Era of postman gone: another view
THIS is apropos of Parvez Rahim’s letter ‘Era of postman gone?’ (Dec 19). The writer says that with the advent of technological advancement the era of postman has passed into oblivion.
This is not true. Why has the writer assumed that the entire population of Pakistan has access to e-mailing\SMS, etc? If we take illiteracy and poverty percentage of Pakistanis, probably only five per cent people may be blessed with the luxury of a PC, laptop, mobile phone, etc.
Post offices and postmen still play a vital role in the lives of the people of Pakistan. Agreed that the influx of courier services and easy money, etc., has offered various options to people, but it is expensive and an unaffordable choice.
In a country where per capita income is less than two dollars a day, such luxuries are unthinkable. Postal service is by far the cheapest and it reaches the farthest corner of the country. In the mountainous region of Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan people anxiously wait for postmen who deliver either their mails or money order.
People still tip them to win their goodwill. The beauty of the postal system is that it carries sizable package at a considerable low cost. Even in most advanced country like the US every home has its post-box where postmen efficiently deliver the mail for the affluent and the poor alike.
In the recent past the US government floated a feeler that it was doing away with post offices at cities and towns where the income generated by the post offices could not meet the expenses incurred.
There was an instant uproar that they would never allow their traditional post offices to be closed or dismantled. They cited the example that why the administration is bailing out Amtrack by paying it a billion dollars every year just to keep it rolling.
In England, when authorities tried to remove the typical red-coloured telephone booths in some of the counties, the people stood firm and said ‘our town is incomplete without the landmark of telephone booths’.
The readers will agree that unless poverty and illiteracy are completely wiped out from the country, the concept of post office and postmen cannot be erased from the minds of the people.
Lastly, letters and messages written by one’s own hand carry a special fragrance, be it written by a quill or a fountain pen.
SAFIR A. SIDDIQUI
Karachi
Even if poverty and illiteracy are eradicated, the role and importance of post office and postman could never be eliminated.
I agree with you but their days are numbered. Who wants to write a letter, post a stamp on it, drop in the mailbox and then wait for the mailman to pick it up –etc etc. When we used to get a money order from overseas the mailman expected a tip and a cup of warm tea. Those were the good old days. The internet has ruined it.
I have the sweet memories of our post-office and letter carriers. My relative addressed a letter to me ” KC, AC Tandojam”, it was delivered to me. My mother never went to school. The postman delivered our mail and he read it to us and he wrote letters for us. We had trust in our postal workers. Once while we used to offer him lunch. When I was in college, I used to receive money orders hand delivered in my dorm. Please note that the money order forms were also filled either by post man or post master. I dropped my USAID application for scholarship in Hyderabad railway postal coach. It was delivered in Islamabad right on time. Once I received a letter from Pakistan address to me “My Name, Univ of Hawaii, USA”. I received it because our post office may have sent it to the destination. These are the sweet memories just a few I presented here. You never feel the personal touch or relation with any other electronic media. I appreciate the service of postal workers no matter where they serve. Our post offices and postal workers are not replaceable with any other media.
The era of postman is not gone in the USA yet. I wonder how it is considered over in any other country.
AoA! Pak postal service is the BEST in the world
lol
wake up Imran wake up…. you are still in your dreams…