How Stamps of India came into existence
• In India, the postal communication was started by Emperor Chandragupta Maurya who initiated it to deliver confidential reports to distant places. • Indian Stamps came to light only on 21st November 1947, depicting the Indian Flag.
• History narrates a tale that tells us that Ala-uddin-Khilji of the Delhi Sultanate started the horse and foot runner service called the Harakuras. • The postage stamp system was first established by Great Britain, followed by other countries, including India. • Stamps in India came into being during the British period and evolved much after that.
• The Penny Black stamps were issued in Britain and after that India too issued a half-anna stamp in 1852. • Within no time, Stamps of India were leading as they had different variations of stamps with them. • Indian Stamps were issued with the word “official” or “sarkari” or “service” overstamped on them.
• When it comes to postal trivia, Mahatma Gandhi is the only person to be featured on rare stamps of India. • On the first anniversary of India’s independence, the postal department of India issued a set of four stamps that nowadays fall under the rare Indian stamps category.
• As far as knowledge goes, India is the only country that has a camel post service in the state of Rajasthan. • India has the largest postal network in the world with 1,53,454 post offices, and 5,62,000 letter boxes serving 6,04,341 towns, cities and villages in the country!