Issued by India

Issued on Feb 12, 2011

Issued for : India Post celebrates 100 years of Airmail Service by issuing this set of four commemorative postage stamps.

Issued for : Now through the set of four stamps, First Day Cover and Minisheet on 100 Years of Airmail Service, the Department attempts to recreate the history of the first flight over the river Yamuna sharing the flight path along with the plane and the pilot. In the background is Allahabad Fort. On the First Day Cover, a collage of some stamps issued in the past has been shown.

Credits :
Stamp, FDC : Sankha Samanta(Based on material provided by Shri Pradip Jain)
Cancellation : Alka Sharma

Type : Miniature Sheet, Mint Condition

Colour : Multi colour

Denomination : 500 Paisa each

Stamps Printed : 0.4 Million each

Miniature Sheets : 0.4 Million

Printing Process : Wet Offset

Printer : India Security Press, Nasik

About : 

• India Post had brought series of postage stamps to mark INDIPEX 2011 World Philatelic Exhibition to be held from 12^th February to 18^th February, 2011 at New Delhi. In this series the first set of six stamps was on Postal Heritage Buildings. The second set of four stamps was on the stamps issued by princely States and the third and final set is commemorating completion of 100 years of Airmail Service.
• History was created on February 18, 1911 when Henri Piquet took off in a Humber Biplane from the right bank of the Yamuna at Allahabad crossing over to the left bank and dropped a mail bag containing 6500 letters and Post Cards at the Naini Railway Station. India thus became the first country in the world to fly air mails.
• After this pioneer effort, India was also the first country to introduce air mail Post Card in 1931.
• The first Regular airmail service which was started in 1920, operated between Mumbai (Bombay) & Karachi.
• After independence, on January 30, 1949, Shri Rafi Ahmed Kidwai then Minister of Communications, introduced the “All-up Mail Scheme” under which all the First Class domestic mail was airlifted without any surcharge.
• India Post has been commemorating these historic events by issuing sets of postage stamps from time to time. Some of the important stamps issued in past are:
  1. First Airmail Post Golden Jubilee (set of 3 stamps) – 1961
  2. Air Mail (set of 4 stamps) – 1979
  3. 75^th Anniversary of 1^st Aerial Post (set of 2 stamps) – 1986
  4. 150 years of India Post – 2004
  5. India Post Freighter – 2009.
• Text : Based on the material available in the Archives.

The post 100 Years of Airmail appeared first on iStampGallery.

Issued by India

Issued on Oct 6, 2010

Issued for : India Post is happy to issue a set of commemorative postage stamps on the stamps issued by the Princely States of India.

Credits :
Stamp & FDC : Kamleshwar Singh
Cancellation : Alka Sharma

Type : Miniature Sheet, Mint condition

Colour : Multi colour

Denomination : 500 Paise each

Stamps Printed : 0.4 Million each

Miniature Sheets : 0.3 Million

Printing Process : Wet Offset

Printer : India Security Press, Nasik

About :

• India prior to 1947 consisted of – India under the British Rule and Princely States or Native India. A Princely State was generally a nominally sovereign entity under British rule in India that was not directly administered by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule such as suzerainty or paramountcy.
• There were as many as 568 states in India before Independence. These native states ceased to exist after Independence as per the provisions of the India Independence Act, 1947.
• However, some of these Princely States left a legacy which is valuable in philatelic circles. The set of four commemorative postage stamps on Princely States depict the stamps issued by the Princely States – Sirmaur, Indore, Bamra and Cochin.
• The postage stamps issued by the states carried the portraits of the kings and princes, regal insignia or symbols. Printed using a variety of methods and colours, the stamps were sometimes overprinted too. The history of each state was inextricably linked with its postage stamps and stationery.
• Sirmaur :
  • The princely State of Sirmaur was founded in 1616. It was located in the region which is now the Sirmaur district of Himachal Pradesh. The state was also known as Nahan after its main city. It was ruled by Rajput chiefs who used the title Raja. The state was founded by Soba Rawal who assumed the name Raja Sobans Prakash. The new capital was founded in 1621 by Raja Karam Prakash who renamed the state Sirmaur.
  • The stamps of Sirmaur are sometimes considered the most attractive amongst the feudatory state stamps. Generally in denominations of pies and annas, they were issued from 1879 onwards.
• Indore :
  • Indore was an important princely state in Central India. Founded by the ancestors of present day land owners in the region, it spread from the banks of Narmada to the borders of Rajputana with headquarters at a village named Kampel. Their rulers were conferred different titles like Chaudhari during Mughal rule, Mandloi during the Peshwa rule and Raja Rao by the Holkars.
  • Rao Nandlal Chaudhary, the founder of Indore, was the Chief Zamindar (landlord). While visiting the temple of Indreshwar near the banks of river Saraswati, Rao Nandlal found the area to be safe and strategically located, so he constructed the fort of Shree Sansthan Bada Rawala there. The city was named lndrapur (after Lord Indreshwar), and eventually came to be known as Indore. 
  • Malhar Rao Holkar, in later years appointed as the Subedar of Indore, was succeeded by his daughter Ahilyabai Holkar who ruled from Maheshwar. After defeat at the hands of the British the capital of the Holkars shifted to Indore. Today, Indore is a part of Madhya Pradesh.
  • Stamps were issued from 1885 to 1906, when the state postal service was taken over by the British India Post Office. The stamps carried the denomination in annas.
• Bamra :
  • Bamra, one of the princely States, covered an area of 5149 square km. The state is one of the five Oriya feudatories, which were transferred from the Central Provinces to Bengal, on the reconstitution of that province in October 1905 with Deogarh as its capital.
  • According to a legend, the Raja of Bamra belonged to the Ganga Vanshi dynasty of Utkal, and was made the ruler of the state of Bamra around 1602. The last ruler of Bamra state was Raja Bamra Bhanuganga Tribhuban Deb, 1920-1947.
  • Stamps were issued by the state from 1888 to 1894 when its postal system was replaced by the British India Post Office. The state stamps were in denomination of annas.
• Cochin :
  • The Kingdom of Cochin included much of modern day Thrissur district, Chittoor taluk, Kochi taluk, parts of Kanayannur taluk, Aluva taluk and Paravur taluk which are today a part of Kerala.
  • Over the Centuries, the princely state of Cochin came under numerous empires. The original local rulers from time to time were controlled by the Portuguese, Dutch, British and even the Zamorin of Kozhikode (Calicut), Around 1530 AD, under the Portuguese, Cochin grew into a prosperous town. The first European fort, Fort Emmanuel, was built by them.
  • The Dutch emerged victorious over the Portuguese in 1663 and built Fort Williams here. They were defeated by Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan of Mysore. In 1814, Kochi too became a part of the British empire. Later Cochin was the first Indian state to willingly join the Indian Union in 1947. In November, 1956 it was merged with the Malabar district of Madras state to form the present day Kerala state.
  • The Stamps were, issued from 1892 to 1949 in denominations of pies and puttans.
• Text : Based on materials provided by several Philatelists.

The post Postage Stamps of Princely States of India appeared first on iStampGallery.

Issued by India

Issued on Oct 15, 1997

Issued for : The Department of Posts is pleased to issue a set of four stamps depicting Rural Indian Women.

Design : While the choice has been difficult, the rural women depicted in these stamps are drawn from the north, south, east and west of India. The golden thread of Indian unity of culture and tradition is discernible in the rich diversity of dress, jewellery and ethnic purity of rural India, as depicted in

• The traditional headgear of the rural women of Ladakh studded with semiprecious stones is unique in its typical craftsmanship. The women are hardy, generally engaged in household work & rearing of cattle.
• Rural Women of Kerala boasting a high degree of literacy are tradition bound and they are engaged in the household work, agricultural operations, cottage industries and handicrafts. The stamp depicts a Kerala rural woman working in the paddy fields.
• Rural Women of Arunachal Pradesh depict the rich ethnic culture of the North East. The rich and varied dress and jewellery are symbolic of the cultural traditions of that area.
• The western region is represented by Gujarat. The colourful attire and jewellery are traditionally typical.

Credits : Department of Posts.

Type : Stamps, Postal Used

Colour : Multi Colour

Denomination : 200, 600, 1000 & 1100 Paise

Overall size : 3.91 x 2.90 cms.

Printing size : 3.55 x 2.54 cms.

Perforation : 13 x 13

Paper : Imported un w/m Adhesive Gravure Coated Stamp Paper

Stamps Printed : 0.5 Million Each

Number per issue sheet : 9 Quadruplicate

Printing Process : Photogravure

Printer : India Security Press, Nasik

About : 

• The Department of Posts is organising Indepex ’97 World Philatelic Exhibition coinciding with the Golden Jubilee celebration of India’s Independence. The exhibition is to be held from 15-22 December 1997 at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi.
• To commemorate this event, a series of stamps are being brought out. The first such special postage stamp on the logo of Indepex ’97, depicting the caparisoned elephant, the symbol of traditional welcome in India was released on 5^th of October 1996. The second set of 4 stamps (centres of culture and tourism) depicting the Ruins of Nalanda University, the Stupa of Vaishali and Kushinagar and the giant Bodhi Trees of Bodh Gaya was released on 6th June, 1997. The four stamps on the Beaches of India depicting Gopalpur-on-Sea, Kovalam, Bogmalo and Anjuna Beaches were released on the 11^th of August 1997.
• India lives in her villages and the essence of India is embodied in its rural women. In the search to discover India in her varied endeavours the Department of Posts has brought out a series of stamps depicting the cross-cultural currents of Indian life and tradition.It is only appropriate that, this issue of stamps showing the Indian rural woman in all her simplicity, beauty and traditional grace, occupies the pride of place, among the Indepex stamps.
• Varied as they are in their attire, Jewellery and vocations, the Indian Rural Women depict the cross-cultural traditions and values and they symbolised the exalted place women have continued to occupy in the traditional societies of India. The unity in diversity that the Indian Society boasts of can be seen vividly in the depiction of Indian Rural Women.

The post Rural Indian Women appeared first on iStampGallery.