Dear Comrades,
If you have just shifted to Bangalore to set up residence and are at
sea over how to apply for gas and telephone connections, a lesser-known
service of the postal department might just come to your rescue.
With little publicity, the Indian Postal Department has been issuing
photo identification which can act as address proof and is a relevant
document to apply for gas and telephone connections.
The process is quite simple. “All you need to do is get a form from the post office nearest to your residence. The application will cost Rs10 with Re1 as service charges,” explained Deputy Chief Post Master, TR Shankar.
A
postman will visit your residence for verification and cross-check with
your landlord and neighbours to ensure your identity as a resident
there. In due course, an ID card will be issued to you, for which you
have to submit your photograph along with a payment of Rs240.
“The
whole process can take anywhere between two weeks to a month.
Thereafter, an identity card will be given with your name, photograph
and your residential address printed on it,” Shankar said.
Postal
IDs are to facilitate and connect with the post office-related concerns.
“This is for those who come from other cities and need to make some
transactions with the post offices. But now, some of the banks have also
started to accept it. Some gas agencies also accept them now,” said AK
Hanjura, Chief Post Master, GPO, Bangalore.
The process was
initially started for people who had no identity proof but were making
postal transactions like money orders or postal insurance etc. It comes
under clause 63 of Post Office Guide which states that these IDs could
be given for the benefit of tourists, travelling representatives of
firms and other members of public who experience difficulty in
establishing their identity in connection with postal transactions.
But these have now been extended to avail telephone and gas connections, too.
The
identity card is valid up to three years from the date of issue. “If
you lose your card, you have to come and make a declaration at the same
post office and also pay the prescribed fees,” said Shankar.
Although
not many know about the postal department’s ID cards, the department
officials say they have not publicised about this service properly. “But
we have had this service for many years. But due to poor publicity, the
service is not popular,” said an official of the department, adding
that this is most helpful for those who shift residences often.
DNA India