As per the quick survey undertaken by ASSOCHAM-Social Development Foundation (ASDF), the sale has come down due to advent of e-cards, popularity of social networking sites, use of SMS, MMS and phone calls.

This is also reflected in the fact that postal department is handling less number of cards this year. Earlier, the postal department used to handle about 8,000 post cards and greeting cards per day during Diwali but now the number is 500, reveals the survey.

"There has been a decrease in the number of people sending cards. But there is a selected group of people who still prefer sending cards. To ensure that the sending procedure is smooth, this time we have introduced different trays in 24 high-density post offices," said R K Jayabhaye, director Postal Services. "But the business mail section has still the same frequency as earlier as they need to keep up the personal touch," added Jayabhaye.

Around 55 per cent of the survey respondents fall under the age bracket of 20-29 years, followed by 30-39 years (26 per cent), 40-49 years (16 per cent), 50-59 years (2 per cent) and 60-69 years (approximately 1 per cent). The survey was done in cities like Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Hyderabd, Pune, Chandigarh, Dehradun.