A postal worker opens a postbox to check for letters. Laxmibazar Sub-Post Office, Dhaka.
A postal worker opens a postbox to check for letters. Laxmibazar Sub-Post Office, Dhaka.
Bangladesh

Letters, Postboxes and Postmen

Once, letters were the primary means of reaching people living far away. Postal runners and red postboxes were symbols of that communication system. But the familiar scene has changed in the age of mobile phones and the internet. Postboxes now lie idle in many parts of the country, including Dhaka. Yet postal workers continue to carry out their duties. Through photographs taken by Prothom Alo photographers in Dhaka, Bandarban, Khulna, Pabna and Chattogram, take a look at the story of a postal service that continues to survive.

Prothom Alo Desk
Shops have sprung up around post boxes as business goes on as usual. GPO intersection, Dhaka.
A man weighs a letter. Laxmibazar Sub-Post Office, Dhaka.
The wooden postbox has been out of use for a long time. Banglabazar, Dhaka.
A postal worker opens a postbox to check for letters. Laxmibazar Sub-Post Office, Dhaka.
A postal worker opens a post box to collect letters. Head Post Office, Bandarban.
Riding an electric bike, a postal worker delivers mail to recipients' doorsteps. Boikali area, Khulna.
A post box lies abandoned in sheer neglect. Pourashava area, Pabna.
A retired post box now serves as a decorative piece in a home. Sunam Graph, Pabna.
Ali Akbar has been delivering letters on his bicycle for nearly 28 years. Tailardwip, Anwara, Chattogram.
An unused post box stands neglected, with a tea stall set up in front of it. Gandaria, Dhaka.
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