E-credit shortcut: Order online, pay at post office

Booking a railway or an airline ticket on the net is hassle-free. Ordering goods on the net is also easy. But what’s often a discouragi...

Booking a railway or an airline ticket on the net is hassle-free. Ordering goods on the net is also easy. But what’s often a discouraging factor for many is the requirement to feed in the 16-digit credit card number during transactions.

India Post is gearing up to launch a software which would enable online payments and purchases even in the remotest corner of the country by using its network of 1,54,000 lakh post offices. All one has to do is place an online order and make payments at the nearby post office.

The Mysore-based software development centre of the department is developing an online payment gateway, e-Paypost, which will be integrated with various service providers to facilitate payments on the web. ‘‘Customers can book a ticket on the net or make a purchase on the virtual gallery and make payments at the nearest post office within 24 hours. The goods would reach them, as in a normal online purchase,’’ says a senior official.

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Sources said the department was considering such an online payment gateway but the process was expedited due to the railway department’s request. ‘‘The need of a credit card number proved to be the main problem in online booking or e-commerce. A request was made to us for a solution which could encourage customers to opt for online bookings without divulging credit card details,’’ said the officer.

Using the ‘‘reliability’’ USP, the department is developing the software which would allow bookings online against which a number will be generated. The customer can visit the nearest post office and make the payment using this number as a reference.

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