CHITRAL: The post offices in Chitral have been facing shortage of staff as the non-local employees have been transferred to their homes districts of Dir, Swat, Shangla and Buner after their appointment against vacant posts here.

A source in the department told Dawn that in none of the 13 post offices across the district, including the general post office in the city, sanctioned posts were filled. He said that Class-IV employees were officiating as postmasters in four post offices in the district. Postmaster is a post of BPS-11.

He said that 75 branch post offices in Chitral were established in shops or homes of the locals, who were paid an honorarium of Rs2,000 per month. However, they have not been paid the amount for the last 18 months.

Requesting anonymity, the source said that those branch post offices were the veins and arteries of Pakistan Post in the rural areas like Chitral and their closure would inflict a heavy loss on the organisation.

Citing reason for the shortage of regular staff in the post offices, he said that during the PDM government, about a dozen posts were advertised in post offices out of which only three local candidates were selected and in the rest of them non-locals were selected.

“Soon after taking charge and resuming their duties, they managed to get themselves transferred or adjusted in their home districts, leaving the posts vacant here again,” he said.

He added that post offices in Chitral would continue to suffer till the next process of general recruitment.

Published in Dawn, March 29th, 2024