'Aam aadmi': Now, postman to deliver mangoes

This season, your postman will deliver mangoes at the doorstep!

In a first-of-its-kind initiative in the country, the postal department will venture into the business of distributing perishable items.

The trial run is all set to take off in Bengaluru. Postmen across the city will deliver farm fresh mangoes to your doorstep. This is being done in association with the Karnataka State Mango Development Board and Marketing Corporation.

Representatives of the board had met Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy on Tuesday and sought approval for the same. The Department of Posts consented to the proposal that the board had submitted to them and the pilot run is set to take off this week.

Charles Lobo, chief post master general, GPO, said, “We have a separate team working on it. We are also setting up a warehouse where the mangoes can be stocked and distributed.”

For orders as minimal as three kilos, the postmen of the respective areas will do the doorstep delivery while the bigger consignments will be delivered by vehicles that are already catering to e-commerce websites.

Special packaging instructions have been given to farmers to ensure that the fruits are packed well in cartons which have no punch holes like in the usual cases where the product is distributed.

“The mangoes have to be ripe to sustain a transit time of 6-7 days. However, arrangements will be made for delivery within one or two days,” an official communication by the postal department reads.

The Mango Development Board has launched a website which hosts the details of farmers and the varieties of mangoes cultivated. It also has details about the location where they are grown. Customers can place their orders online.

C G Nagaraju, managing director, Mango Development Board, said that previously the board had orders from 96 customers, most of which have been cleared. “We had challenges finding the postal code and address. Having thought about the possible solutions, we approached the GPO and they consented. We have on board 15 farmers who are certified to have good agricultural practices. This is being done on a trial basis here and will be expanded across the state,” he said.

Farmers are expected to deliver mangoes to the warehouse before dawn from where the dispatch will happen. Packaging, ensuring the address is mentioned and the liberty of fixing prices have been given to the farmers.

Orders can be placed on karsirimangoes.karnataka.gov.in. A minimum of three kilos must be ordered online.