Haflong post office and (above) letters and parcels awaiting despatch at the post office. Telegraph pictures

Haflong, Oct. 10: The mega block for broad gauge conversion of the 201km Silchar-Lumding stretch, which began on October 1, has severely affected postal services in Assam’s Dima Hasao district.

Haflong post office, the head post office of the district, has asked customers to send their mail/consignments through other modes as they are unsure about their delivery schedule.

Kenneth Daimari, postmaster of Haflong post office, told The Telegraph that functioning of post offices in the district has been hampered after suspension of train services from October 1.

Postal staff said hundreds of letters and parcels are received and dispatched daily from here.

“We are facing a huge problem as mail used to arrive by train earlier. We used to receive and despatch the mails and consignments daily. But after the suspension of services we have received these today, after 10 days. These were brought by road from the divisional office in Silchar. We will also despatch the stock today but I am not sure about the next arrival or despatch. Only the Silchar divisional office is aware of that,” Daimari said. According to him, the delayed arrival is not only confined to the Haflong post office but all the seven sub-post offices and 61 branch offices in the district.

Biswajit Swammi, a Haflong-based businessman, said, “I was in urgent need to send a letter by Speedpost. But I can’t depend on the post office, as they are not aware when they will send my letter. Therefore, I will have to send it through some other mode. It is a matter of great concern. What will happen to the students and youths waiting for their call letters or important intimations? If the situation in Haflong, the district headquarters, is worrying, imagine what will happen in the remote areas.”

While post offices are facing issues related to delivery, private courier services operating in the district are functioning as usual as they operate their services by road. But post offices are solely dependent on train services.

A Haflong-based senior citizen, Prasanta Sadhan Choudhury, said, “The railways had claimed there would be no problem during the mega block. But where is the arrangement? A letter took 10 days to reach its destination, a distance of only 105km from Silchar to Haflong by road.” The distance by train is over 111km.