Rajendra Prasad, who got training at XLRI, on duty at Doranda head post office. Picture by Manik Bose

Ranchi, July 25: Post office employees are learning soft skills at XLRI to provide “world-class service”.

Forty India Post employees were selected for a three-day service upgrade programme at XLRI in Jamshedpur. They are from four selected post offices of Doranda (Ranchi), Jamshedpur, Hazaribagh and Madhupur.

“We certainly feel a change in our attitude towards work and customers after our training at XLRI,” said S.P. Singh, postal assistant superintendent of Ramgarh, who had undergone the training programme.

The training syllabus includes pleasant behaviour, positive body language and dedication to work and respect for the customers — the ingredients required to facilitate “world-class service”.

“We have a plan to train all the employees of the Jharkhand circle at XLRI on fine skills of conducting business,” said Anil Kumar, the director (postal services) of Jharkhand circle.

Another 25 postal employees would soon be joining XLRI for their training, Kumar added.

The training programme of postal personnel at XLRI has been taken up as a pre- requisite to the ambitious plan of providing “world- class service”.

The department has sought the expertise of the top business school after the Union government recently decided to upgrade all post offices to facilitate “world-class service”.

The service upgrade programme would be done in two phases. The first phase, which would be for 600 post offices across the country, includes 35 post offices in Jharkhand.

The project has already taken off in four post offices in the state.

The department won’t set the criteria for providing “world-class service”. It would rather go by the norms set by the universal postal union, a body even older than the United Nations, said Kumar.

Being one of the oldest departments of the government of India, there are 1.65 lakh post offices in the country, of which 3,200 are in Jharkhand.

Elaborating on the plan, Kumar said the post offices would ensure smart customer care and better infrastructure and technology.

All the post offices would be given similar “look and feel”.

The employees would be directed to treat each customer as “important”, he added.

India Post would ensure speed posts reach their destinations on stipulated time under the new plan, he said.