46,441 telegrams were booked in Tricity last year

On an average,the telegram office books around 3,500 every month. While employees of pharmaceutical companies largely dominate the telegraphic traffic,the army officials and general public constitute 10% and 5-7% of the total telegram traffic of the tricity. Government officials and advocates send telegrams to register communication on record,as telegrams are accepted as a proof of having conveyed a message officially. “In March and April,we receive Income Tax related information through telegram,” said an official of the telegram office.

“The pharmaceutical employees generally formulate their tour schedules using telegrams,” he added. A total of 46,441 telegrams were booked in the tricity in the last fiscal year i.e. 2012-13,the figures state.

The current rates of telegram stand as Rs 28.10 for the first 30 words and Re 1 per word thereafter. The rates were last revised in April this year as a result of increment in service tax.

Over the years,BSNL made several technical upgrades in the telegraph service,with the latest being the introduction of a web-based messaging system in 2010. But it has not helped in boosting the popularity of telegrams,which declined since the advent of SMS and emails.

“I would rather get my phone recharged with Rs 30 and make a call directly than dispatch a telegram,” said Arjan Walia,a student of UIET,Panjab University.

The steep decline in the usage of telegraphic and financial constraints has forced Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) to wind up its 160-year-old telegraphic services.

The services,which wrap up on July 15 this year,will be remembered mainly as a historically inexpensive but relatively quick method of sending alerts related to births,deaths and emergency situations in the good old times.