According to S Rajendra Kumar, chief postmaster general of the Karnataka circle, the Ulsoor Bazaar post office is being relocated to Cambridge Layout with the aim to reduce the construction cost. The 1,100 sqft building is expected to cost 30-40 per cent less than conventional buildings because of the technological intervention. The post office is being built at a cost of Rs 23 lakh.

“Primarily, we are looking at building post offices with low-cost construction options using 3D printing technology. We feel this is the technology for the future; it may trigger interest in low-cost housing, which is our secondary interest,” Kumar told The Sunday Express. “While the basic structure is expected to be completed in 15 days, the construction of the whole building will take about a month. However, we have not asked the builders to rush the construction.”

Residents of the city are delighted to see the construction of the building. “Look ma, they are 3D printing a building outside my house!” read the caption of a viral video, tweeted by a resident, Marisha Thakur.

Karnataka’s postal department is also mulling constructing post offices in 400 locations where postal services are not accessible. “We are gaining experience with the current project using 3D printing technology. I will submit a report to the headquarters and later we will come out with a standard output. We may go for the construction of other post office buildings based on the report,” said Kumar.

The department has also engaged a technical expert from IIT-Madras to monitor the building construction. “I think technological interventions in the postal department can help trigger the startup ecosystem to come up with such projects,” Kumar said.