Telegram services in India shuts down on July 14

[x720]

SMS offers no guarantee of delivery!SMS offers no guarantee of delivery!

 

[genie]

Exactly. Use SMS for message delivery and existing postmen for delivery to receiver!

ePost service is already being provided at negligible cost to user
http://indiapost.nic.in/
[color=rgb(0,0,0);font-family:MyCustomFont;]Through ePOST, customers can send their messages to any address in India with a combination of electronic transmission and physical delivery through a network of more than 1,55,000 Post Offices. ePOST sends messages as a soft copy through internet and at the destination it will be delivered to the addressee in the form of hard copy. ePOST costs just Rs. 10 per page of A4 size.[/color]

 

[Sushubh]

BBC posted this image. I wonder if these are still being used for telegrams

 

[ulysses]

I have used Telegrams a lot . Even recently a year back ,I have sent Telegrams to mostly Govt departments To postpone personal hearings /meetings on pending application/revision petition/adjudication matters. Replying to Govt departments like Income tax, sales tax,Customs & Excise & all kind of Courts etc , Telegrams are a must in addition to Registered Post.

 

[Sushubh]

Based on news reports, the very last telegram was sent to Rahul Gandhi. Hopefully it was a plea to relaunch the service.

 

[mhsabir]

Well, if there are some protests/pleas and if they relaunch in the next few days then it is fine, but if they drag on beyond a few months and then think of restarting then it might be a bigger mistake as by then people might have started adopting alternative faster options.

 

[Sushubh]

Remains to be seen if the government bodies are prepared for this eventuality.

 

[mhsabir]

http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/Kolkata/Telegram-makes-a-quiet-exit/Article1-1092206.aspx

“We charge Rs. 28.10 for the first 30 words. Thereafter, R1 for each subsequent word. Telegrams containing death news are subsidised and cost just Rs. 7. But for us we have to spend at least R80 to send the message. No wonder why we had to bid goodbye to the service,” added Chakroborty.

Well, I am wondering why they are not able to bring down the cost to under Rs.80. I seriously wonder whether they considered adopting alternative techniques which are cheaper.

 

[Sushubh]

It's hilarious that I can send a complete letter for what less than Rs. 5? And they cannot transmit a few words to another part of the country for a few rupees. Rest is handled by the postman himself right?

 

[mhsabir]

Yes. But cannot compare a letter as it is a much slower process and cost is cut down by numbers. But I wonder what is stopping (stopped) them from using cheaper alternatives to transmit message such as phone/email. Does that cost them Rs.80 per telegram?