 3              | Bihar                                                                                            | 16                                                                                                                                       | 9                                                                                                                            | 10                                                                                                                           |
| 4              | Chhattisgarh                                                                                     | 13                                                                                                                                       | 9                                                                                                                            | 27                                                                                                                           |
| 5              | Delhi NCT                                                                                        | 4                                                                                                                                        | 2                                                                                                                            | 1                                                                                                                            |
| 6              | Gujarat (including UTs of Dadra & Nagar Haveli & Daman Diu)                                      | 6                                                                                                                                        | 6                                                                                                                            | 28                                                                                                                           |
| 7              | Haryana                                                                                          | 10                                                                                                                                       | 8                                                                                                                            | 7                                                                                                                            |
| 8              | Himachal Pradesh                                                                                 | 3                                                                                                                                        | 3                                                                                                                            | 6                                                                                                                            |
| 9              | Jammu & Kashmir                                                                                  | 3                                                                                                                                        | 2                                                                                                                            | 2                                                                                                                            |
| 10             | Jharkhand                                                                                        | 10                                                                                                                                       | 11                                                                                                                           | 28                                                                                                                           |
| 11             | Karnataka                                                                                        | 5                                                                                                                                        | 9                                                                                                                            | 7                                                                                                                            |
| 12             | Kerala(including UT of Lakshadweep)                                                              | 4                                                                                                                                        | 2                                                                                                                            | 1                                                                                                                            |
| 13             | Madhya Pradesh                                                                                   | 6                                                                                                                                        | 8                                                                                                                            | 11                                                                                                                           |
| 14             | Maharashtra(Including Goa State)                                                                 | 10                                                                                                                                       | 10                                                                                                                           | 21                                                                                                                           |
| 15             | North East (including Meghalaya, Manipur, Tripura, Nagaland, Mizoram & Arunachal Pradesh States) | 14                                                                                                                                       | 8                                                                                                                            | 2                                                                                                                            |
| 16             | Odisha                                                                                           | 10                                                                                                                                       | 11                                                                                                                           | 13                                                                                                                           |
| 17             | Punjab(including UT of Chandigarh)                                                               | 2                                                                                                                                        | 7                                                                                                                            | 9                                                                                                                            |
| 18             | Rajasthan                                                                                        | 10                                                                                                                                       | 7                                                                                                                            | 16                                                                                                                           |
| 19             | Tamil Nadu(including UT of Puducherry)                                                           | 12                                                                                                                                       | 8                                                                                                                            | 9                                                                                                                            |
| 20             | Telangana                                                                                        | 4                                                                                                                                        | 5                                                                                                                            | 14                                                                                                                           |
| 21             | Uttarakhand                                                                                      | 4                                                                                                                                        | 4                                                                                                                            | 5                                                                                                                            |
| 22             | Uttar Pradesh                                                                                    | 6                                                                                                                                        | 11                                                                                                                           | 16                                                                                                                           |
| 23             | West Bengal(including UT of Andaman & Nicobar Islands and Sikkim State)                          | 3                                                                                                                                        | 5                                                                                                                            | 9                                                                                                                            |
| Total          | Total                                                                                            | 168                                                                                                                                      | 153                                                                                                                          | 260                                                                                                                          |

## ANNEXURE III

The  budget  allocated  for  opening  of  Branch  Post  Offices  (BOs)  and  Sub  Post Offices  (SOs)  during  the  last  three  financial  years  i.e.  2015-16,  2016-17  and 2017-18:

| Sub Scheme                                |   Budget allocated during 2015-16 (Rs. in Crores) |   Budget allocated during 2016-17 (Rs. in Crores) |   Budget allocated during 2017-18 (Rs. in Crores) |
|-------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------|
| Rural Business & Access to Postal Network |                                              1.62 |                                                 1 |                                              3.16 |

## ANNEXURE- IV

## AN INDICATIVE LIST OF VARIOUS FACILITIES (PRODUCTS/SERVICES) AVAILABLE IN POST OFFICES

## 1.         Traditional Mail:

-  Post card
-  Inland letter card
-  Book post
-  Envelopes
-  Business Reply Service
-  Parcels
-  Add on features -  Registration, cash on delivery, VPP & Insurance

## 2.         Premium Products:

-  Speed Post
-  Business Post
-  Express Parcel Post
-  Logistic Post

## 3.         E-enabled services:

-  e-Post
-  E-Bill Post

## 4.         Money Transfer:

-  Electronic Money Order (eMO)
-  Instant Money Order (iMO)
-  International Money Transfer

## 5.         Financial Services:

-  Post Office Savings Bank Accounts - on CBS Platform - Saving Bank, Recurring  Deposit,  Time  Deposit,  Monthly  Income  Scheme,  Senior Citizen Savings Scheme, PPF, NSC, KVP, Sukanya Samriddhi yojana.
-  ATM Cards

## 6.         Life Insurance:

-  Postal Life Insurance - for urban /semi urban areas
-  Rural Postal Life Insurance - for rural areas

## 7.         Retail Services:

-  Bill collection
-  Data collection / Survey
-  Forms of Universities, etc.
-  Payment of wages to beneficiaries of MGNREGS, Payment of Social Security Pension, Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana yojana etc.
-  Booking of Railway Tickets (service available in selected post offices)
-  Post office Passport Seva (service available in selected post offices)
-  Aadhaar  Enrolment  and  Updation(service  available  in  selected  post offices)
-  Employment Registration (available in Head Post Offices)

## Annexure-IV

## Annexure-V

| Postal circle-wise number of Branch Post Offices rolled out under Digital Advancement of Rural Post offices for a New India (DARPAN) as on 06.12.2018   | Postal circle-wise number of Branch Post Offices rolled out under Digital Advancement of Rural Post offices for a New India (DARPAN) as on 06.12.2018   | Postal circle-wise number of Branch Post Offices rolled out under Digital Advancement of Rural Post offices for a New India (DARPAN) as on 06.12.2018   |
|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Sl. No.                                                                                                                                                 | Postal Circle (State/UT)                                                                                                                                | No. of Branch Post Offices Rolled out                                                                                                                   |
| 1                                                                                                                                                       | Andhra Pradesh                                                                                                                                          | 8,887                                                                                                                                                   |
| 2                                                                                                                                                       | Assam                                                                                                                                                   | 3,385                                                                                                                                                   |
| 3                                                                                                                                                       | Bihar                                                                                                                                                   | 7,913                                                                                                                                                   |
| 4                                                                                                                                                       | Chhattisgarh                                                                                                                                            | 2,775                                                                                                                                                   |
| 5                                                                                                                                                       | Delhi NCT                                                                                                                                               | 88                                                                                                                                                      |
| 6                                                                                                                                                       | Gujarat (including UTs of Dadra & Nagar Haveli & Daman Diu)                                                                                             | 7,641                                                                                                                                                   |
| 7                                                                                                                                                       | Haryana                                                                                                                                                 | 2,183                                                                                                                                                   |
| 8                                                                                                                                                       | Himachal Pradesh                                                                                                                                        | 2,315                                                                                                                                                   |
| 9                                                                                                                                                       | Jammu & Kashmir                                                                                                                                         | 1,303                                                                                                                                                   |
| 10                                                                                                                                                      | Jharkhand                                                                                                                                               | 2,647                                                                                                                                                   |
| 11                                                                                                                                                      | Karnataka                                                                                                                                               | 7,938                                                                                                                                                   |
| 12                                                                                                                                                      | Kerala (including UT of Lakshadweep)                                                                                                                    | 3,555                                                                                                                                                   |
| 13                                                                                                                                                      | Madhya Pradesh                                                                                                                                          | 7,259                                                                                                                                                   |
| 14                                                                                                                                                      | Maharashtra (Including Goa State)                                                                                                                       | 10,644                                                                                                                                                  |
| 15                                                                                                                                                      | North East (including Meghalaya, Manipur, Tripura, Nagaland, Mizoram & Arunachal Pradesh States)                                                        | 2,340                                                                                                                                                   |
| 16                                                                                                                                                      | Odisha                                                                                                                                                  | 6,951                                                                                                                                                   |
| 17                                                                                                                                                      | Punjab (including UT of Chandigarh)                                                                                                                     | 3,096                                                                                                                                                   |
| 18                                                                                                                                                      | Rajasthan                                                                                                                                               | 8,977                                                                                                                                                   |
| 19                                                                                                                                                      | Tamil Nadu (including UT of Puducherry)                                                                                                                 | 9,264                                                                                                                                                   |
| 20                                                                                                                                                      | Telangana                                                                                                                                               | 4,968                                                                                                                                                   |
| 21                                                                                                                                                      | Uttar Pradesh                                                                                                                                           | 15,104                                                                                                                                                  |
| 22                                                                                                                                                      | Uttarakhand                                                                                                                                             | 2,316                                                                                                                                                   |
| 23                                                                                                                                                      | West Bengal (including UT of Andaman & Nicobar Islands and Sikkim State)                                                                                | 7,218                                                                                                                                                   |
| TOTAL                                                                                                                                                   | TOTAL                                                                                                                                                   | 1,28,767                                                                                                                                                |

## ANNEXURE-VI

## Postal Circle-wise number of Departmental Post Offices (Head Post offices and Sub-Post offices) Computerized as on 06.12.2018

| Sl.No.   | Postal Circle (State/UT)                                                                                | No. of Post Offices Computerized   |
|----------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------|
| 1        | Andhra Pradesh                                                                                          | 1,594                              |
| 2        | Assam                                                                                                   | 625                                |
| 3        | Bihar                                                                                                   | 1,058                              |
| 4        | Chhattisgarh                                                                                            | 349                                |
| 5        | Delhi NCT                                                                                               | 407                                |
| 6        | Gujarat (including UTs of Dadra & Nagar Haveli& Daman Diu)                                              | 1,341                              |
| 7        | Haryana                                                                                                 | 504                                |
| 8        | Himachal Pradesh                                                                                        | 469                                |
| 9        | Jammu & Kashmir                                                                                         | 266                                |
| 10       | Jharkhand                                                                                               | 463                                |
| 11       | Karnataka                                                                                               | 1,717                              |
| 12       | Kerala (including UT of Lakshadweep)                                                                    | 1,507                              |
| 13       | Madhya Pradesh                                                                                          | 1,021                              |
| 14       | Maharashtra (Including Goa State)                                                                       | 2,216                              |
| 15       | North East Region (including Meghalaya, Manipur, Tripura, Nagaland, Mizoram & Arunachal Pradesh States) | 340                                |
| 16       | Odisha                                                                                                  | 1,204                              |
| 17       | Punjab (including UT of Chandigarh)                                                                     | 768                                |
| 18       | Rajasthan                                                                                               | 1,335                              |
| 19       | Tamil Nadu (including UT of Puducherry)                                                                 | 2,834                              |
| 20       | Telangana                                                                                               | 852                                |
| 21       | Uttar Pradesh                                                                                           | 2,554                              |
| 22       | Uttarakhand                                                                                             | 393                                |
| 23       | West Bengal (including UT of Andaman & Nicobar Islands and Sikkim State)                                | 1,768                              |
| Total    | Total                                                                                                   | 25,585                             |

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