What is Pin (Postal Index Number)?
Pin Code means Postal Index Number Code. The purpose of introducing the PIN code system in the country was to help the postal department to manually sort the mail and deliver it to the exact address. It also helps eliminate confusion over similar place names, different languages and incorrect addresses used by people.
PIN code is a six digit long code used by the Indian Postal Department. Each digit of the PIN code has a specific meaning. The first digit indicates the area of India. The second digit is the sub-region, while the third digit is the sorting district. The last three digits represent the particular post office within the district.
There are nine PIN zones in India, eight of which correspond to geographical areas, while the digit 9 is used for the Army Postal Service.
Structure of Pin Code (Postal Index Number)
Postal Index Number or PIN consists of six long numerical digits and each of them indicates an area.
The first digit denotes the zone
The second digit indicates sub-zone
The third digit along with the first two will indicate the sorting district within the area
The last three digits indicate individual post offices within the sorting districts.
Find your postal code by selecting your state, district, post office of your locality from Code toolflick Pin Code Finder.
Postal Zones in India
There are nine postal zones in India, including eight territorial zones and one functional zone (for the Indian Army). The first digit of the PIN indicates the region and it is allocated into 9 sectors as follows:
PIN Code Digits
Zone
1.
Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Haryana, Punjab, Delhi
2.
Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand
3.
Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Daman & Diu, Rajasthan, Gujarat
4.
Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Goa
5.
Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka
6.
Puducherry, Lakshadweep, Tamil Nadu, Kerala
7.
Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Sikkim, Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Tripura, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, West Bengal, Odisha
8.
Bihar, Jharkhand
9.
Army Post Office (APO), Field Post Office (FPO)
Sorting Districts
The third digit of the postal code number together with the first two digits will represent a specific geographical area (the only exception here is the functional area which is for the military) and is called a sorting district whose headquarters is at the main post office. This is the largest part of the area. It is a big city and is known as the sorting office.
Every state may have one or more sorting districts accordingly, purely based on the volume of mail handled in the region.
PIN Prefix
ISO 3166-2:IN
Region
11
DL
Delhi
12 -13
HR
Haryana
14 – 15
PB
Punjab
16
CH
Chandigarh
17
HP
Himachal Pradesh
18 – 19
J&K
Jammu & Kashmir
20 – 28
UP, UK
Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand
30 – 34
RT
Rajasthan
396210
DD
Diu & Daman
396
DN
Dadra & Nagar Haveli
36 – 39
GJ
Gujarat
403
GA
Goa
40 – 44
MH
Maharashtra
45 – 48
MP
Madhya Pradesh
49
CT
Chhattisgarh
50
TG
Telangana
51 – 53
AP
Andhra Pradesh
56 – 59
KA
Karnataka
605
PY
Puducherry
60 – 66
TN
Tamil Nadu
682
LD
Lakshadweep
67 – 69
KL
Kerala
737
SK
Sikkim
744
AN
Andaman & Nicobar Islands
70 – 74
WB
West Bengal
75 – 77
OR
Odisha
78
AS
Assam
790 – 792
AR
Arunachal Pradesh
793 – 794
ML
Meghalaya
795
MN
Manipur
796
MZ
Mizoram
797 – 798
NL
Nagaland
799
TR
Tripura
80 – 85
JH, BR
Jharkhand – Bihar
90 – 99
APS
Army Postal Service
All about Indian Postal System
The Department of Posts or Postal Department in India does business under the name of India Post and is primarily run by the Government of India.
This postal system is also popular by the name of the Post Office in India. This special department comes under the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, Government of India.
India is divided into 22 postal districts, each headed by a postmaster. Each of these postal districts is divided into areas supervised by a postmaster, which are further divided into divisions, which are further subdivided.
Over the years, the Indian postal service has undergone a great transformation, becoming the fastest service provider to reach the remotest parts of the country, enabling people to send mail at a very low cost. Apart from handling mail, India Post has also emerged as one of the small financial institutions that help in the safety of the money of the citizens of the country.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q. When was the PIN code introduced in India?
It was introduced on August 15, 1972, by Shriram Bhikaji, the erstwhile Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Communications.
Q. How many digits are in the PIN code?
There are six digits in a Pin Code.
Q. How many PIN codes are there in India?
Excluding Army Post Offices, there are a total of 19,101 PINs across 154,725 post offices in India (as of 2014).
Q. What is the full form of PIN?
PIN represents Postal Index Number.
Q. How many PIN Code zones are in India?
India has nine postal zones, eight of which represent different geographical regions and the last one is reserved for providing postal services to the armed forces.
Q. How should a PIN Code be written?
The first digit represents the region of India, the second digit represents the sub-region, the third digit represents the sorting district, and the last three digits represent the individual post offices within the district.