Telecom benefits to NE, postal department to modernize

NEW DELHI: The Government has said that a number of telephone exchanges will be set up in the North Eastern states during 2000-01. By March 2001, 50 exchanges will be set up in Assam, nine in Meghalaya, seven each in Arunachal Pradesh and Tripura and six each in Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland and Sikkim. The new exchanges will come up at Bhatpara, Dumnichowki, Chamuapara, Pathorighat, Hatigarh and Dimakushi at a total cost of around Rs.1.8 crore. The government is already in the process of implementing the exchanges. The transmission media for these exchanges have been planned and are under procurement.

Meanwhile, in yet another major development to facilitate communication at the all-India level, the Committee for Excellence in Postal Services, which was set up in 1988 to review the working of the postal system, has come out with a number of recommendations. These include: computerization of counter functions for providing a single window for all transactions; use of satellite-based technology for transmission of money orders; and automating the mail processing system in major metropolitan cities.

The Postal Department has already installed a total of 6,257 computer-based multi-purpose counter machines until March 31, 2000. These machines are estimated to account for annual transactions of about Rs 12 crore. The network of 77 VSATs, which has enabled money order transactions of Rs 1.25 crore annually, will be expanded further by installing an additional 62 high-speed VSATs. Automatic mail processing centers that have been established in Mumbai and Chennai process 12 lakh letters per day. The Government plans to set up more such centers in Calcutta and Delhi by the end of the Ninth Five-Year Plan.