Customs section does not have any scanners; the biggest and busiest post office in the Capital lacks in even basic facilities; infrastructure also in a bad condition

STAFF REPORT

ISLAMABAD: The General Post Office  located in the Capital Territory speaks volumes for the apathy of the high ups as the GPO lacks in even basic facilities. A survey conducted by this scribe revealed that most of the staff do not even have chairs to sit on.

And the chairs available are in an extremely dilapidated condition. The staff consequently has to discharge its duties throughout the day and by sitting on the edge of the chair.

So much so, the Customs section located in the backyard of the main building does not have a scanner to scan items meant for onward transportation to various countries.

Due to non-availability of scanners, the shippers and even the staff deputed for scanning of the goods, had to wait for hours in case of heavy shipments. The manual scanning always takes a heavy toll on the staff and the shippers as well.

Mahmood, a customer who was present in the Customs section during the survey, said that he came this morning to ship off his goods to his relatives in a foreign country. The staff checked all his items contained in the box one by one, which took hours.

He further said you need to have one full day at your disposal in case you want to get clearance from Customs department due to rush and want of staff. He however was all praise for the staff scanning the items adding they tried their best to facilitate customers within the shortest possible time.

Since international bookings are done through the internet therefore this is yet another ordeal the customers have to undergo. Most of the time the internet is not working or the connection is extremely slow thus taking more time in disposing of cases for international booking.

Another customer who came to the GPO to get some information about driving license fee, told the government and especially the Communication Minister Murad Saeed claimed to have revolutionized the Post Offices, however the situation on ground was absolutely different.

People still had to stand in long queues simply because there were not enough counters and staff. If that is the situation in the GPO, which is located right in the heart of the Capital, then what would be the situation in the rest of the country, he questioned.=DNA

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