How Pin Codes Work?

What is a PIN Code? (Postal Index Number)

A Postal Index Number or PIN or pin code is a code in the post office numbering or post code system used by India Post, the Indian postal administration. The code is six digits long.

The PIN Code system was introduced on 15 August 1972. The system was introduced to simplify the manual sorting and delivery of mail by eliminating confusion over incorrect addresses, similar place names, and different languages used by the public.

We found a total of 26 post offices linked with the postal code 110001. This PIN Code is associated with the Central Delhi district of Delhi in India. The first digit of ZIP Code 110001 i.e. 1 represents the region of Delhi, the second digit 1 denotes the sub-region, and the third digit 0 indicates the sorting district of Central Delhi.

Source: https://www.icbse.com

The first digit of the PIN CODE indicates below:

First Digit	Region	States Covered
1	Northern	Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, and Jammu & Kashmir
2	Northern	Uttar Pradesh and Uttaranchal
3	Western	Rajasthan and Gujarat
4	Western	Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, and Chattisgarh
5	Southern	Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka
6	Southern	Kerala and Tamil Nadu
7	Eastern	West Bengal, Orissa, and North Eastern
8	Eastern	Bihar and Jharkhand
9	APS	Army Postal Service

Let us check the above example Pin code. The pin code 456001 is from Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh. The first three digits of the PIN represent a specific geographical region called a sorting district that is headquartered at the main post office of the largest city and is known as the sorting office. So in this case it’s in Ujjain. A state may have one or more sorting districts depending on the volumes of mail handled.

The fourth digit represents the route on which a Delivery office is located in the sorting district. This is 0 for offices in the core area of the sorting district.

The last two digits represent the delivery office within the sorting district starting from 01 which would be the General Post Office or Head Office. The numbering of the delivery office is done chronologically with higher numbers assigned to newer delivery offices. If the volume of mail handled at a delivery office is too large, a new delivery office is created and the next available PIN is assigned. Thus two delivery offices situated next to each other will only have the first four digits in common.

The first 2 digits of the PIN CODE indicates below:

First 2 Digits of the PIN CODE	Circle
11	Delhi
12 and 13	Haryana
14 to 16	Punjab
17	Himachal Pradesh
18 to 19	Jammu & Kashmir
20 to 28	Uttar Pradesh and Uttaranchal
30 to 34	Rajasthan
36 to 39	Gujarat
40 to 44	Maharashtra
45 to 49	Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh
50 to 53	Andhra Pradesh
56 to 59	Karnataka
60 to 64	Tamil Nadu
67 to 69	Kerala
70 to 74	West Bengal
75 to 77	Orissa
78	Assam
79	North Eastern
80 to 85	Bihar and Jharkhand
90 to 99	Army Postal Service (APS)

FAQs on How India’s PIN Code Works?

What is a PIN code?

A Postal Index Number (PIN) code is a six-digit code used by India Post in the Indian postal code system.

How many digits are present in a PIN code?

A PIN code consists of 6 digits.

How can I find my PIN code?

You can visit https://www.indiapost.gov.in/vas/pages/findpincode.aspx to find your PIN code.

How many postal zones are present in India?

India has a total of nine postal zones.

When was the PIN code system introduced in India?

Shriram Bhikaji Velankar introduced the PIN code system on 15 August 1972.