What is Pin Code MH-1718?

April 8, 2024

India set up its first post office in Antarctica’s Dakshin Gangotri in 1984. Within a year, more than 10,000 letters and mail had been posted and ‘cancelled’ at the post office. In 1988-89, Dakshin Gangotri submerged in ice and was subsequently decommissioned. Another branch was set up at Maitri research station in Antarctica on January 26, 1990.

Postal Operations and Philately

Letters meant for the post office in Antarctica are sent to the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR) in Goa, the nodal agency for India’s polar expeditions.
A researcher carries the consignment of letters during scientific expeditions to the continent.
At the research base, the letters are ‘cancelled’ with the stamp impression “Maitri North Goa,” which has become a renowned “collector’s item” among philatelists and hobbyists.
The term ‘cancellation’ pertains to the mark placed on a stamp or postal stationery to render it useless for reuse, denoting the location and date of the originating post office.

New Pin Code: MH-1718

Nearly 40 years later, the Department of Posts is opening a second branch of the post office and assigning a new pin code MH-1718.
The code currently allocated is “experimental,” as is customary when a new branch commences operations.

Strategic Importance

The post office serves a strategic purpose in asserting India’s presence on the continent, as Antarctica’s governance falls under the Antarctic Treaty, which neutralizes territorial claims by nations, bans military operations and nuclear tests, and advocates for the continent’s use exclusively for scientific discovery.

Additional Facts

India has two permanent research bases in Antarctica: Maitri, established in 1989, and Bharati, established in 2012.
The Antarctic Treaty, signed in 1959 and enacted in 1961, sets aside Antarctica as a scientific preserve and bans military activity on the continent.
India has been conducting scientific research in Antarctica since 1981 and has been a consultative member of the Antarctic Treaty since 1983.
The Indian Antarctic Program is managed by the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), an autonomous institute under the Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India.

« Previous Post Next Post »