Postcard 

Single, reply postcards and Competition Postcards for transmission by the inland post are issued by the Post Office for the use of  the public.  These post cards have a stamp of the prescribed value impressed on them. One part of the reply postcard is intended to contain the sender’s  communication while the annexed part is for addressee’s answer, and when detached and posted by the latter will be carried to destination through post in the same way as a single post card. 

Competition Post cards  introduced W.e.f. 14.11.1996, are to be used for sending responses to the competitions organized on TV/Radio/Press etc.  The response to the competitions through other stationery will be treated as unpaid or insufficiently paid.  These post cards are available at all  post offices. 

Post Cards of  Private Manufacture

Single and reply cards of private manufacture may be transmitted by post as post-cards provided that the postage is prepaid in full. 

NOTE :  “Folded paper type”, post cards of private manufacture made by folding and or pasting together two or more layers of paper cannot be transmitted by post as a post card. 

Size

Postcard                       14 cm. X 9 cm. 

Prohibitions

            A Postcard cannot have anything attached to it.  It should not be folded, cut or otherwise altered except that the impressed postage stamp may be perforated with initials, nor should it be enclosed in cover of any kind. 

Presentation – manner of packing

A Post Card shall not be folded, cut, or otherwise altered except that the impressed postage stamp (if any) may be perforated with initials; not should a post card be enclosed in a cover of any kind. 

Face of the article

A post card should bear the title Post card on the address side.  The right side of the face article is reserved for the address. 

Unpaid and Insufficiently Paid Post Cards

Should a post-card be posted unpaid or insufficiently paid it shall be taxed on delivery with double the pre-paid rate or double the deficiency as the case may be and unpaid or insufficiently paid Reply Post card will be taxed with double the pre-paid rate or double the deficiency as the case may be on the original half  only.  

Postage chargeable on infringing article

Should any of the conditions regarding the size, thickness etc. be infringed, the Post card shall be treated as a letter.  If an inland post card be addressed to a country served by the foreign Post, it will be treated as insufficiently paid post card and returned to the sender, if the address is available, otherwise forwarded to the sender, if the address is available,  otherwise forwarded to the RLO.

 Explanation  :  When a post card is treated as a letter, the amount for recovery is the difference between the minimum postage payable on a letter and the postage already paid on the post card.