Remote villages lacking post office services will be given monetary incentive to set up a basic postal facility under a newly introduced government programme called the Panchayat Sanchar Sewa Yojana.
Under the scheme, in area under each panchayat, a committee will identify an educated, unemployed youth to undertake postal functions of collection and delivery. For this, each panchayat will be paid Rs 300 per month. In addition to this amount, the agent will receive a commission on various postal savings activities.
The scheme, announced by Union communications minister Sukh Ram on December 22, 1994, will be coupled with an earlier one that was aimed at setting up public call offices in areas under each panchayat by the telecommunications department. The agent selected for postal work will also operate the PCO, so that both postal and telecommunication facilities in a panchayat area are available from a single window. Operating the PCO will also enhance the postal agent's income.
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