More Females Opting To Work As Postwomen

In this age of internet, the postal department may not be doing as brisk a business as it used to. But a set of women are trying their best to revive the lost charm of postal service. Yes, there is a growing trend of females opting to work as postwomen in Coimbatore.

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All we know is that these women are passionate about bringing back the age-old system and are choosing to work as postwomen instead of taking up other jobs. However, don't think delivering letters is their last resort to make a living. Some of the many women who have chosen this profession are S Thilakavathy, who after her MCom, was selected for the post of police sub-inspector; M Kokilavani, an engineering student who was offered a lecturer's post at a private college; and N Sasikala, a BEd holder who could have bagged a teacher's post. But all of them chose to become postwomen instead -- just driven by the passion and satisfaction of delivering letters. "It can never match anything," they said, as reported by TOI.

Coimbatore has also recorded highest recruitment of women for the service. "In my region, we have seen a huge rise in woman taking up this job. And they handle their jobs with as much proficiency as men," said Sharda Sampath, postmaster general for the western region.

In the western region alone, the postman-postwoman ration is 4:1. From 100 postwomen in 2014, the number has increased to 135 in 2016.

Though it's not an easy job, these women always have a smile on their faces and do their work. 

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Surprisingly, of the 11 postmen in R S Puram, 7 are women. Andal Srinivasan, postmaster of R S Puram branch, said, "While this was considered a man's job earlier, a growing number of woman now aspire for the job."

Being women workers in a men-dominated job, people do raise questions. That doesn’t stop the postwomen. In fact, they are very happy with their job. "Even now, we continue to draw surprised looks and many ask us if we are really postwoman," said M Mallika, a postwoman.

"The job gives us a lot of satisfaction and there is hardly any work pressure. There are some hardships, but we work together as a team and enjoy it," said S Vennila, another postwoman.

When asked about the challenges they face, Premlatha, a postwoman, said, "For everything else, we have help. But uniform is our concern. We are not comfortable in saree. Our union has represented it to the government and we are hopeful that salwar suit will be provided to us soon."

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Those of you who would like to take up the profession, could be recruited only after clearing the exams conducted annually.

Truly, there is nothing that women can’t do. Hats off to these ladies and their enthusiasm!

Feature Image Credit: Respectwomen.co.in

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