Rainbow Stamp News: June 2010

XIX Commonwealth Games – Delhi 2010

Shimla July 2010 Issue # 31 Vol. 3

Monthly e-Stamp Bulletin Edited by Jeevan Jyoti for free circulation among philatelists

Readers are requested to send reports of philatelic activities in their area for publication. Short write ups by the readers about their journals, societies, publications and philatelic requirements can be sent for inclusion in this bulletin to j.jyoti9@gmail.com or rainbowstamp2008@gmail.com and by post to –

Mrs. Jeevan Jyoti, c / o Mr. Ajay Srivastav, Director, Great Himalayan National Park, Shamshi, Distt. Kullu. PIN 175126. (H.P.) India

Note- This bulletin is only for circulation among a limited group of philatelists without any commercial purpose. The bulletin will be sent to the readers only on request. Those who wish to receive it regularly please reply giving the name of your city / country with the subject SUBSCRIBE RAINBOW

Dear Reader,

I am pleased to present here July issue of Rainbow Stamp News with new articles and news from the world of stamps. The season of stamp exhibition has started and many of the philatelists must be preparing their exhibits for the forthcoming exhibitions. My best wishes to all of them. After grand success of Stampmania 2009, organized by Baroda Philatelic Society another National Philatelic Exhibition is being organized in New Delhi by Stamps of India and Bhartiya Daktikit Sangstha, Kolkata in December this year. I wish great success to the organizers and the participants. I am sure it will be a Mega Philatelic Show that will be visited by philatelists from every corner of the country. This is all for this month…Till Next Month…..Happy Collecting !

….Jeevan Jyoti

Contents

Recent Indian Issues

In The News

Interview

Beginners’ Section

Specialized Section

New Issues from Other Countries

Reader’s Right

The Lighter Side

Philatelic Clubs and Societies

Blogs & Websites on Philately

Promotional Section

Current Philatelic Magazines – Newsletters

Editor’s Mail Box

Recent Indian Issues

May 6 : Velu Thampi – Rs 5

May 7 : Robert Caldwell – Rs 5

May 8 : Dr.Guduru Venkata Chalamon - Rs 5

May 13 : Postal Heritage Buildings – 6 stamps of Rs 5 each + MS

May 19 : CV Raman Pillai – Rs 5

June 5 : Int year of Biodiversity – Rs 5 & Rs 20 + MS

June 14 : Deshbandhu Gupta – Rs 5

June 25 : Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games – two stamps of Rs 5 & Rs 20 +MS

June 27 : World Classical Tamil Conference-Kovai 2010 & on Kumaraguruparar Swamigal - Rs 5 each

See detailed list of India Post Issue Programme 2010 at

http://www.indiapost.gov.in/philatelycalendar2010.htm

Special Cover – Postmark

18 May 2010 National Academy of Audit and Accounts, Shimla

23 May 2010 Centenary Year – Our Lady of Miracles Chruch

In The News

Recent Philatelic Exhibitions

BANGKOK 2010

The BANGKOK 2010 – 25th Asian International Philately Stamp Exhibition is organised by TCEB from August 4th – 12th, 2010.

POTUGAL 2010

Portugal 2010- A philately exhibition is to be held from 1st - 10th October 2010 in Lisbon.

JOBURG 2010

From 27 October 2010 to 31 October 2010 at Johannesburg / Republic of South Africa

INDIPEX – 2011

The world philatelic exhibition will be held in New Delhi from 12th to 18th Feb. 2011, to commemorate the centenary of world's first airmail. It will be organized by INDIA POST in Collaboration with PCI and under Patronage of FIP and under auspices of FIAP (Federation Inter Asian Philately).

The details of INDIPEX 2011 can be found on following websites -

http://www.indipex2011.com/index.php & http://www.filatelista-tematico.net/india2011.html

PHILANIPPON 2011

Date : July 28 – August 2, 2011

Venue : Pacifico Yokohama, Exhibition Hall.1-1-1.1 Minatomirai,

Nishi-ku, Yokohama 220-0012, Japan

Patronage : Fédération Internationale de Philatélie (FIP)

Auspices : Federation of Inter-Asian Philately (FIAP)

The theme of PHILANIPPON 2011 is "Stamps Link the World". It will be a rare opportunity for the first time in 10 years in Japan to promote philatelic culture in Japan, publicize Japanese stamps overseas, and nurture cultural exchange and international friendship through stamp collection. Click following link for more details about the exhibition.

http://www.philanippon.jp/english/

STAMPS OF INDIA NATIONAL EXHIBITION
The Regulations For Exhibitors and Exhibit Application Form are now available at http://stampsofindia.com/ChaloDelhi/sine.html Please download and study the Rules and Regulations carefully and print the application forms. the duly filled form should be mailed to SINE GHQ, BG-5/49-D, Paschim Vihar, New Delhi 110063. the last date to submit the application form is July 31, 2010.
The Rules and Application forms for Sales Stalls are also available at http://stampsofindia.com/ChaloDelhi/sine.html However the bookings of Sales Stall will only commence on June 27, 2010 from 8am. By then the floor plan will also be available online and the applicants can book the Sales Stall of their choice.

EXPONET

Virtual International Philatelic Exhibition

View some new On – Line One Frame Exhibits

Prize winning collection of Mr Pradip Jain

The Development of the Airmail Route Cairo - India 1918 - 1929

The exhibit provides the details of the airmail route between Cairo and India until 1929 showing all the relevant and important items. This exhibit was awarded Gold Medal and best of Class Award in LONDON 2010.

View the whole one Frame Exhibit On-Line at : http://www.japhila.cz/hof/0630/index0630a.htm

EXHIBIT: CLIMATE CHANGE

EXHIBITOR: AJAY SRIVASTAV, KULLU, HIMACHAL PRADESH, INDIA

http://www.japhila.cz/hof/0632/index0632a.htm

EXHIBIT: MEMORIAL ISSUES OF MAHATMA GANDHI - 15th AUGUST 1948

EXHIBITOR: THAKKAR MAULIK, BOMBAY, INDIA

http://www.japhila.cz/hof/0465/index0465a.htm

EXHIBIT: MAXIMAPHILY - FELIDAE - WILDCATS

EXHIBITOR: SUNDAR BANSAL, NEW DELHI, INDIA

http://www.japhila.cz/hof/0601/index0601a.htm

More new exhibits from other countries..

AUSTRIA FROM JUNE 1th, 1850 - 1883 - JIRI WINTERLING, VELKE MEZIRICI, CZECHIA
http://www.japhila.cz/hof/0636/index0636a.htm

POSTA CESKOSLOVENSKA 1919 - MIROSLAV STEFEK AND JAN KYPAST, OSTRAVA, CZECHIA
http://www.japhila.cz/hof/0635/index0635a.htm

POSTMARKS ON CSL. POST STAMPS IN PLEBISCITARY TERRITORY IN EAST SILESIA
MIROSLAV STEFEK AND JAN KYPAST, OSTRAVA, CZECHIA
http://www.japhila.cz/hof/0634/index0634a.htm

THE CROSBY EXHIBIT OF 1935 CALIFORNIA PACIFIC INTERNATIONAL EXPOSITION
COVERS - GREGG LAWRENCE, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
http://www.japhila.cz/hof/0633/index0633a.htm

THIRD PHILATELIC EXHIBITION - ZAGREB SEPTEMBER 12th 1943, COMMEMORATIVE
NDH EDITION - MIRKO MERLAK, RIJEKA, CROATIA
http://www.japhila.cz/hof/0631/index0631a.htm

EUROPE - AUKTIONSHAUS CHRISTOPH GÄRTNER GmbH & CO, KG, GERMANY
http://www.japhila.cz/hof/0629/index0629a.htm

New Guinness Record For Maximum Number of Stamps On A Parcel

A man from West Bengal's Nadia district (India) has made it to the Guinness Book of World Records by using maximum number of stamps on a parcel. The Guinness authorities confirmed the feat of Manoj Kumar Mondal, who had sent a parcel to their office in London using 3809 Indian postage stamps in March. One stamp was of the denomination of 10 paise, 86 stamps were of 15 paise, 3649 stamps of 25 paise and 73 of Rs 10.

Earlier this month, he got a letter from the Guinness authorities saying that he has broken the record of Les Stewart, an Australian, who had used 3400 stamps in his parcel in 1999. Mondal's parcel constituted the minimum postage that was required to send the parcel from Krishnagar to London, a Guinness spokesperson told PTI from London.

"The letter was written on a vinyl sheet of 2 by 3 feet. The weight of the parcel was 2 kg and 825 grams for which I had to buy the stamps of Rs 1655," Mondal said.An employee of engineering section at the Nadia Zilla Parishad, Mondal said he had written a message on global warming to the Guinness authorities in the parcel, which broke the world record.

Error on Canadian Christmas Stamp

Stamp at right, with silver-coloured words and number either missing or half gone, was initially thought to be a fake. But it later turned out to be a genuine variety. Normal stamp, with all its parts and colours, is at left.

There are nearly a dozen recognized types of mistakes in philately, ranging from shifted impressions and smudges to misperforations and missing colours.

David Williams, a stamp collector in Saint John, writes in his monthly column, "A stamp that bears a major mistake in its design or production becomes a unique and much-sought-after variety. It also can be worth a great deal of money...So you can imagine that my heart skipped a beat when I thought I'd found one of these gems."
What David found was a printing error on a copy of the 60-cent Christmas stamp that was issued nine years ago (Scott No. 1923). As shown above, the stamp has the "Christmas-Noel" inscription at top left missing and the word "Canada" and the denomination "60" at bottom right are partially gone.

Initially, it was thought that somehow the inscription and words were erased. However, after two other identical copies were found, the stamp became a true printing error.er variety. It also can be worth a great deal of money.

The most famous Canadian stamp with an error is the 1957 five-cent St. Lawrence Seaway issue with the text printed upside down. A mint never-hinged copy - there are about 400 of them - is listed in the catalogue at $16,000.

http://telegraphjournal.canadaeast.com/escapade/article/1090321

Pure silver commemorative stamps from China

Authorized by the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination and the China Post Group, the Shanghai Philatelic Corporation has officially issued a set of pure silver commemorative stamps for the China Pavilion.

The stamps are made from .999 pure silver, and four different weights are available: 88 grams, 188 grams, 388 grams, and 688 grams. The number produced for each weight is restricted to 20,000, 10,000, 6,000 and 2,010, respectively.

On the face of the stamp is the pattern of the China Pavilion and the reverse side has a lily design and the Chinese traditional bat-shaped pattern representing open-mindedness, a harmonious Expo and benefiting China. The Expo theme "Better City, Better Life" is also printed on the reverse side in both Chinese and English. In addition, the stamp

World’s Smallest Postal Service

Source : Reader’s Digest-India, June 2010

Philatelist awarded an Order of Australia Medal

A WILYABRUP resident has been awarded an Order of Australia Medal.Raymond Todd, one of only two Australian stamp collectors ever to receive the gong, was named in this week’s Queen’s Birthday Honours list for his services to philately.Mr Todd’s postal stationery and history collecting interests are recognised and respected both nationally and internationally.He was made a life member of the Philatelic Society of Western Australia in 1969, and has since served in various positions on state and national executives, exhibition organising committees, juries and promotions.

Raymond Todd

In the impressive lineup of positions he has held, Mr Todd was the WA delegate to the Australian Stamp Promotion Council, now the Australian Philatelic Federation APF, in 1975, and was elected as public relations officer to the federation in 1984, before serving as president in 1992-93.Internationally Mr Todd is a member of the Fédération Internationale de Philatélie, Postal Stationery Commission and is currently vice-president of the Federation of Inter-Asian Philately (FIAP), and editor of the FIAP News. He has also served on FIP exhibition juries and as the chairman of the jury at numerous Australian national philatelic exhibitions.His collections have received awards at both national and international exhibitions.

He is also recognized as an enthusiastic speaker and promoter of philately, who has given generous amounts of his time at national judge training schools and seminars.

http://www.busseltonmail.com.au/news/local/news/general/wilyabrup-philatelist-awarded-an-order-of-australia-medal/1860143.aspx

News from our Readers…

Alyssah Xeniah C. Alcala ,Lucena City- Philippines

I’m please to inform you that my 5-frames “Her Majesty QUEEN ELIZABETH II” philatelic exhibit won the Royal Philatelic Society of Canada Silver medal, American Topical Association Youth Award, and American Association of Philatelic Exhibitors Youth Grand Award in the recent ROYAL 2010 ROYALE National Stamp Exhibition held in St. Clair Centre for the Arts, Windsor, Ontario, Canada last May 28-30, 2010.

For this feat the exhibit will represent ROYAL 2010 ROYALE in the forthcoming 2011 AAPE Youth Championship to be held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA.For more details please visit :

http://alvier.webs.com/canadaexhibitions.htm

http://www.freewebs.com/alvier

Ms Alyssah may be contacted at e mail : maeca_mvcc@yahoo.com

New Max Cards

New Maxim Cards have been prepared by distinguished philatelist of Jabalpur, Mr Hemant Kumar Jain. Mr Jain has prepared 3 different set of Max Cards of total 36 Cards with recent stamps issued by India Post on Astrological signs

http://rainbowstampclub.blogspot.com/2010/06/max-cards-on-astro-signspart-ii.html

http://rainbowstampclub.blogspot.com/2010/06/max-cards-on-astro-signs.html

http://rainbowstampclub.blogspot.com/2010/06/new-max-cards-on-astrological-signs-set.html

Mr Hemant Kumar Jain may be contacted for these cards at e-mail : jainhk60@gmail.com

INTERVIEW

Mr Praful Thakkar is a noted Philatelist and autograph collector from Ahmedabad. His name is well known among the collectors of Autographs, Stamps and Coins. His passion for these collectibles made him a renowned figure all over the world. Besides holding an important post as an IAS officer during his service time, he did lot of research and study in the field of Philately, Numismatics and Philography which could be seen in his recent books. He is a personality of multiple talents as he excelled in all 3 braches of the most popular & recognized hobbies of the world. I am proud that I had a chance to meet him last year at Vadodara during Stampmania 2009. His recent book ‘Collector's Guide to First Day Covers & Folders of India 1947-1964 - Official & Private’ is an indispensable reference book for all philatelists and the lovers of First Day Covers. I am extremely pleased to present an Interview with him in this issue. - Editor

Praful K. Thakkar is the collector of autographs, stamps, FDCs, coins, medals, tokens, badges , badge plates etc. since last more than 45 years. He got a legacy of art and numismatic understanding and insight from his father. He developed the hobby of collecting Art, Autographs and Numismatic objects in his own way.

'Share the Knowledge & Spread the Knowledge' is the motto of his life. And in true spirit of his life's motto, besides authoring several learned publications on Indian culture in Gujarati, he has authored 'Collector's Guide to Indian Canteen Tokens', 'Collector's Guide to Membership Badges of Turf & Race Clubs of India', 'Collector's Guide to Chronologies of Sultans, Rulers & Colonial Heads of India' and ‘Chapras: Collector's Guide to Belt Buckles, Badges and Badge Plates of India'.

As I.A.S. officer he has served the Government of Gujarat for more than 31 years on various posts as Collector Valsad, Commissioner Rural Development, Secretary Revenue Department and on many such challenging jobs. Even after retirement from his service, he has still continued this hobby and he firmly believes 'Hobby is for Health & Hobby is for Happiness'.

The hobbies of Autograph, Philatelic and Numismatic collection have given him new energy and enthusiasm. For him any such hobby is a worship that keeps him pure, fit and healthy. People have hobbies for happiness and harvesting profit in future. For him it is for keeping good health too.

As a collector of various collectibles, he has faced many difficulties in collecting, understanding and arranging the collection. The same may happen with the new collectors and they may face similar hurdles too. To overcome such situations and to encourage various hobbies and to preserve such a classic collection of Indian heritage, he has made attempts through websites too.

His two websites www.indiannumismatics.com and www.indianautographs.com have made landmarks in their respective hobby-fields of Numismatics and Autograph collection.

In 2008, The Numismatic Society of India Varanasi, Indian Coin Society, Nagpur and Indian National Trust for Art Culture and Heritage, Gwalior have awarded him the 'Life Time Achievement Award' for his innumerable and invaluable contribution to Indian Numismatics and Para-numismatics in all its aspects.

In 2009, he has been considered as National record holder by Limca Book of Records and has been placed as record holder for his collections of Autographs and Indian Canteen Tokens.

In the same year 2009, Gujarat Coin Society took cognizance of his excellent works and achievements and has also given him 'Life Time Achievement Award' for his outstanding service to numismatic fraternity. He has given his services as Chairman in Coinex-2006 and Coinex-2010, which were National Level Numismatic Exhibitions organised by Gujarat coin Society, Ahmedabad. And he has successfully accomplished his mission.

He is the Life Member of Gujarat Philatelic Association. Through this book 'Collector's Guide to Covers & Folders of India 1947-1964 - Official & Private’ he has tried to give a dimension to Philatelic facet of early classic period by cataloguing Official FDCs, Private FDCs and Folders of this time. Mr Praful Tahakkar may be contacted at e mail : pkthakkar@yahoo.com

Mr Thakkar with his exhibit at Stampmania - 2009, Vadodara

Photo : Jeevan Jyoti

Interview With Praful Thakkar

Q1. You have been an avid collector of Autographs, Coins, tokens and stamps...How do you manage all at a time??

A1. Since childhood all the above collectibles are favourite themes of my Hobby. They are educating, energizing and enriching hobbies. They all have given me energy and enthusiasm as they all are very attracting, fascinating and interesting themes. As I have become one with my Hobby, all the themes are so very close to me. Truly speaking, at this point of time, ‘Hobby lives in me and I live in my Hobby’. All the above collectible themes have different charm that keeps me attached to that subject. I have an inseparable bond with these subjects and therefore it becomes easy to manage all of them.

Moreover at some point, these subjects are interconnected. We do find numismatic and philatelic friends having common interests. Similarly Philately and Philography (Autograph collection) also are interrelated at some stage. For example, there are many Indian Stamps, FDCs and Cancellations which have Autographs in their design. In Stampmania 2009 I had put up an exhibit ‘Autographs in Indian Philately’ to project the friendship between these two hobbies of Autograph collection and Stamp collection.

Thus because of the interrelated friendship of these themes, it is a great pleasure to handle all of them, either at a time or separately, as a worship that keeps me pure, fit and healthy.

Q2. What is the secret of your success in your hobby as you have excelled in all streams making a record.....despite holding an important Post in Indian Administrative Service during your service time??

A2. The secret of success in my hobby is God’s grace. I firmly believe that my selfless dedication, complete devotion and deep passion for the hobby are appreciated by God who selected me for the expression and presentation of various subjects. I am an instrument which is played by God who has created beautiful symphonies in various forms of my record collections.

Q3. What difficulties did you face in the collection of various collectibles? When you took up philately? It was your initial hobby from childhood days or taken up later in life?

A3. During my pursuit of various collectibles, many times I have felt lack of catalogues or guides which are written with collector’s viewpoint. No doubt there are books written on a particular theme with many details about the subject. But the book may not have catalogued and numbered examples of various designs, types and variations which might be helpful to collector to arrange and organize his own collection.

I have experienced that lacuna of good guides in various fields of hobbies. As a collector of various collectibles, I have faced many difficulties in collecting, understanding and arranging my own collections. I have felt that the same may happen with the new collectors and they may face similar hurdles too. So in consonance with another motto of my life – ‘Share the Knowledge-Spread the Knowledge’, I have made attempts to write various collector’s guides in numismatic field and this catalogue of ‘Collector’s guide to First Day Covers & Folders of India 1947-1964 Official & Private’ is such humble attempt in the philatelic field. These humble attempts are my worship to encourage various hobbies and to preserve classic collections of our Indian heritage.

Secondly, just like any other collector, I also had to face difficulties in getting good things. However I have a firm belief that just as we are searching good things for our collection, things are also searching good collectors where they would like to stay for years to come. So I have always tried to become a very genuine, systematic, dedicated and organized collector who would be immediately selected by a good and rare item who in turn will inspire the seller to part with it in a very reasonable and affordable price.

I was into philately from my childhood. It was my initial hobby. However I have developed this and all other hobbies in a more systematic way later on.

Q4. What is the rarest item in your collection? Please specify in autograph, coin, token & philatelic collection.

A4. I may mention here that rarity is a relative term and depends upon the understanding and exposure of the subject to an individual. However as per my understanding I consider following items as rare:

1. Autographs: Autographs of Freedom Fighters and Nobel Laureates for Peace

2. Coins: Nazrana Coins of Indian Princely States

3. Tokens: Mint and Military Canteen Tokens

4. Philately: Private First Day Covers of Gandhi mourning issue

One can see Autographs on my website www.indianautographs.com and coins-tokens on my another website www.indiannumismatics.com

Gandhi Private First Day Covers one can see in my book ‘Collector’s Guide to First Day Covers & Folders of India 1947-1964 Official & Private’.

Q5. How did you get the rarest item in your collection by paying high price or by good luck?

A5. Again I may reiterate here that all good and rare items I got at an affordable price because of God’s Grace. Many a time people from different parts of the world have gifted me rare items looking to my dedication to the hobby. I have received autographs of President Obama and Secretary of State of USA Hillary Clinton as gift from someone in America and autographs of Indian Freedom Fighters like Madan Mohan Malaviya, Annie Besant, Vijyalaxmi Pandit, Mahatma Gandhi and many more from an unknown person from India.

People may give credit to their luck when they get some good and rare items. While I always see, feel and experience that it is God’s grace and love that is showered on me.

Q6. You have brought out a very exclusive book on First Day Covers & Folders of India ....How much time it took you to compile this book?

A6. I was inspired to write this book after my visit to Stampmania 2009 held at Vadodara in December 2009. It is my worship to Goddess Philately. And it took about 4 months to compile and present this book. Many difficulties did come during this period. But at every stage God was there to protect and smoothen the way.

However I must admit that but for the help, at every step, of Mr. Mainak Kathiara, President Gujarat Philatelist’s Association, Ahmedabad and Mr. Sapan Jhaveri, Ahmedabad the Visualiser of the design and layout, this book would not have seen the light of the day in this attractive and artistic form in such a short time.

Q 7. What do you collect in philately?? What is your favourite philatelic field?

A7. ‘Simple Stamp is dumb; when it is cancelled, it whispers; but when it is having First Day Cancellation on First Day Cover, it sings’.

I like sonorous singing of stamps on FDCs and therefore my favourite subject in philately is classic First Day Covers of early period-Official & Private. Just to share and spread the Happiness which I got from this collection, I wrote this catalogue on these classic FDCs. One may say that my catalogue on First Day Covers/Folders is a musical DVD of such official and private First Day covers with singing stamps.

Q 8 You have four collecting interests at a time - autograph, coin, token and philatelic item ........Which is your most favourite collecting interest among all these ?

A8. All the four are siblings as they are the children of Hobby. It is very difficult to say that which the most favourite interest is. It is like asking a mother which child she loves most. For mother all children are equal as she sees the qualities in each child. For me autograph gives a personal thrill of a celebrity; Coin gives me the touch of history and heritage; Token has got its own charm as it has got a para-numismatic dimension and Philatelic items have their artistic and attractive charisma. Hence all are my favourite collecting interests.

Q 9. You are a distinguished collector of several wonderful items ...is it just for pleasure, Investment or both??

A9. Yes, I am a collector who has collected not only several wonderful items, but also inspiring thoughts and loving friends. I have collected various items for my happiness which in turn has helped me in maintaining good health. Therefore my motto is – ‘Hobby is for Health & Hobby is for Happiness’. This clearly indicates that for me any hobby is for health and happiness. I consider any monetary appreciation of my collection at present or in future as bye-product. I have never developed any hobby as only investment. But I may share at this juncture, that an organized and systematic collection of any good hobby is ‘Pleasure for you – and Treasure for family’.

Q10. Last but not the least, do you like participating in stamp exhibitions? What is your view about one Frame class? Is it going to be a dominant class in future??

A10. Yes, I do like participating in the exhibition because that gives an opportunity to share my understanding with fellow collectors. I wish to take part in the philatelic exhibitions as they are always attractive and educative. We, philatelists like any other collectors, live in a continuous improvement and development process made of curiosity and study, of search and acquisition. Exhibitions provide us a forum to see and study various themes. We meet different friends, collectors and experts and enrich ourselves with their knowledge and understanding. The exhibits on display and the items on sale at the dealers’ booths are a strong attraction for the skilled visitors, whereas newcomers will be captivated by the general atmosphere and by the multi-cultural, multi-coloured presence of the postal administrations and their agencies from different parts of the country or world.

The concept of One Frame exhibition is like IPL 20-20 cricket match. This concept of 20-20 cricket match has picked up because people want pleasure of best cricket and more crickets with concluding results in short time. Similarly, one Frame exhibits facilitate to have more themes in a short and best presentation form. More creative presentations of more collectors get opportunity for displaying their skills and imaginations in one Frame exhibitions. It is good for popularizing the hobby of philately. Stampmania 2009 of Vadodara was a constructive effort in this direction.

However, there are many subjects who have history and heritage and cannot be compressed in less number of frames. It will be difficult to accommodate such subjects in one Frame as it has its own space limitations. For such subjects, more than one Frame is required.

I feel that there should be a balance. Exhibitions should have exhibits of one Frame and more than one Frame depending upon the nature, strength and requirement of the theme.

‘Collector's Guide to First Day Covers & Folders of India 1947-1964 - Official & Private’ by Praful Thakkar

The book illustrates coloured photos of more than 400 FDCs (including about 250 Private FDCs), Folders, Presentation folders & Souvenir Albums along with FDCs of Indian Army Postal Service and Overprinted Military Postage stamps. It has coloured photos of 24 FDCs of Gandhi mourning issue of 1948. The book can be ordered at Orders@stampsofindia.com

Beginners’ Section

Do You Know ?

Historical Moments in Philately

- Dr. K. Jaya Prakash, Thrissur – Kerala

Bhutan released another Fantastic stamp…THE WORLD`S FIRST CD-ROM STAMP on 06.01.2008 .These 2stamps show some of Bhutan’s historic events,the 100^th anniversary of the Monarchy,th3e coronation of the 5^th King and Bhutan’s evolution to an emerging democracy.

Portugal released `World’s first postal stamp made entirely from CORK ON 3.12.2007 these stamps are made from wafer thin paper cork. Stamp depicts a cork oak tree on a hill .Stamp is 0.35mm.

Finland released a fabulous M/S on Alpine Skiing on 24.1.2008(Fig.26).The 4 stamps on the M/S are devoted to Alpine skiing .The way the sheet is printed is based on a lens technology which combines multilevel images .When you move The stamp around in your hand, an illusion of movement is created .the production process is called MOTION PRINT IMAGING

Austria brought out a philatelic sensation. a ROUND self adhesive stamp on 12.03.2008(Fig27).The stamp is made of an innovative material ..POLYURETHANE which is exactly the same plastic compound that was used to manufacture the official football of the UEFA EURO 2008.

Dr.K.Jaya Prakash may be contacted at e- mail : k.jayprakash@gmail.com Cell : 9846041941

Specialized Section

The Story of AIRGRAPH

- Naresh Agrawal

Airgraph is a type of mail, in which the letter to be sent is micro photographed by a system devised by Kodak in the Second World War for air transport between troops overseas (initially in the Middle East) and home. The addressee eventually received a re-enlarged print. Between 1941 and July 1945 about 350 million letters were sent by this method, doubtlessly contributed significantly to forces' morale.

Prior to World War , there were traditional ways of mail transport system such as usage of animals like horse, elephant, camel etc., mail carriage by rail and road, i.e. by lorry and mail train , by water through ship and through air by airships. But when it came to carry bulk mail quickly that to at longer distances and overseas destinations.. there the postal authorities were bound to think upon some new and innovative methods suitable for under those circumstances. Airgraph mailing system is the one which was outcome of such forced circumstances which not only helped in carrying bulk mail but saved time and expenditures too.

HISTORY BEHIND THE EVOLUTION OF AIRGRAPH SERVICE :

The world war II was a global military conflict which continued for almost 6 years from 1939 to 1945 and most of the world’s nations divided in to two opposing groups and military alliances. This war involved million of military personnel spread and moved away from their houses overseas for years together.

The postal mail was the only common media for communication those days particularly for the family members of the military personnel deployed at battlefield. Since, the quantity of mail to be carried to such overseas destinations was very high and regular, there was huge problem for mail transmission and carriage as intercontinental transport was very difficult and time consuming too.

Particularly, Great Britain faced very serious problem in maintaining postal service for forces stationed in the middle east because G.B. had problems in mailing post through the Suez Canal which was quite handy for mail transport to different countries at different locations. Due to French surrender to Germany in 1940, and with Italy a key Axis member, the western and central Mediterranean were under Axis control, with key parts of North Africa also Axis-dominated, thus closing the short route to the Atlantic. Also because letters to and from the Near and Far East were taking 3 to 6 months to reach their destination by the only method remaining - via ship around the southern tip of Africa .Thus the only preferred alternative way to send mail was aerial route, but space for mail by air was extremely limited as the airships were not so spacious and advanced. Further, transport of soldiers and other military goods transport was quite extensive and important too. So, the civil and military postal agencies were forced to derive some new methods to deal with such huge regular mail transport. That lead the allied countries to develop and come up with this innovative and experimental mail transport system which was called AIRGRAPH in its British Version and ‘V’ MAIL in US Version.

Due to dramatic change in the situation at that time(1940), a study was made into the feasibility of using micro-photography, the British Post Office was forced to think again about one of their publicly unaccepted and rejected system known as RECORDAK experimented by them in 1932 for their record keeping and also for bulk mail transport. That lead to the birth of AIRGRAPH (the word becoming a registered trademark of Kodak Ltd., who controlled the process)

The Airgraph Service, was then inaugurated in August, 1941 by Her Majesty the Queen (now Her Majesty the Queen Mother) who sent the first airgraph letter to Egypt addressed to the Commander-in-Chief, General Auchinleck.

The First Airgraph sent by Queen Elizabeth to the Commander-in-Chief in the Middle East

AIRGRAPH (THE CONCEPT)

The basic concept was simple. Letters were photographed on the sending end, then the negatives were sent by air to the destination end, where they were printed and delivered. The volume and weight of the film were less than one fiftieth of the volume and weight of the letters, so a large number of letters could be transported quickly at a relatively small cost.

THE PROCESS :

The airgraph postal process involved two functions. One is collection of massages in form of filled specially designed forms, checking them, censoring and numbering them and after micro filming making photographic micro negatives of those massages/letters by special photographic equipment and the other is the process of making positives from those microfilms ( negatives ) at receiver’s station and delivering them to addressee.

AIRGRAPH MAKING (MICRO FILMING) :

Airgraph microfilm technology was a product of years of discovery and experimentation. Soon after the advent of photography in the mid 1830s, John Benjamin (J.B.) Dancer pioneered the first microphotographs by making images on microscope slides.

The process of making airgraph is nothing but a two way specialized photographic reversible process done in parts at two locations with different equipments set up at different locations which includes photographing, preparation of reduced size negatives at sender’s end and then again making positives from the negatives to a larger size say about one quarter of the original at receiver’s end.

MICROFILM REEL NEGATIVE FROM REEL

(Image Source: The British Postal Museum & Archive)

A subsidiary of Eastman Kodak called Recordak developed the airgraph process. Each Airgraph form was fed into the Recordak machine, which took a photograph of the message and reduced it to a smaller size. The forms were photographed with 1600-1700 messages on 100ft of film, 16mm wide. The machine used was a rotary Recordak camera with a reduction scale of 1 to 17 capable of photographing up to 122 letters per hour.

( RECORDAK AUTOMATIC PROCESSING MACHINE )

AIRGRAPHS FILMS RECEIVED FROM OVERSEAS WERE PROCESSED AT KODAK’S PLANT IN WEALDSTONE-NORTH WEST OF LONDON (Image Source: The British Postal Museum & Archive)

The film of reduced airgraphs was taken by air plane to its destination where the process was reversed and the film projected onto a strip of moving sensitized paper resulting in a series of positive prints approximately one quarter the size of the original. The strip was then cut and each airgraph print inserted into an envelope by hand or machine ready for delivery to the addressee. The steps involved in printing process are as under :

CHARACTERISTICS OF MICRO FILMS AT RECEIVING END :

1. Film being enlarged onto continuous rolls of photographic paper with each print normally in 4”X 6” size

2. Continuous developing tanks

3. Checking rolls of prints for defects.

4. Rolls being guillotined into individual messages

5. Messages ready for inserting in envelopes

The original forms were retained until it was confirmed that the film had arrived and been printed safely.

AIRGRAPH PRINT USEDTO BE INSERTED IN THE ENVELOP AND DELIVERED

AIRGRAPH MAILING (OPERATION )

The service pertained to collection of forms from sender, censoring, numbering, micro filming, transit by air, enlarging and delivery to addressee. Airgraph forms both for civilians and people on active service were delivered on request at local post offices and field post offices and collected there too. Proper instructions were given by the post office to the sender such as not to fold / crease the form, maximum number of words restricted to 230. Once fully filled and completed, those forms were submitted to post office with appropriate postage affixed on the back of forms in form of stamps at the rate of 3d for forces personnel and 8d for civilians ( which was later reduced to 3d ); those were sent for processing i.e. microfilming of the same. Where these forms were censored and numbered. Respective sorting was also done there.

ADDRESSING THE FORM VARIOUS AIRGRAPH STAMPS/SEALS

POSTAGE FOR AIRGRAPH

After the micro filming ( photographed in miniature )of the forms containing messages, the film of reduced forms (airgraphs) was taken by plane to its destination where the process was reversed and a positive print was taken to almost one fourth of the actual size of the original. The strip was then cut and each airgraph print inserted into an envelope by hand or machine ready for delivery to the addressee. Then the same was delivered to addressee. However, during the last years of the service , the photographs were also allowed to be enclosed along with the forms which also used to be sent in the same fashion passing through the same micro filming process..

AIRGRAPH FORM AIRGRAPH ENVELOP

The Airgraph service first started from Cairo on April 21, 1941,arrived in London on May 13.That first shipment comprised of some 70,000 letters, a testament to someone's efforts to sell the concept. About 350,000 messages were sent during the first month of the service and over 500,000 in the second month.

SPECIAL GREETING AIRGRAPH FORMS

AIRGRAPH STAMP :

Although some Airgraphs were printed or embossed with postal indicia, only one postage stamp was specially issued for Airgraphs, in New Zealand, for civilian Airgraphs, May 1, 1944, 10p overprint on 1940 1½p issue.

FIRST DAY COVER WITH NEW ZEALAND AIRGRAPHSTAMP

SOME MORE INTERESTING FACETS :

1. The airgraph service from Britain to the Middle East began in 1941 and gradually extended to other war zones. The service ended on 31 July 1945. During these four years 135,224,250 airgraphs were sent.

2. The first airgraph was sent from the Queen to the Commander-in-Chief in the Middle East.

3 The microfilm was flown to its destination, developed into a full size print, and posted to the recipient. Sending 1600 airgraphs on microfilm weighed just 5oz compared to 50lbs for the same number of letters. Copies of the microfilm were kept so that if they were shot down the messages could be resent.

4. It also eliminated the threat of spies using microdots or invisible ink to send reports. Any microdot would not be photographed with enough resolution to be read.

5. Although the system of Airgraph or V-mail ensured that more pieces of mail were able to be shipped and delivered than a larger, bulkier mailing would have accomplished, many people found that they did not have enough room in the limited available space in order to write all that they had to say. To make things worse, the instructions at the top of each letter stated that "very small writing is not suitable".

6. The contents of the airgraphs recall some of the happy and tragic events of those fateful years.

7. Advertising was done at large scale to introduce public too with the then new system of AIRGRAPH SERVICE

“ Send airgraphs they save aircraft space !! ”

This poster was produced in 1943 to promote the Airgraph service. It shows how 10 times the amount of mail could be sent using the service, resulting in significant savings for the Post Office.

(Image Source : The British Postal Museum & Archive)

Note : Thanks to British Postal Museum and Archive & others from whose sources some of the data and images displayed have been taken

. Mr Naresh Agarwal may be contacted at e- mail : nareshkumar1992@yahoo.co.in - Editor

New Issues from other countries

Bangladesh

2 May 2010 : 12 yrs of Medical Education & Medical Research and Health Care - Souvenir Sheet

Ireland

17 June 2010 Great Humanitarians – Se-tenant issue

Gibraltar

30 June 2010 : commemorative Miniature Sheet in honour of Kaiane Aldorino.

Kaiane is a Gibraltarian beauty pageant title holder who was crowned Miss Gibraltar 2009 and Miss World the same year in Johannesburg, South Africa. She was the first Miss Gibraltar to ever reach the semifinals of the Miss World beauty pageant.

Israel

14 June 2010 : Musical Instruments of the Middle East – 5 val.

The main theme in each of the five stamps is an ancient Eastern instrument accompanied by a modern Western instrument whose roots may be traced back to that Eastern instrument.

The stamps feature: - Darbuka and Drum - Zurna and Oboe - Qanun and Piano - Oud and Guitar - Rabbaba and Violin

The stamp tabs and lower sections feature Oriental rugs from the Middle East and Central Asia.

Luxembourg

16 June 2010 Superjhemp - 2,50 € (5 self-adhesive ‘A’ postage stamps)

Superjhemp is a caricature of American super heros from the 1930s, In the adventures of Superjhemp there is first the characters: inspector Schrobiltgen, police chief Harespel, Joffer Lamesch, the dog Bernie, etc… And then, on a second level, the reader takes on the role of sleuth… it is for him to discover on each page the hidden details, the puns, the word games, the caricatures of well-known celebrities, the references to other comic strips. Superjhemp is the humorous work of scenarist Lucien Czuga.

Malaysia

22 June 2010 Malayan Railways –

clip_image076

Se-tenant 30c (Horizontal pair) x 10 pairs = 20 stamps to a sheet

50c x 20 stamps to a sheet ; RM 1.00 x 20 stamps to a sheet

Stamp booklet containing 30c x 10 stamps (Vertical strip) = 5 different design x 2 set per book

Miniature sheet RM 3.00

15 July 2010 Threatened habitats 3 val.

Vatican City

22 June 2010 EUROPA 2010 – Books for Children - € 0.60, 0.65

The images on the stamps are taken from the book, The Bible Narrated for Children, produced by Gribaudo publishers. Depicted are two significant events: Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden and Jesus surrounded by children.

Reader’s Right

Editor’s note- The aim of this stamp newsletter is to provide instant information and facts on philately to the readers and not to hurt anyone’s feelings. Readers may express their views, anguish and resentment through this column on philately. The platform is not used for any vested interest to cause derogatory to philately. When writing your views be sure that it should be related to philately only. It should not be used to express personal feelings between persons or groups in any manner.

Discussion on Maxim Cards

DH Rao, Chennai

Dear Ms Jyoti,

Regarding the nice article in your Rainbow News on "MAXCARDS".I would like to share few thoughts on the subject. I and Cdr Acharya are SHIP buffs, and so create our own max cards with ship theme. However, there are lot of grey patches on this subject .Every body agrees on One Thing - namely the maximum concordance between stamp, picture card and cancellation. It is clear that picture shall not be a replica of the stamp itself -eg GB PHQ cards.Now what is left is the cancellation. Let us analyse this with the three or four senior philatelists who provided good ,basic information on your news letter.

Remember, the Earliest Max Card created [by default] was with a pyramid picture card posted in Egypt with a Def stamp showing the famous pyramid and affixed on the picture side and posted at that Tourist spot.Remember the date was Not the First Day of Issue of stamp.The Tourist Spot Date cancellation beautifully tied the picture card with the Pyramid and the stamp also showing pyramid.

In my opinion there is no sanctity of First day Cancellation at least in India.

Most of the time we do not get stamps on the day of issue. To site an example, we are yet to get Udagamandalam Post Office Stamp. Then how to get First Day Cancellation from that PO., Further, Boucher issued along with the stamp are not very clear about many things. They are mostly silent on the exact post office for the Stamp Issued. So here comes the real research. One has to depend on external sources for the correct Picture and Pace for the stamp issued. Most often, no commercial picture cards are available in India. So, Philatelists like me, who want 100% correct Place Cancellation as well as Good Pictures Cards, create them ourselves.

During International Fleet Review at Mumbai and Fleet Review at Visakhapattinam ,Cdr Acharya and myself created beautiful cards with ships and got them cancelled at respective places. One caution -always it is not easy to convince the postmaster of the post office concerned, who will insist on Rs6/-, as he interprets a Picture Card to a "Printed Card",which attracts Rs6/- as postage. Most of the respected postmasters in India Post post offices simply do not know what is a maxim card. Why, even some officers don’t know this.

The main reason for this rejoinder is about proper PLACE Cancellation vis a vis Any Post Office First Day Cancellation. Let me explain this with some of the recent stamps - to have the maximum concordance of cancellation one must have :- FOR

Horses - Kathiavari at Kuvada bo,Marwari at Marwar JnHO,,Zanskari at Leh HO,Manipuri at Imphal GPO,

Textiles- Kalamkari at Sri Kalahasti, Banaras Brocade at Varanasi,Conjeevaram silk at Kancheepuram and Apa Tani at Ziro MDG in Arunachal Pradesh.

Jain Temples - Ranakpur at Ranakpur, Dilwara at Abu,

North East Animals - Shillong GPO,

Silent Valley at Mukhaly BO, Holy Cross Church at Madayikonam,Sacred Heart Church at Pondicherry.

The list goes on and on. Please let me know, how many seniors has these and other cancelled cards.

I would be most happy to interact with them, so I can enrich myself on the subject.

I am based at Chennai & Specializes on ships, lighthouses and explorers.

I Wish you all the best.

D H Rao

e-mail - dhrao1939@yahoo.com, mob - 0 9840870172

New Blogs & Websites

Flags & Stamps - http://flagstamps.blogspot.com/ - This blog is all about flags and stamps from the collection of a veteran philatelist and vexillologist, Mr Sekhar Chakrabarty. Kolkata.

Ship Stamps - http://stampinformation.blogspot.com/ - A new Blog created by by Mr Prashant of Pune on Ship Stamps .

Se- tenant Stamps of India - http://setenantsofindia.blogspot.com/ Specialized Blog on se-tenant stamps.

Let’s Talk Stamps - http://letstalkstamps.blogspot.com/ - A blog on Stamps, FDCs and Postcards by Comm. Vijay kapre.

Philately News – http://philatelynews.com/ - A website on new issues of the world.

Indian Stamp Ghar - http://www.indianstampghar.com/ - A site on Indian and world stamps.

The British Postal Museum & Archive - http://postalheritage.wordpress.com/

The British Postal Museum & Archive illuminates the lives of people in the Post Office, the messages carried by Royal Mail & the history through the Post.

Philatelic Clubs & Societies

Baroda Philatelic Society - http://www.vadophil.org/

Eastern India Philatelists’ Association - http://www.filacapsule.blogspot.com/

Indian Stamp Ghar - http://www.indianstampghar.com/

Indian Thematic Society, Ludhiana - http://indianthematicstamps.webs.com/

Mobile Philately - http://www.mobilephilately.webs.com/

Rainbow Stamp Club - http://rainbowstampclub.blogspot.com/

South India Philatelists Association - http://www.sipa.org.in/

Stamps of India - http://www.stampsofindia.com/

The Lighter Side

Getting down and dirty over stamps: 'Mauritius'

Playwright Theresa Rebeck has authored a taut little drama about the arcane world of philately. That's stamp collecting, for those of us who are strangers to the hobby. In her play, on stage at New Milford's TheatreWorks, five characters go at each other with a zeal so laced with expletives, you know the stakes are high. That's the monetary stakes in a particular set of rare stamps.

The jackpot in question is the Mauritius "Post Office" issues, a treasure worth millions. They are inherited by two half-sisters, Jackie (Arielle Uppaluri) and Mary (Tracy Hurd). Naturally, the potential monetary fortune lures scammers to the prize like moths to a flame or, if you happen to be in such an unlikely place as Tanzania, like hyenas to disabled antelopes.

Rebeck could have just as well wound her play around the lure of lucre sniffed out by such types as Enron executives, Bernie Madoff, unregulated oil barons, or bank officials peddling sub-prime mortgages. When the con men are afoot, the game is, much of the time, surprisingly the same -- only the wallpaper changes.

In "Mauritius" three men, Dennis (Aaron Kaplan), Phillip (Mike Ritts), and Sterling (Viv Berger) conspire to capitalize on the opportunity to secure the treasured stamps. As it turns out, each of them has a very different strategy about making the most of the opportunity of bilking Jackie out of them. Interactions among the five characters reach a pitch of intensity in frantic attempts to enrich themselves.

Sterling is an old hand at professional scamming. When he realizes the value of the stamps in Jackie's possession, he appears with a valise full of money, obviously far less than the value of the stamps would be on the open market.

Phillip assumes the role of brokering the deal between Jackie and Sterling, although his designs for self-enhancement are scuttled by his developing attraction to her. Dennis has a rather different strategy for financial improvement. Of the three men, his is the subtlest, and audiences will have to see the show to discover what it is.

Director Sonny Osborne has provided skilled guidance for each of her performers. They acquit themselves well in a play that nonetheless amounts to little more than a round robin of wrangling over money. Jackie becomes more frustrated and biting as her plans to sell the stamps falter, while Sterling becomes enraged and physically abusive as he sees his own scheme go up in smoke.

The half-sisters have at each other as if family ties were a thing of the past, while Phillip's penchant for arbitration and brokering a deal falters. Only Dennis maintains a façade of being above the fray, although he eventually shows his conniving side.

The show is an enjoyable, if not especially uplifting, drama about people. Nor does it explore more important social issues. Greed, as is its wont, can turn up in the most unexpected places, like philately. I suppose that's as likely a stamping ground for it as any other.

http://www.ctpost.com/news/article/Getting-down-and-dirty-over-stamps-Mauritius-519267.php

Promotional section

Postal Auction

Indian Thematic Society has organised "ITS Postal Auction No.49" with 126 Lots of India & overseas items. Last date is 10.7.2010, for further information write to indianthematicsociety@gmail.com

http://itsstampnews.blogspot.com/

Recent Special Covers from Himachal Pradesh

Four special covers, recently issued by HP Circle are now available at cost price ( Rs 10 each) . Those who wish to get a set of these covers by Speed Post may send Money Order for Rs 70 with complete Postal Address in capital letters to the address given below. The complete set contains four special covers ( 2 sp covers issued in Shimla and one each issued at Dharamshala & Kullu)

Contact address -

Mr Govind Ram, C/o Conservator of Forests, Great Himalayan National Park, Shamshi,

Distt Kullu. PIN 175126 (HP)

Current Philatelic Magazines – Newsletters

-Stamp of India Collectors’ Companion - India’s first and most updated weekly e-newsletter edited by Madhukar and Savita Jhingan from Stamps of India, New Delhi. E-mail: mjhingan@yahoo.com Website: www.stampsofindia.com

ITS Stamp News - Quarterly - Editor: Suraj Jaitly Publisher: Indian Thematic Society website - http://itsstampnews.blogspot.com/

VADOPHIL, Editor - Prashant Pandya and published by Baroda Philatelic Society, Vadodara. Website -http://www.vadophil.org/

e ZEP Newsletter Editor : Dieter Leder email zpj@arcor.de website www.eZEP.de

SIPA Bulletin (2009 Joint Issue ) edited by Mr G. Madan Mohan Das and published by South India Philatelists’ Association, Chennai website : http://www.sipa.org.in/

FILA Capsule – Editor : Ajit Dash and published by EIPA, Bhubaneshwar.

GPA News – Editor- Ilias Patel and published by Gujarat Philatelists’ Association, Ahemadabad.

Kar Phila News published by Karnataka Philatelic Society & edited by by Akshay Borad E –Mail : akshayborad@hotmail.com

Editor’s Mail Box

Capt Vijay Wadhwa , Ahmedabad

Big Thanks for the wonderful edition .All kudos to you.

Dr Avinash B. Jagtap, Switzerland

I have gone through "Rainbow Stamp News" .Liked the interview with Mr. Sekhar Chakrabarty.,

Praful Thakkar, USA

Rainbow News letter of June was superb!
Interview of Mr Shekhar was really excellent. It was inspiring too. Your Questions are so positive and deep that they bring out the best from the personality whom you are interviewing. I think it is God's gift to you. I pray to God that HE may bless you with more and more energy and enthusiasm to serve the Universe!

Naresh Agarwal, Bilaspur CG

This time the issue is even better. Though it missed the flowering fragrance of Dr. Satyendra Agrawal but it is bestowed with the eternal essence of Kumbh Mela.Interview with Mr. Chakravorty is nice but information about results of LONDON 2010 is well presented.

RAINBOW STAMP CLUB

This is a blog of e-stamp Club www.rainbowstampclub.blogspot.com . The idea of this blog is to extend philatelic fraternity in all corners of the world. Readers may write about themselves with their collecting interests and share new ideas with other philatelists. Those who are interested may send following details for publication on blog. If they wish they may also send their photo for publication. New Post on recent issues, news on stamp activities and Contribution by members are published everyday on this blog.

Name…………………………………………

City/Country………………………………..

E-Mail………………………………………..

Postal Address…………………………….

Collecting Interests……………………….

Brief write up about yourself……………

Readers may also express their views on any philatelic matter which will be published under Club News at Rainbow Stamp Cub Blog. Philatelic Clubs and Societies may also send brief write ups. News about new issues of India and abroad and other information related with Philately are regularly posted on this blog. Readers may send reports on new issues, special covers, cancellations & philatelic activities of their area for inclusion in this Blog. - Editor

Courtesy- News and Image Resource to this issue - Stamps of India, International Stamp News ; Dr SK Sondhi, Ludhiana; Srinivasan Thevarayan –Klang , Malaysia ; Pradip Jain, Patna; Mansoor B. – Mangalore : Prashant Pandya – Vadodara; Bret Janik – Czech Republic; Dr Eli Moallem- Israel; Deepak Modi –Mobile Philately

Address for communication:

Mrs. Jeevan Jyoti, c / o Mr. Ajay Srivastav, Director, Great Himalayan National Park, Shamshi, Kullu (H.P.) PIN 175126 India

E-mail – j.jyoti9@gmail.com or rainbowstamp2008@gmail.com

Last date for receiving write ups – 25th of every month. Kindly send images in jpg compressed format & text in MS Word only.

If you liked this issue please forward it to your friends and help in promoting philately.

A Request to Readers & Contributors-

Please do not send the text in scan form. Send your write ups in MS Word only.

Kindly specify your contribution such as article/News/ Reader’s Right /Beginners’ Section/ Lighter Side etc.

Please do not send forwarded messages for promotional section if you want to give any information for promotion please write personally with brief write up. As this newsletter is not used for any commercial purpose in any manner.

Attention -
Please send limited number of images in compressed jpg format only with your article. Please send text and images separately. Please do not send text or image for publication in PDF.