Did You Know That Antarctica and Panaji in Goa Share a PIN code?

By Krystelle Dsouza 29 May 2025

If you want to post a letter to Antarctica, well, go ahead and use the PIN code of Panaji in Goa.

The two starkly opposite places are united by a six-digit figure — 403001.

How did that ever happen? Here’s the story.

In 1983, India’s first permanent research station in Antarctica, Dakshin Gangotri, was established.

A year later, in 1984, a post office at Dakshin Gangotri was created. This was the first post office outside the Indian subcontinent.

But while a post office meant letters could be sent by the families of the researchers to them, the question was how do you post a letter to Antarctica?

The answer lies in — just post it to Goa instead. When you write the 403001 PIN code on the letter, it will be sent to the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research at Vasco, the port town of Goa.

All the letters will be handed over to a researcher who is heading to Antarctica.

Rest assured, your letters will be delivered safely.

Sudipta Sengupta, one of the first women to be part of the scientific expedition to Antarctica in 1983-84, who was part of the team that set up the research station at Dakshin Gangotri, told TOI, “Thousands of letters have been received from different parts of the world. We used to carry loads of letters from India, and I cancelled them in Antarctica with a special stamp.”

In 1990, the Dakshin Gangotri research station was decommissioned and replaced by Maitri. Maitri too bears the Panaji PIN code.

Go ahead and write a letter using the 403001 and test it for yourself!