Buying new Indian issues from India Post

New Indian stamps cost exactly their face value — but only while India Post still has them. Most commemoratives are printed once, sold for a few months and then gone from the counters for good, after which the only way to buy one is from a dealer, at a dealer’s price.

If you collect modern India, the cheapest and most reliable way to build a complete collection is to buy each issue as it comes out. India Post offers several ways to do that.

The philatelic bureaus and counters

India Post runs philatelic bureaus at major head post offices and general post offices, and many other post offices have a philatelic counter. These stock current and recent issues: stamps, miniature sheets, first day covers, information brochures and other philatelic items, all at face value.

A bureau is also the best place to ask questions. Staff can tell you what has been issued recently, what is coming up, and what is still in stock. If you live near one, visiting on or soon after an issue date is the simplest way to collect.

The weakness is availability. Popular issues can sell out quickly, smaller counters do not stock everything, and if you miss the window you may not find a copy at face value again.

The Philatelic Deposit Account

For collectors who want every issue without visiting a counter, India Post runs the Philatelic Deposit Account. You open an account at a philatelic bureau with a deposit, tell the bureau which items you want with each new issue and how many, and those items are then set aside and sent to you automatically as they are released. The cost is deducted from your deposit, which you top up from time to time.

At the time of writing, India Post’s own page gives these details:

• The account can be opened with a minimum deposit of ₹200.
• The deposit can be paid in cash, by money order, or by cheque or draft payable in India.
• You apply on the prescribed form to the philatelic bureau, listing the types and quantities of items you want.
• Items are sent automatically by registered post.

Check the current form, deposit and charges with your nearest bureau before sending money; they change from time to time, and bureaus may ask for identification. Choose your items carefully at the start — every stamp, or only commemoratives; single stamps, blocks or full sheets; with or without first day covers — and keep the deposit topped up, or issues may be missed.

First day covers and special cancellations

A first day cover is an envelope bearing a new stamp, cancelled on its day of issue. India Post produces official first day covers for its issues, with a printed design (a cachet) and a special first-day cancellation, and these are sold at the bureaus and can be included in a deposit account order.

Many collectors also prepare their own: they buy the stamp on the day of issue, fix it to an envelope, and ask the counter to apply the first-day cancellation. Ask in advance what the bureau allows, because practice varies.

Postal circles also issue special covers for local events, exhibitions, anniversaries and institutions, each with its own special cancellation used only for a short time. They are an inexpensive and very varied field, and they are usually announced locally — a bureau or a local philatelic society is the best place to hear about them.

Ordering online

India Post sells philatelic products through its own online shop, the ePostOffice portal, where anyone can browse and order stamps, miniature sheets, first day covers, brochures and gift items. Only buy from India Post’s official sites — several unofficial websites use “India Post” in their names and are not part of it.

India Post also runs My Stamp, introduced at the INDIPEX-2011 world philatelic exhibition, which prints a sheet of stamps with your own photograph or logo on the tab beside each stamp. It is available at selected philatelic bureaus and counters, and at some post offices in tourist places.

Keeping up with new issues

Whichever method you use, keep a list of what has been issued and tick off what you have. The catalogue on this site is ordered by date of issue, so filtering it to the current year gives a ready-made checklist; signing in and marking the stamps you own turns it into a list of what you still need.

Buying at face value as issues appear is by far the cheapest way to collect modern India. A few rupees each month now saves paying a dealer many times that later.