The Department of Posts on Tuesday announced that it has begun offering 24-hour and 48-hour delivery guarantees for urgent and time-sensitive consignments, PTI reported.
The department also introduced three new premium services as part of its effort to revamp operations, at a time when it is facing rising competition from private courier companies that promise deliveries within a matter of hours.
Premium services launched
The newly introduced premium services include 24 Speed Post, 24 Speed Post Parcel, and 48 Speed Post.
According to the report, these services will initially be rolled out in six cities—Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Mumbai. The department also plans to expand these offerings across the country by March 2027.
To ensure adherence to delivery timelines, the postal department will use dedicated processing systems and priority air transport. The new services will also include one-time password (OTP)-based delivery verification, along with comprehensive end-to-end tracking supported by real-time messaging alerts, according to an official statement.
Additionally, businesses will be offered features such as “Book Now, Pay Later” (BNPL), centralized billing, and API integration. They will also benefit from free pickup for bulk consignments and a money-back guarantee in case of delayed deliveries.
Pricing for new services
According to a Hindustan Times report, pricing for the 24 Speed Post service, which will be limited to documents, will start at ₹38 for local deliveries weighing up to 50 grams, and will go up to ₹186 for consignments weighing between 251 and 500 grams for distances exceeding 2,000 km.
For Speed Post parcel deliveries, pricing is set at ₹200 for packages weighing up to 500 grams and rises to ₹₹990 for parcels weighing between 4.5 and 5 kg.
In addition, if the department fails to deliver within the specified 24- or 48-hour timeline, customers will be eligible for a refund of their payment.
Scindia inaugurates services
The services were launched by Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia at an event in New Delhi. He said that India Post’s revenue growth remains strong, with a 20% increase recorded during the first 11 months of FY26.
Under the second phase of the rollout, Scindia said that more cities will be added by September.
He added that the introduction of these premium services marks a phase of renewal for India Post and highlights a significant opportunity for growth. According to him, the e-commerce market is expected to expand to ₹30 trillion over the next five years, nearly tripling from its current size of ₹11 trillion.
“Today, parcels account for only 5% of our business. However, it is our shared objective that parcel services must become the primary growth engine of the organization. In the first 11 months of this year (FY26), the parcel segment has grown by over 44%. But we need to accelerate this growth further. There is no reason why we should not emerge as a full-fledged delivery engine,” Scindia said.
Earlier, in October 2025, Scindia had said that the Department of Posts would roll out these premium services in January 2026. Speaking at an event, he had also announced that India Post would introduce eight new products across its mail, parcel, and international segments in 2026. These include next-day delivery for both documents and parcels, last-mile parcel delivery, end-to-end parcel solutions, and enhanced international services with tracking features.
(With inputs from PTI)
