In 1911, French pilot Henri Pequet flew the world's first official airmail, carrying over 6,500 letters and postcards, during the Kumbh Mela in Allahabad, now Prayagraj. The flight, which covered five miles in 13 minutes, marked a significant milestone in aviation and postal history. The mail included letters to Jawaharlal Nehru and King George V, and special commemorative postcards signed by Pequet are now prized collector's items. The event, which coincided with the Kumbh Mela, highlights the intersection of spiritual and technological advancements in India's history.
Tensions between India and Pakistan are escalating following last week's dastardly terror attack in Pahalgam that claimed 26 lives.
Consumers and businesses can tweet to communications minister Manoj Sinha (@manojsinhabjp) using #DOTSeva, #BSNLSeva, #MTNLSeva, and #PostalSeva.
"Diwali is one of the most important and colourful Indian festivals and is celebrated enthusiastically by Indians all over the world," Pallone said in a statement.
More than 25 crore workers engaged in sectors ranging from banking, insurance, postal to coal mining, highway and construction are expected to go on a nationwide general strike on Wednesday, potentially disrupting services across the country. A forum of 10 central trade unions and their associates has called for a general strike or 'Bharat Bandh' to "oppose the anti-worker, anti-farmer and anti-national pro-corporate policies of the government".
"The holy water of the Sharda Kund at the Sharda Peeth PoK was collected by Tanveer Ahmed and his team. Our civil society member across the LoC (Line of Control) carried it to Islamabad, wherefrom it was sent to his daughter Maghribi in the UK.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath highlighted the successful execution of the Maha Kumbh 2025, emphasizing effective crisis management, economic benefits, and the event's role in national unity and infrastructure development. He cited the swift response to a stampede on January 29 and the extensive preparations that ensured a smooth experience for millions of pilgrims.
Oil to telecom conglomerate Reliance Industries (RIL) has initiated the process to seek shareholders' approval for the appointment of the third generation of the Ambani family on the company's board. The remote voting through postal ballot will start from September 27 onwards. In a separate note, CreditSights said a trust and hold-co model could be a possibility for the anticipated succession at RIL.
Anant Ambani, the youngest son of billionaire Mukesh Ambani and the first among three siblings to be appointed executive director on flagship Reliance Industries, will be paid Rs 10-20 crore salary annually plus a host of perks including a commission on company profits, according to a shareholder notice. While the richest Asian's all three children - twins Akash and Isha, and Anant - were inducted on board of the oil-to-telecom-and-retail conglomerate in 2023 as non-executive directors, the youngest of the three was in April this year appointed executive director of Reliance Industries Ltd.
The final turnout in the Maharashtra assembly polls was 66.05 percent, up from 61.1 percent in 2019, according to the Election Commission. The polling percentage for the Nanded Lok Sabha bypoll was 67.81 percent. The increase, excluding postal ballots, highlighted the EC's efforts to engage a broader electorate, the statement added. Kolhapur led with 76.63 per cent, followed by 75.26 per cent in Gadchiroli, while the lowest was in Mumbai island city at 52.07 per cent and 55.95 per cent in the metropolis' suburban district. More than 68,000 citizens aged over 85 and 12,000 individuals with disabilities cast their votes through home voting.
Encouraged by the response, UAE postal service has re-launched its parcel service to India, which guarantees delivery to the destination within two weeks and more value-added features complemented by attractive prizes in weekly draws.
A nationwide strike called by trade unions to protest against the central government's labor policies had a mixed impact across India. While normal life remained largely unaffected in most parts of the country, some sectors like banking, transport, and insurance experienced disruptions. Sporadic incidents of violence were reported in West Bengal.
To share your Father's Day story (Father's Day will be celebrated on Sunday, June 16), just mail us at getahead@rediff.co.in (subject: Father's Day) along with your name, the place where you live, your father's name and picture and your message about him.
State-run postal service Indiapost is planning to extend its online instant money order (iMO) service application, developed by Chennai-based Ramco Systems, to its 26,000-strong post office network across the country.
Amazon will invest more than Rs 2,000 crore (about $233 million) in India in 2025 as it strengthens its logistics and safety standards, said the ecommerce company on Thursday.
While amending the rules on the suggestions of the Election Commission, the ministry also allowed "COVID-19 suspected or affected persons" to use the postal ballot facility.
It will escalate costs, mandate regulator to check malpractices, set standards.
'Any earnings, regardless of location, will be subject to Indian income tax.'
>The Indian Army still uses old British-era names and recruits soldiers based on caste or region, which hurts national unity, argues Colonel K Thammayya Udupa (retd).
The bus service was first started in February 1999 but suspended after the 2001 Parliament attack. It was restarted in July 2003.
Mumbai's first Mahila Dak Ghar, a post office entirely operated by women staff, was inaugurated in Mumbai on Friday.
The Ukrposhta, the Ukrainian Postal Service, released a postal stamp to commemorate the resistance of the Ukrainian soldier to surrender and the war cry 'Russian warship, go f*** yourself' that resonated on the Snake Island's Ukrainian military outpost on the Black Sea during the first day of the Russian invasion.
Canadian cyclist Michael Barry, a former teammate of Lance Armstrong's, said on Wednesday he was pressured to take performance-enhancing drugs for the U.S. Postal Service Team.
Terming Naxals the biggest human rights violators, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday said security forces have been carrying out 'offensive operations' instead of defensive against the insurgents and have achieved big successes in recent times.
Post Office has 1,54,000 rural branches.
The year-long celebrations to mark 150 years of India's postal system start on October 4.
Disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong has asked a US judge to decide a more than $100 million lawsuit against him by the federal government without holding a jury trial.
Indian Postal Services and the Western Union plan to expand their joint operations aiming at a bigger slice of the hundreds of thousands dollars that are transferred by Indian diaspora to their loved ones every year.
India has the largest postal network in the world with over 1, 55,015 post offices.
The department has a network of more than 150,000 post offices across the country.
The government will amend the more than 100-year-old Indian Postal Act to bring courier services within its ambit, Minister of State for Communications and IT Shakeel Ahmad said in Lok Sabha.
The department of posts will start a service to distribute campaign material for companies and revamp its VPP service, to tap the high volume business segment.
Former cycling champion Lance Armstrong on Thursday agreed to pay $5 million to settle a federal suit claiming he defrauded his sponsor, the U.S. Postal Service, by using performance-enhancing drugs, his attorney and federal officials said.
Mukesh Ambani's Jio Financial Services (JFS) is set to seek shareholders' approval for its leasing subsidiary to acquire telecom equipment and devices worth Rs 36,000 crore ($4.33 billion) from Reliance Retail. Jio Leasing Services Limited (JLSL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of JFS, plans to enter the device leasing business, and the equipment will be deployed in broadband wireless connectivity and other services.
Moving beyond selling application forms, the Department of Posts has started offering a complete package to agencies and companies for their recruitment process.
After years of waiting, the stamp was released on Wednesday, October 5.
Lance Armstrong and his team ran the most sophisticated doping programme in sport according to the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USDA) which released its report on the case against the US Postal cycling team on Wednesday.
Five influential American lawmakers have introduced a resolution in the House of Representatives calling on the US Postal Service to issue a postal stamp to commemorate the festival of Diwali.
