The Hindu Editorial Analysis- 22nd January 2024 | Current Affairs & Hindu Analysis: Daily, Weekly & Monthly - UPSC PDF Download

Post Office Act, its unbridled powers of interception

Why in News?

On December 24, 2023, the President of India gave assent to the Post Office Bill, 2023 which will replace the colonial-era Indian Post Office Act, 1898, as and when a notification to this effect is issued by the central government.

Key provisions and changes introduced by the bill

• Repealing the Indian Post Office Act, 1898: The Post Office Bill, 2023, seeks to replace the outdated Indian Post Office Act of 1898 and addresses various aspects of the functioning of India Post.
• Exclusive Privileges of the Central Government: Unlike the previous Act, which granted the central government exclusive privileges in establishing posts and conveying letters, the new bill does not contain such privileges. However, it does specify that the Post Office will retain the exclusive privilege of issuing postage stamps.
• Services to be prescribed: While the old Act specified the services provided by the Post Office, such as delivering postal articles and money orders, the new bill allows the central government to prescribe the services to be offered by the Post Office.
• Powers to Intercept Shipments: The bill introduces new grounds for intercepting shipments transmitted through the post, including security of the state, friendly relations with foreign states, public order, emergency, public safety, and contravention of the provisions of the Bill or any other law. An officer empowered by the central government may carry out an interception.
• Director General’s Regulations: The Director General of Postal Services, as provided in both the old Act and the new bill, may make regulations regarding various activities necessary for providing postal services. This includes specifying charges, supply, and sale of postage stamps and postal stationery.
• Examination of Shipments: The bill removes the powers of examination of shipments by Post Office officers. Instead, it allows the central government to empower an officer of the Post Office to deliver the shipment to customs authorities or other specified authorities for handling.
• Removal of Offenses and Penalties: Unlike the old Act, which specified various offences and penalties, the new bill does not provide for many offences or consequences. However, it does state that amounts not paid or neglected by a user will be recoverable as arrears of land revenue.
• Exemptions from Liability: Both the old Act and the new bill maintain provisions that exempt the government and officers from liability related to the loss, misdelivery, delay, or damage to a postal article. The bill allows the Post Office to prescribe liability regarding its services instead of the central government.

What changes?

• Flexibility in Pricing and Service Regulation:
  • The new bill grants the postal department the flexibility to determine the prices of its services.
  • This flexibility is seen as crucial in a highly competitive industry, enabling the postal department to respond quickly to market demands.
  • It also allows the department to adapt to changing economic conditions while offering a variety of citizen-centric services.
• Enhanced Security Measures:
  • The bill empowers the central government to take action in cases where the security of the state, friendly relations with foreign states, public order, emergencies, public safety, or contraventions of the law are at stake.
  • Specifically, any item in the course of transmission by the Post Office can be intercepted, opened, or detained under these circumstances.
  • This provision is seen as a response to modern challenges, including the smuggling and unlawful transmission of drugs and contraband goods through postal parcels.
• Generic Provisions for Intercepting Items:
  • Unlike the existing Act (1898), which specifically mentioned intercepting postal articles containing explosive dangerous, filthy, noxious or deleterious substances, the new bill contains more generic language.
  • This change is intended to address a broader range of potential security threats and criminal activities involving postal parcels.
• Limited Jurisdiction over Courier Firms:
  • The bill’s provisions for intercepting, opening, or detaining items in the course of postal transmission are applicable to the Post Office. However, there is no similar legislation mentioned for courier firms.
  • Given that India Post holds less than 15% of the market share in the courier/express/parcels (CEP) industry, the bill’s effectiveness in intercepting items for national security and public service reasons has limitations.
• Potential Inclusion of Medium and Small Courier Players:
  • The bill could have been strengthened by including provisions for medium and small courier operators to register with a designated authority.
  • Such provisions would have given the bill more control over the movement of contraband goods in parcels, even in the courier industry.

Futuristic Postal Delivery

• The new Bill introduces standards for addressing items, address identifiers, and postcodes.
• These standards may enable the use of digital codes based on geo-spatial coordinates instead of traditional physical addresses.
• Benefits include improved sorting efficiency and accurate delivery of mail and parcels.
• The adoption of digital addressing could potentially facilitate parcel deliveries by drones, similar to experiments in some other countries.
• The transition to these futuristic concepts is acknowledged to be a gradual process.

Removal of Exclusive Privilege

• A significant aspect of the Bill is the removal of a provision from the 1898 Act that granted the central government exclusive privileges in postal services.
• These privileges included conveying letters by post and performing related services.
• The provision had lost its relevance with the emergence of courier services in India since the 1980s.
• The absence of a clear definition of letter versus document in the Act and subsequent rules had led to legal ambiguity.
• The removal of this exclusive privilege is viewed as a positive step, aligning the legal framework with the changing communication landscape.
• The importance of traditional written personal communication through letters has decreased significantly with the mobile revolution.
• The removal of this provision is seen as a recognition of this reality.

Conclusion

• The new Post Office Bill (2023) represents a vital step toward modernizing India’s postal services to align with contemporary needs. It eliminates the outdated provision of exclusive privileges, adapting to the realities of the digital age and ensuring that India’s postal sector remains relevant and accessible to all citizens.