Telegram As a Museum Piece

Amid a bewildering deluge of smartphone messenger apps and other high tech text messaging services came the news that the state-owned BSNL has decided to mothball its Telegram service from July 15. It will be the last state-owned telegram service in the world to be shuttered.

The public reaction ranged from nostalgia (for those on the wrong side of 40), to a dismissive 'by-the-way-what-is-a-telegram?' shrug by the Instagram generation.

Telecom and IT minister Kapil Sibal sounded triumphal when he  declared that the country will bid the telegram a 'warm farewell' on July 15 and "the last telegram sent should be a museum piece".

The number of telegrams sent in a day in the country had come down to 5,000 from more than 60 million in 1985 and hence not even remotely viable.

In the pre-fax and -STD phone days telegrams played a major role in Government administration, banks and other commercial establishments.

At a personal level telegrams were seen by people as carriers of bad news. They were opened with anxiety, trepidation and prayer. In fact the receivers would often try to size up the expression of the telegram bearer to gauge whether the tidings were happy or sad. Laconic messages such as 'father serious, start immediately', 'grandpa no more' (in this SMS era even this may look too verbose) or news of birth, job posting, wedding wishes - evoked a range of emotions.

In India telegram services were thrown open to public in 1855 and in most Indian languages it came to be known as vernacular equivalent of the word 'wire' - for instance in Hindi it was called taar. By 1856 itself 4,000 plus miles got 'wired', thanks to the foresight of our colonial masters. The telegraph service came in handy for the East India Company and later the British Empire in quick mobilisation of troops to take part in wars or crush rebellions. A beginning was made at the 1857 revolt itself.

In its 150 plus years journey the telegraph system too changed with the times and underwent many technological metamorphosis. It graduated from Morse code to teleprinters and later to world wide web, but since the 1990s it has been a downhill ride. The advent of internet and later mobile phones made telegrams look primitive.

However, in its zeal to bid a 'warm farewell' the government seems to have overlooked some of the problems that may arise in winding up such a long standing service and has not put any alternative systems in place.

First of all the miniscule number of people who still use telegrams have not been provided with any alternative. Many of them may be residing in places which has little internet or mobile phone penetration. They may be illiterate or technologically challenged nor have the wherewithal to own a mobile phone or a computer.

Unlike e-mails or text messages telegrams enjoy legal sanctity and courts accept it as documentary proof. Courts extensively use telegrams for functions such as sending a notice or court order, informing the family of a person who has been arrested and the like. Without telegrams courts and legal fraternity may find it difficult to carry out such vital functions. It is really strange that the policy makers overlooked this important aspect.

Armed forces personnel posted in far flung border areas too have to depend on telegrams to contact their camps while on leave. In case they need to extend their leave telegram is the best option as phone calls are not accepted and letters take time. Without telegrams they even run the risk of facing disciplinary action.

Also Read: Bangalore Beat