The text on the Tranquebar postal cancellation stamp has recently been changed from TRANQUEBAR to THARANGEMBADI, most unfortunate for tourist purposes. By contrast Pondicherry has kept its French name on its stamp, not Puducherry as the town has now been renamed.
Stamps picturing blackbuck and painted stork as found in Point Calimere Reserve; the 2006 commemorative stamp depicting Pastor Bartholomaeus Ziegenbalg; and the Pondicherry cancellation stamp.
No commemorative stamps are sold from the Post Office even if a 5 Rupee stamp commemorating Bartholomaeus Ziegenbalg was issued in 2006, depicting the missionary in front of the New Jerusalem Church.
Recommendations
It is recommended to upgrade the Post Office, and to have a large signboard and a sign pointing to the Office.
Also the Post Office should sell postcards and commemorative stamps, and notably have a large stock of Ziegenbalg stamps.
It is suggested to change the text on the cancellation stamp back to TRANQUEBAR. As it has been possible for Pondicherry to preserve its French name on stamps, this should surely also be an option for Tranquebar - especially as Tranquebar has been decreed a heritage town.
It is further suggested that a series of commemorative stamps is issued featuring Tranquebar: The Fort, the Churches, the Governor’s House and the Town Gate. Unfortunately the 400 year anniversary of the founding of Tranquebar as a Danish trading post only arrives in 2020, but a rehabilitation of the Governor’s House or an upgrading of the Fort Museum could well warrant a stamp issue.
20. RELIGION AND CHURCHES
Findings
Tranquebar is almost completely free from inter-religious conflict and Protestants, Catholics, Muslims and Hindus interact freely, the only conflicts arising are internal differences between Hindu communities - and such conflicts will go unnoticed by visitors.