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READING MATERIAL
th st
(A compilation for OPFA course in HIPA w.e.f 17 Dec to 21 Dec, 2018)
by
Virender Sharma, HAS
(Joint Secretary- Housing+ Training &FA+ Coop)+ AD(UD)
Definitions
 Appendix to correspondence in relation to file-Lengthy enclosures to a communication
(whether receipt or issue) on the file, inclusion of which in the correspondence portion is
likely to obstruct smooth reading of the correspondence or make the correspondence
portion unwieldy.
 Appendix to notes in relation to file-A statement containing detailed information
concerning certain aspects about the question/matter discussed in the notes, incorporation
of which in the main note is likely to obscure the main point or make the note
unnecessarily lengthy.
 Assistants or Dealing Assistant includes “Senior Assistants‖, ―Junior Assistants‖, ―Clerks”
or any other “official‖ who deals with receipts and submit cases to the Section Officers or
Superintendents.
 Branch - The Unit of a Department and may comprise of couple of Sections/Units/Cells.
 Branch Officer-The officer who takes the work directly from the section. This term also
includes the middle-level officers in Directorates/ Collectorates /Divisional or Regional
offices such as Additional, Joint, Deputy /Assistant Directors/Registrars; Additional Deputy
Commissioners; Additional District Magistrates; Assistant Commissioners; Establishment
Officers, Administrative officers, Registrars etc. In case of Secretariat, Branch officer means
Under Secretary and above who takes work from the Branch.
 Case -A current file on which either an independent proposal is processed or a receipt
called Paper under Consideration (PUC) dealing with a particular issue is dealt with. It
includes all inter-connected correspondence or Fresh Receipts (FRs) relating to the PUC.
 Classified Dak - Dak bearing a security grading.
 Citizen‗s/Client‗s Charter - Document which represents a systematic effort to focus on the
commitment of the Organization towards Citizens/Clients in respect of Standard of
Services, Information, Choice and Consultation, Non-discrimination and Accessibility,
Grievances Redress, Courtesy and Value for Money. This also includes expectations of the
Organization from the Citizen/Client for fulfilling the commitment of the Organization.
 Come-back case - Case received back for further action such as re-examination or
preparing a draft or a summary of the case.
 Central Registry/ Registry -A Unit/Section charged with the responsibility of receiving
registering and distributing dak meant for the Secretariat/ Directorate/Collectorate/Office.
etc.
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 Correspondence portion in relation to a file -The portion containing receipts and office
copies of letters/communications issued including self contained inter-department notes
but excluding those recorded on the notes portion of the file.
 C.R.No / Diary No.-The serial number assigned to a communication in the receipt register
or REFNIC number of the Central Registry/Diary section.
 Dak-Every type of written communication including letter, telegram, savingram, telex, fax,
e-Mail, wireless message, inter departmental note, file, which is received, whether by post
or otherwise, in the Secretariat/ Directorate/Collectorate or other office for its
consideration.
 Department-Any of the departments mentioned in the schedule to the business of the
government of Himachal Pradesh (Allocation) Rules,1971 as amended from time to time.
 Departmental instructions - Instructions issued by a department to supplement or vary the
provisions of the Manual of Office Procedure.
 Diarist-An official within a section/office charged with the responsibility, inter-alia, of
maintaining the Section diary.
 Diarising-Registering of receipts in the central Registry or Section Diary or office diary.
 Diary Number-The serial number assigned to a receipt by the REFNIC application or by
the Section/Branch/Office diary register followed by code letters identifying the name of
department and section.
 Docketing -Making of entries in the notes portion of a file about serial number, diary
number (for receipts) and page No. assigned to each item of correspondence (whether
receipt or issue) for its identification.
 Electronic mode-Includes modern electronic means of communications like e-mail,
videoconferencing, fax, SMS etc.
 File-A collection of papers on a specific subject matter assigned to a file number and
consisting of one or more of the following parts:-

(a) Correspondence. (b) Notes (c) Appendix to correspondence (d) Appendix to notes.

 Final disposal in relation to a case under consideration-Completion of all action thereon

culminating, where necessary, in the issue of final orders or final reply to the issues raised
by the person/party/office from which the original communication emanated.
 Fresh receipt (FR)-Any subsequent receipt on a case which brings in additional
information to assist and aid the disposal of a paper under consideration.
 Indexing' of a file-Indicating its title under appropriate catchwords arranged in their
alphabetical order followed by the File Number to facilitate its retrieval.
 Issue or Issue of draft including all steps of action after the approval of a draft ending with
despatch of the signed communication to the addressee e.g. fair typing, comparing,
attaching enclosures, signatures, preparing covers, making entries in the despatch
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registers/messenger or peon books, affixing stamps and posting in the letter box or delivery
through dak messengers/peons.
 Messenger Book or Peon Book-A record maintained in a standard Book/register on the
prescribed form containing particulars of non-postal communications and their receipt by
the addressee.
 Note-The remark recorded on a case to facilitate its disposal and includes a précis of
previous papers, a statement or analyses of questions requiting decision, suggestions
regarding the course of action and final orders passed thereon.
 Notes or Noting portion in relation to a file-The portion containing notes or minutes
recorded on a case.
 Ordinary postal Dak–The postal dak for which no specific acknowledgment is obtained by
the Posts and Telegraphs Department.
 Paper Under Consideration (PUC)-A receipt on a case, the consideration of which is the
subject matter of the case.
 Personal Staff-Any staff appointed/posted to assist a functionary and includes Principal
Private Secretary, Senior Special Private Secretary, or Special Private Secretary or Senior
Private Secretary, Private Secretary, Personal Assistant, Stenographer, and Steno typist. An
Assistant or clerk or any other clerical staff posted in the offices of the Chief Minister,
Ministers or Officers, when performing the duties expected of the personal staff is also
covered under this term.
 Postal dak-All dak received through the Posts and Telegraphs Department.
 Receipt-Any dak after it has been received by the concerned office/section.
 Record - Information preserved in a physical medium / something set down in writing or
other permanent form for future reference.
 Recording means the process of closing a file after action on all the issues considered
thereon has been completed and includes actions like referencing, paging and linking the
part/loose files of the same number with the main file, removing routine papers, revising
the file title, changing the file cover, if need be, and stitching the file.
 Reference folder on a particular subject - A folder containing copies of relevant rules,
orders, instructions, etc., arranged in chronological order for ready reference.
 Routine note means a note of a temporary value or ephemeral importance recorded
outside the file, e.g., a record of casual discussion or a note on a point of secondary
importance intended to facilitate consideration of the case by higher officers.
 Secretariat Offices - Offices responsible for formulation of the policies of the government
and also for the execution, monitoring and review of those policies.
 Section means the basic work unit within a Department of the Secretariat/ Directorate/
Collectorate /other office, responsible for attending to items of work allotted to it. It is
generally headed by a Section Officer/ Superintendent Grade I/Superintendent Grade-II
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and in some offices, clerks, Assistants, senior Assistant, and includes cells, units and other
like terms.
 Security grading means security marking of classified documents as Confidential, Secret,
Top Secret or Restricted.
 Standing guard file on a subject means a compilation consisting of the following three parts:
 A running summary of the principles and policy relating to the subject with number
and date of relevant decisions or orders quoted in margin against each;
 Copies of the decisions or orders referred to, arranged in chronological order; and
 Model forms of communications to be used at different stages.
 Supervisory Officers normally includes:—
 Branch Officer in the Secretariat are Under Secretaries, Deputy Secretaries, Joint
Secretaries, Additional Secretaries and Sepecial Secretaries where they receive files
directly from the Sections;
 Middle level Officers in Directorates, Collectorates, Regional, Divisional or
District level offices such as Additional/Joint/Deputy/Assistant Directors;
Controllers, Registrar; Administrative Officers/Registrars or Establishment Officers;
Additional Deputy Commissioners, Addl. District Magistrates, Assistant
Commissioners, District Revenue Officers etc.;
 Section Officers/Superintendents Grade-I in the Secretariat, Directorates,
Collectorates, Divisional or Regional Office who supervise the work of a section of
the Department or Directorate or Collectorate or Divisional or Regional Office;
 Superintendents Grade-II or Senior Assistants working in any office who do
supervisory work and submit the cases to the Branch Officers either directly or
through the Section Officers/Superintendents Grade-I.
 Urgent/Important/immediate dak etc. means dak marked as urgent, important, immediate
or Priority etc. and includes telegrams, savingrams, wireless messages, telex or fax
messages, SMS Gateway, e-mail etc.

Important issues in Office Procedure/Management

 The business of the Govt. is transacted in accordance with the rules made by the Governor
under clauses (2) and (3) of Article 166 of the Constitution. Accordingly the following
Rules have been framed under Article 166 (2) and (3) of the Constitution for the conduct
of business of the Himachal Pradesh Government:-
 The Rules of Business of the Govt. of Himachal Pradesh, 1971, as amended from
time to time; and
 The Business of the Govt. of Himachal Pradesh (Allocation) Rules, 1971 as amended
from time to time.
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 The allocation of business amongst the Ministers is made separately under clause (3) of
Article 166 of the Constitution. The entire business/ working of the Government is
regulated under the aforesaid provisions of the Rules and the orders issued there under.
 The Constitution (Ninety-First Amendment) Act, 2003 has amended Article 164 of the
Constitution to include, inter-alia, fixing the total numbers of the Council of Ministers.
The total number of Ministers including Chief Minister shall be twelve for Himachal
Pradesh.
 National Flag is being regulated by Flag Code of India. The National Flag of India shall be
made of hand spun and hand woven wool/cotton/silk khadi bunting. The National Flag
shall be rectangular in shape. The ratio of the length to the height (width) of the Flag shall
be 3:2.
 The standard sizes(in mm) of the National flag are given below:-
Flag Size No. Dimensions in mm Flag size No. Dimensions in mm
(1) 6300 x 4200 (2) 3600 x 2400 (3) 2700 x 1800 (4) 1800 x 1200
(5) 1350 x 900 (6) 900 x600 (7) 450x300 (8) 225 x 150 (9) 150x100
The smallest size is intended for motor cars.
 If flown on a speaker‗s platform, the Flag shall be on the speaker‗s right. If otherwise
displayed, the Flag shall be above and behind the speaker.
 When the Flag is displayed on a motor car, it shall be flown from a staff affixed either on
the middle front of bonnet or to the front right side of the car.
 During the ceremony of hoisting or lowering the Flag or when the Flag is passing in a
parade or in a review, all persons present should face the Flag and stand at attention. Those
present in uniform should render the appropriate salute. When the Flag is in a moving
column, persons present will stand at attention or salute as the Flag passes them. A
dignitary may take the salute without a head dress.
 When a foreign dignitary is seated in a motor-car along with a dignitary entitled to fly the
National Flag, the Flag of the foreign V.I.P. will be flown on the left side of the car and the
National Flag will be flown on the right side.
 The playing time of full version of the National Anthem sis approximately 52 seconds.
 Playing time of the short version is above 20seconds. The short version of the Anthem
shall be played when drinking toasts in Messes.
 All official functions presided over by the Chief Minister and Ministers should start with
the singing of the National song ―Vande Mataram‖ and end with the singing of the
National Anthem accompanied by mass singing.
 The Anthem may be sung on occasions which, although not strictly ceremonial, are
nevertheless invested with significance because of the presence of Ministers, etc. The
singing of the Anthem on such occasions (with or without the accompaniment of an
instrument) is desirable. On all occasions when the National Anthem is sung, the full
version shall be recited.
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 The Secretariat has to assist and provide support to the Council of Ministers in discharging
its constitutional obligations and in taking policy decisions. The actual implementation of
policies and programmes is executed by the field staff of the various Departments
controlled by the Directorates. In the official hierarchy, Secretariat is the premier office of
the Government in which all Government policies, programmers, plans, rules and
instructions of uniform application are framed, approved and finally issued for
implementation.
 The Secretariat is divided into Departments. The Chief Secretary to the Government
controls the over-all functioning of the Secretariat. The Chief Secretary is also the
Secretary to the Council of Ministers.
 Rule 2 of Allocation Rules, 1971 provides that the entire business of the Government shall
be transacted in the Departments.
 The Schedule to the Allocation Rules, 1971 contains names of all Departments of the
Govt. as also the distribution of subjects amongst the Departments.
 The Rules of Business also empower the officers of the Secretariat of the designation of
Under Secretary and above to authenticate orders and instruments made or executed in the
name of the Governor.
 All decisions whether approved by the Council of Ministers, Minister-in-charge, the
Secretary or below under the provisions of the Rules of Business of the Government of
Himachal Pradesh, 1971 are required to be expressed to be made in the name of the
Governor.
 The Directorates are the essential links between the Secretariat and the District offices, as
they have the role of devising ways and means for implementing Government
policies/programmes through the field offices. The Directorates are headed by Directors,
who are the Heads of Departments declared as such under the Budget Manual. They are
responsible for execution and implementation of policies, programmes, plans, Acts, Rules
etc. laid down by the govt. besides providing technical advice to the Administrative
Departments.
 Each District has an office of the Deputy Commissioner, who is also the District
Collector/District Magistrate known as the Collectorate. The Deputy Commissioner is the
Head of the district administration and is responsible for the law and order besides all
round developmental activities.
 Some Departments have their Regional/Divisional/Zonal level offices, which are above the
District level offices and below the Heads of Department. They co-ordinate the activities
of the Region/Division/Zone level of the Department and exercise control over the
officers/officials employed within the Districts under their jurisdiction.
 Fundamental Rule 11 provides that unless in any case it be otherwise distinctly provided,
the whole time of a Government servant is at the disposal of the Government which pays
him and he may be employed in any manner required by proper authority without claim
for additional remuneration.
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 Proviso under Fundamental Rule 17 (1) provides that an officer who is absent from duty
without any authority shall not be entitled to any pay and allowances during the period of
such absence.
 Rule 4-A- of C.C.S. (Conduct) Rules - No Government servant shall encroach upon
Government land himself or through/by his family members.
 Rules 9 provides that no Govt. servant shall in any radio broadcast or in any document
published in his own name or anonymously, pseudonymously or in the name of any other
person or in any communication to the press or in any public utterance, make any
statement of fact or opinion-
(i) which has the effect of adverse criticism of any current policy or action of
the Central/State Govt; or
(ii) which is capable of embarrassing the relations between the Central and
the State Government.
 Rule 13 places restrictions on acceptance of gifts by the Government servant himself and
on his permitting any member of his family to accept gifts, accept gifts on specified
occasions and that too up to the monetary value prescribed in the rule.
 Rule 13-A provides that no Govt. servant shall give or take or abet the giving or taking of
dowry directly or indirectly from the parents or guardians of the bride or bridegroom.
 Rule 18 and 18-A require submission of return of assets and liabilities on first appointment
and return of movable and immovable and valuable property at such intervals as may be
prescribed by the Government. The procedure for acquiring movable and immovable
property during the service period is also prescribed in these rules.
 Rule 20 forbids a Government servant from bringing or attempting to bring any political or
other outside influence to bear upon any superior authority to further his interests in
respect of matters pertaining to his service under the Government. It is important to note
that bringing political or other pressure even for matters relating to transfers attracts
provisions of this Rule.
 Rule 22 places restrictions on the consumption of drinks and drugs and provide that
Government servant shall:-
(a) strictly abide by any law relating to intoxicating drinks or drugs in force in any
area in which he may happen to be for the time being;
(b) not be under the influence of any intoxicating drink or dug during the course
of his duty and shall also take due care that the performance of his duties at any time is not
affected in any way by the influence of such drink or drug;
(c) refrain from consuming any intoxicating drink or drug in a public place;
(d) not appear in a public place in a state of intoxication; and
(e) not use any intoxicating drink or drug in excess.
 No member of the staff shall submit on any subject connected with the office his
application for leave or his representation direct to the Governor/Chief Minister/
Minister/Chief Secretary/Secretary/Special Secretary/Additional Secretary/Joint
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Secretary/Deputy Secretary/Under Secretary or Head of the Department/office. Such

communications should be sent through proper channel.
 Representations should not be made jointly.
 Office hours unless otherwise specified are from 10.A.M. to 5 P.M . with a half-an –hour
lunch break from 1.30.P.M. to 2 P.M. .Any member of the staff may, however, be required
to work beyond office hours or on holidays (except Independence Day and the Republic
Day), if his work is not up-to-date or the business of the Department demands. The
Branch/Section-in-charge is authorised to require him to do so on such occasions.
 Employees attendance register will be kept in each Branch/Unit. On arrival in office all
employees will mark their attendance in this register. It will be removed from the office and
placed before the Branch Officer/Senior Officer at 10.10 A.M. Any member of the staff
arriving after 10.10 A.M. will report himself to the Branch officer/Senior Officer and give
the reasons for his late attendance verbally or in writing. For late attendance or short leave,
the following deductions should be made from the casual leave account of the official:-
Upto 2 hours 1/3rd of a day
Upto 3-1/2 hours ½ of a day
 Absence without leave is an infringement of discipline, which, unless satisfactory
explanation is submitted, will be severely dealt with. Leave must be applied for and
sanctioned before it is taken. It is only in cases of sudden and serious illness, or other
exceptional circumstances to be proved to the satisfaction of the officer concerned that the
rule can be relaxed.
 Personal Staff and Peons attached to officers should not leave office or proceed on leave
without the prior permission of concerned Officer.
 Casual leave will not ordinarily be granted for more than eight days at a time. Casual leave
shall not be combined with any other kind of leave. This may, however, be combined with
restricted holidays, or gazetted holidays. Casual Leave on medical grounds for more than
two days will not be allowed without a medical certificate. Casual leave can also be applied
through email. Section Officer/Superintendent Grade-I can grant short-leave, casual leave
to the subordinate staff posted in the section not exceeding a spell of four days at a time
and to grant station leave (in case of Secretariat)
 The Head of a Department/Office, Section Officer and Superintendent may order in the
interest of work that the whole or part of the office shall remain open on any holiday.
 All dak, except those addressed to the officers by name, will be opened by the Central
Registry/diary section.
 Covers bearing security marking if not addressed to an officer by name will be opened by
the Section-in-charge and will be dealt with by him.
 Receipts missent to the department will not be diarised but returned promptly to the
department concerned.
 Urgent dak is to be separated from other dak and is to be dealt with first.
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 While submitting a case, the papers will be arranged in the following order from top
downwards:-
(1) reference books; (2) notes portion of the current file ending with the last note for
consideration; (3) running summary of the facts, if added; (4) draft for approval, if
added; (5) correspondence portion of the current file ending with the latest
communication dealt with (i.e. receipt or issue) as the case may be; (6) appendix to
notes and appendix to correspondence; (7) standing guard file or precedent register, if
added; (8) other papers, if any, referred to e.g. extracts of notes or correspondence
from other files, routine notes, copies of orders, gazettes etc. arranged in chronological
order; (9) recorded files, if any, arranged in chronological order.
 Every page in each part of the file (viz. notes, correspondence, appendix to notes, and
appendix to correspondence) are to be consecutively numbered in separate series in ink.
The page numbering is to be done at the right hand corner of the pages. Blank intervening
pages, if any, are not to be numbered.
 On the top of the note-sheet the page number of the note-sheet and the file number should
be recorded. This helps in linking of note-sheets in the proper sequence.
 The reference slips (flags) are to be pinned neatly on the inside of the paper sought to be
flagged. When a number of papers put up in a case are to be flagged, the slips (flags) will be
spread over the entire width of the file so that every slip is easily visible.
 Normally urgency labels are to be used when required on cases viz. ―Top Priority‖,
“Priority‖, “Most Immediate”, “Immediate”, “Time Bound”.
 Files marked ―Top Secret‖, “Secret‖ or “Confidential‖ should not be allowed to move in
routine but should be sent “by hand ― or in a sealed cover.
 Manual handwritten noting must be dispensed with. All notes shall be computer typed
using a standardized format [Paper Size - Legal; Margins - Left Margin 2.1”, Right Margin
1‖, Top Margin 1” and Bottom Margin 2‖; Pages - Mirror Margins] with line spacing of 1.5
and font size of 12 in Times New Roman or Calibri.
 In the margin, nothing except the Note No. and the identification of flags should be
written.
 Two centimeters of space should be left on the top and at the bottom of the note sheet.
 A note continued on to a new leaf/side should mention „continued on
page_______/overleaf‘ on the previous leaf/side, and „continued from page____________
on to the new leaf/side, as the case may be, so that the continuity of the note is not lost.
 The use of abbreviations which are un-common should be avoided. In case such an
abbreviation have to be used because it occurs several times in a note, the expanded form
should be given the first time with the abbreviation in brackets.
 Short sentences should be preferred to long ones.
 The concluding portion of the note should not end at the bottom of the note sheet. If the
dealing assistant apprehends such a situation, then he should take over the last line to the
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next page, so that there is sufficient space left for the Supervisory Officers to write their
notes etc.
 Two extra blank note-sheets (courtesy sheets) should be added to the noting portion after
completing the note.
 Manual handwritten drafts must be dispensed with. All drafts shall be computer typed
using a standardized format [Paper Size - Letter/ A4; Margins -Left Margin 1‖, Right
Margin 1‖, Top Margin 1‖ and Bottom Margin 1‖; Printing -Duplex Mode] with line
spacing of 1.5 and font size of 12 in Times New Roman or Calibri.
 Different forms of written communication are used by a department for different modes of
correspondence. The different forms of correspondence are as under;
(1) E-mail
(2) Letter
(3) Office Memorandum
(4) Demi-Official letter
(5) Un-Official Memorandum/ Note
(6) Memorandum
(7) Office Order
(8) Order
(9) Notification
(10) Resolution
(11) Press communiqué/Note
(12) Endorsement
(13) Fax message
(14) Telephonic Communications.
(15) SMS Gateway

E-Mail
 While writing e-mail be careful to differentiate between Cc(carbon copy) and Bcc(Blind
carbon copy). Cc section must be used if exact copy of the e-mail is intended to be sent to
multiple recipients. For entering multiple e-mail addresses of the recipients use semi-colon
(;) to separate each email address. Bcc option too is for sending e-mail to multiple
recipients. Under the Bcc option, the e-mail is delivered individually to all the recipients
whereas under Cc option, the email is delivered to all the recipients as a group. In other
words, the recipients will get to know the email address of the other recipients of the email
if Cc option is used, whereas an email sent using Bcc will deliver e-mail individually to each
recipient thereby protecting the identity of other recipients of the email.
 Cautions while using e mail-
 Have an e -mail address that is mature and professional sounding
 Include an appropriate subject line
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 Use your manners!

 Address your recipient appropriately
 Be aware of your tone
 Get to the point
 Avoid emoticons, abbreviations, and fancy formatting
 Use proper spelling, grammar and punctuation
 Include your full name, designation, contact details, at the bottom of your e-mail
 While writing e mail to senior officers always ask which e mail id the mail is to be
sent to. If in doubt, confirm from the personal staff.

Telephonic communication

 Keep the time in mind

 Avoid calling right at closing time. If you have been given permission to contact someone at
his or her personal telephone number, never call before 8 am or after 9 pm
 Be polite to everyone with whom you speak
 Identify yourself
 Ask if this is a good time to talk
 Use a friendly tone and greeting
 Speak clearly
 Always ask permission before placing someone on speaker phone or on hold
 End calls on a pleasant note
 Being over-friendly while dealing with official matters is a bad sign.
 Do not allow cell phone interruptions
 Never put senior officers on hold unless it is absolutely necessary.
 While making calls through personal staff, junior of the two officers should be on the line
first.
 While making official calls, always greet each other.
 Do not attend any other task while the other person on line.
 Calls should normally be made on the office numbers unless it is absolutely necessary to
call on the personal number. Calling on the personal number for official purpose in
considered offensive unless the situation so warrants.
 The Golden Rule for a good worker is, ―always maintain a diary; use it for noting all
important things‖. It is not only a record of all events but facilitates easy retrieval also.

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