Bhubaneswar, July 21: A trip to Varanasi or Allahabad is no longer necessary for you to get a bottle of Gangajal, water from the Ganga river considered sacred and a must for every Hindu household during religious ceremonies. A visit to the post office is enough.

A Centre-sponsored scheme ensures that bottles of the sacred water are found for sale at post offices.

Sources said the postal department was procuring the sacred water from two sources - one packed at Rishikesh and the other at Gangotri.

The water is being packaged in two types of bottles - with a capacity of 200ml and 500ml respectively.

The price of the bottles of water depends on the sources these are drawn from.

A 200ml bottle procured from Risikesh can be bought for as little as Rs 15, while the same from Gangotri is priced at Rs 25.

A 500ml bottle from Risikesh is priced at Rs 22, and the same from Gangotri is being sold at Rs 35. When asked about the variation in prices, an official said it was mainly because of transportation costs as well as the water's cleanliness.

"To begin with, Ganga water is being sold at all the head post offices of the 30 districts across the state. In Bhubaneswar, it will be sold at the head post office adjacent to the postmaster general's office. In later phases, all the regional post offices will start selling the sacred water based on the demands," said an official of the postal department.

Saheed Nagar resident Hemant Padhi, a retired government employee, said: "This is a welcome effort by the postal department. I remember we used to keep the water in big jars and use very little amounts when needed. Now, we can have as much as we want. The price is quite reasonable."

Another official of the department said they had already procured the water and sent 10 samples each to all the head offices across the state. "We are getting reports of high demand for the water. The samples we had sent are already sold, and we are now in process of sending more to these places," said the official.

Bheemtangi resident Amulya Nahak said the postal department should extend the service to the rural areas, as there would be heavy demand in those areas.

"The rural populace is more religious minded than its urban counterparts. This initiative will prove to be a hit in the rural parts of the state," said Nahak.