POGUIDE1

Organization

Clause 1.Control

Control – The Postal Department is under the administrative control of the Director General of Posts, New Delhi. The DG also functions as the Chairman of the Postal Board and Secretary of the Deptt. of Posts. For purposes of administration, the entire country has been divided into

Twenty Three Postal Circles under a postmaster general as shown below :

Circle===Headquarters===Territorial jurisdiction

1.Andhra Pradesh           

Headquarters:-Vijayawada(Amaravathi).             

Territorial jurisdiction:-Andhra Pradesh and Yanam

2.Assam              

Headquarters:-Guwahati            

Territorial jurisdiction:-Assam

3.Bihar 

Headquarters:-Patna-800001     

Territorial jurisdiction:-Bihar

4.Chattisgarh    

Headquarters:-Raipur   

Territorial jurisdiction:-Chattisgarh

5.Delhi

Headquarters:-New Delhi-110001           

Territorial jurisdiction:-Delhi

6.Gujarat  

Headquarters:-Ahmedabad-380020       

Territorial jurisdiction:-Gujarat, Daman, diu, Dadra and Nagar haveli

7.Haryana          

Headquarters:-Ambala-133001 

Territorial jurisdiction:-Haryana

8.Himachal Pradesh       

Headquarters:-Shimla   

Territorial jurisdiction:-Himachal Pradesh

9.Jammu and Kashmir  

Headquarters:-Srinagar-190001

Territorial jurisdiction:-Jammu and Kashmir

10.Jharkhand    

Headquarters:-Ranchi   

Territorial jurisdiction:-Jharkhand

11.Karnataka     

Headquarters:-Bangalore-560001            

Territorial jurisdiction:-Karnataka

12.Kerala            

Headquarters:-Tiruvananthapuram-695001        

Territorial jurisdiction:-Kerala, Lakshadweep and Mahe

13.Madhya Pradesh       

Headquarters:-Bhopal-460012  

Territorial jurisdiction:-Madhya Pradesh

14.Maharashtra               

Headquarters:-Mumbai-400001               

Territorial jurisdiction:-Maharashtra and Goa

15.North Eastern             

Headquarters:-Shillong-793001 

Territorial jurisdiction:-Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura

16.Orissa            

Headquarters:-Bhubaneshwar-751001  

Territorial jurisdiction:-Orissa

17.Punjab           

Headquarters:-Chandigarh         

Territorial jurisdiction:-Punjab, Chandigarh U.T

18.Rajasthan     

Headquarters:-Jaipur-302007    

Territorial jurisdiction:-Rajasthan

19.Tamilnadu   

Headquarters:-Chennai               

Territorial jurisdiction:-Tamilnadu, Pondicherry (except Yanam and Mahe)

20.Uttar Pradesh             

Headquarters:-Lucknow-226001              

Territorial jurisdiction:-Uttar Pradesh

21.Uttarakhand               

Headquarters:-Dehradun            

Territorial jurisdiction:-Uttarakhand

22.West Bengal               

Headquarters:-Kolkata 

Territorial jurisdiction:-West Bengal, Andam and Nicobar islands and Sikkim state

23.Telangana    

Headquarters:-Hyderabad-500001          

Territorial jurisdiction:-Telangana

(ii) In each Circle there are a number of Postal Divisions under the charge of Senior Superintendents or Superintendents of Post Offices who directly control the working of all the Post Offices under their jurisdiction. The R.M.S.(Railway Mail Service) Offices and Sections are similarly controlled by the Senior Superintendents orSuperintendents RMS in each Circle. The address of the local Senior Superintendent/Superintendent of the Post Offices or RMS can be ascertained from the Post Office or R.M.S. Office.

Note: – The Head of the Army Postal Services is the Director, Army Postal Services, Army Headquarters, Q.M.G.’s Branch, New Delhi-11.

Directory of Officers and Employees

Minister of Communications, Dak Bhawan,New Delhi-110001.

Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw=========Cabinet Minister

Shri Abhishek Kumar Singh=========Director

Dr. Mahatme Sandeep Namdeo=========Private Secretary

Shri Devusinh Chauhan=========Hon’ble Minister

Shri Jayesh N Raval=========Additional Private Secretary

Postal Services Board (Dak Bhawan)

Shri Vineet Pandey====Secretary, Department of Posts & Chairperson, Postal Services Board

Shri Alok Sharma====Director General(Posts)

Ms Aindri Anurag====Member (Operation)

Ms. Smita Kumar====Member (Technology)

Sh. Ashok Kumar Poddar====Additional Director General(Coordination), PSB

Shri S. Mervin Alexander====Member (Personnel)

Ms. K. Sandhya Rani====Member (Banking & DBT)

Ms. Alka Jha   Member (Planning & HRD)

Ms. Sandhya Rani (Additional Charge)         Member (PLI) & Chairman,PLI Investment Board

Sh.Anil Kumar Nayak====AS & FA

Sh Aman Sharma (Additional Charge) ====Secretary, Postal Services Board.

1. The Director General of Posts New Delhi ———-The administrative controller of Dept. of Posts India.
2. The Director General of Posts is the Chairman of the Postal Board. —-The Chairman of the Postal Board
3. The Director General of Posts is the secretary of the Dept. Of Posts—–The Secretary of the Department of Posts-India
4. The Superintendent or Senior Superintendent of Post Offices—-The in charge of Postal Division.
5. The Superintendent or Senior Superintendent RMS – Control the RMS offices and Sections.

2. Types of Offices

Post Offices are divided into three classes.

(a) Head Post Offices.

(b) Sub-Post Offices including E.D. Sub-Offices, and

(c) E.D. Branch Post Offices.

            The first two classes of offices normally transact all types of postal business. Facilities are generally provided at Branch Post Offices for the main items of postal work like delivery and dispatch of mails, booking of registered articles and parcels accepting SB deposits and effecting SB withdrawals, and issue and payment of money orders, though in a restricted manner.

            So for as the public is concerned, there is generally no difference in the character of the service rendered by Sub-Post Offices and Head Post Offices except in regard to a few P.O. Savings Bank transactions.

Certain Post Offices do not undertake all types of postal business. The restrictions imposed will be found in the list of Post Offices published as Part III of this Guide.

Note:- The Head Offices in the more important cities are in the charge of gazette officers and such Head Offices are referred to as First class Head Office, First Class Head Postmaster, exercise all the powers of a Superintendent of Post Offices in regard to their own offices.

Note:- Value-payable articles and money orders will not be booked to the address of Army Post Offices.

3. Night Post Offices

(i) The working hours of the post offices are generally fixed by the Head of the Circle according to the timings given in clause 5 of the Post Office Guide. However the Director-General may extend the working hours of any post office up to 8:30 P.M. and keep them open on Sundays also. These post offices will be termed ‘night post offices’ and will transact those transactions which have been authorized by the Director-General in this behalf.

(ii) During the extended hours, these post offices will generally book registered articles including V.P. articles, issue T.M.Os, and sell I.P.Os. and postage stamps. Deposits into Savings Bank Account and sale of cash certificates will be available upto7.00 p.m. on week days only. Payment of T.M.Os will also be effected up to 6 p.m.

(iii) On Sundays and National Holidays as well as other P.O. holidays the night Post Offices function and observe restricted working hours. These offices work for one shift only from 10:00 to 17.00 hours. The delivery functions of the offices are entirely suspended as well as the payment of Money Orders and Saving Banks and post office Certificates are also suspended on these days.

(iv) Night Post Offices are indicated in the list of Post Offices in Part III of this Guide.

4. Mobile Post offices

Mobile Post Offices are functioning at Bombay, Calcutta, Delhi, Madras, Ahmadabad, Nagpur, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Kanpur, Poona, Jaipur and Bhilai Industrial Township. These Mobile Post Offices are intended to provide the facility of late posting in the different areas of the cities at different timings according to a fixed schedule (excluding insured and V.P.). “These offices remain closed on Sundays and Postal Holidays.” The Mobile Post Offices sell stamps and Postal stationery, grant certificate of posting, book surface and air mail registered articles of the letter mail (excluding insured and V.P.) and air parcels besides accepting unregistered articles of the letter mail for dispatch. The mobile Post Offices at Madras and Nagpur are also permitted to book money orders.

Business Hours

Clause-5. Normal week days

Clause -6. Deleted

Clause -7. Business on Sundays

Clause -8. Post Office Holidays

5. Normal week days.-

(i) At every Post Office and RMS Office, the hours during which business is transacted with the public and the times at which mails are delivered and dispatched are conspicuously notified. The public business hours are fixed with regard to local convenience and the arrival and departure timings of the mails and all work at the Post office counters is stopped precisely at the latest hours fixed. The business hours in the principal Post Offices are generally as indicated below on normal week days, which are not post office holidays.

For Reference and enquiries, sale of the postage stamps and stationery and grant of certificate of posting During the entire working hour of the office.

For booking of registered and insured articles, including value payable articles parcels and telegraphic money orders. For about six to seven hours (On Saturdays usually for five hours stopping at 3 pm)

For issue of money orders, sale and payment of postal orders, Savings Bank and Post Office Certificate transactions and payment of telephone bills. Etc. For about five hours (One Saturdays for three hours stopping at 1 p.m.)

(ii) Post Offices in charge of extra-departmental agents are kept open for a maximum period of five hours only.

NOTE:- The delivery of registered, insured and V.P. articles, and payment of money orders at the window of the Post Office usually be attended to between the hours fixed for the booking of the respective classes of articles.

(iii) Arrangements have been made in most stationery RMS offices for the booking of registered articles of letter mail, RD articles and the sale of postage stamps and stationery. The hours during which these services will be available are notified at each office. A list of R.M.S. Offices doing such Post Office work will be found in Part-III of this Guide.

(iv) Facilities are provided at all important offices for the posting of correspondence and for the booking of registered letters for a limited period beyond the normal scheduled hours on payment of a late fee. The rates of late fee charged are indicated in the Appendix to this Part.

7. Business done on Sundays and P.O. holidays

(a) Except the Night Post Offices all post offices Mobile Post Offices are generally closed on Sundays and PO Holidays and no business transacted with the public. There is also no clearance of street letter post boxes delivery of mails on such days.

(b) Facilities are provided for the posting of letters on which the prescribed late fee is paid during certain specific hours in the letter boxes at RMS offices and at selected offices. Such postings can also, be made in the letter boxes of the mail vans of R.M.S. Sections, Machine franked articles should not be posted either in the Post Office letterbox or the mail van letter box.

(c) Registered newspapers and packets of registered news papers are accepted on Sundays and PO holidays without payment of any late fee in Press Sorting Offices, R.M.S. offices and at Night Post Offices.

(d) Generally, all RMS offices stamps and postal stationary and grant certificates of posting and book registered articles on payment of usual late fee during specified hours on Sundays and PO holidays.

NOTE 1 :- Postage stamps, postcards, inland letters, and envelopes are also sold at the telegraph branches of the combined post and telegraph offices the hours they are open to public.

8. Post offices Holidays

The following holidays are observed as Post Office

holidays :-

1. Republic Day
2. Mahavir Jayanti
3. Good Friday
4. Buddha Purnima
5. Idu’l Fitr
6. Idul’l Zuha
7. Independence Day
8. Muharram
9. Mahatma Gandhi’s Birthday
10. Dussehra (Vijay Dashmi)
11. Prophet Mohammad’s Birthday (Id-E-Milad)
12. Diwali (Deepavali)
13. Guru Nanak’s Birthday

14.Christmas Day

In addition the post offices observe post office holidays on 3 other days which vary from circle to circle.

Total:- 14+3=17

(Additional Holiday Ambedkar Jayanthi-Apr-14)

PAYMENT OF POSTAGE

Clause-9.Desirability of prepayment of postage

It is the Endeavour of the Post Office to forward by the earliest possible mail and effect delivery as expeditiously as possible of all fully prepaid postal articles. Unpaid articles or articles on which the postage is not fully prepaid are not afforded any greater security in transmission over other unregistered mail. On the other hand, such articles are liable to detention for the purpose of taxing the postage due on them. There, also, not issued along with the special deliveries intended only for unregistered mails but held over for the general deliveries for all classes of mail.

Clause-10. Postage Stamps and Stationery.

(i) Payment of postage is normally to be effected by means of postage stamps issued by the Indian Post Office under the authority of the Govt. of India. The Post Office issues, also, certain items of stationery like envelopes, inland letter cards, postcards with the value of the requisite stamps embossed on them. If the postage required on such embossed postal stationery is more than the value of the stamp printed on the article, the difference can be made good by affixing additional postage stamps of the requisite value.

(ii) The denominations of postage stamps and the varieties of postal stationery issued by the Indian Post Office have been indicated in the Appendix to this Part.

NOTE:- Post Offices also, sell Revenue stamps issued by the Central Government. These stamps cannot be used for payment of postage.

(iii) Postage charges can, also, be paid by means of a proper impression or impressions of a franking machine or in certain cases in cash as indicated in Clauses 11and 12 respectively.

(iv) Philatelic Bureaux – In order to cater to the needs of philatelists and stamp collectors, the department has set up Philatelic Bureaux at the principal Post Offices atallahabad, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Bhopal, Bombay, Calcutta, Chandigarh, Srinagar, Cuttack, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kanpur, Kurnool, Lucknow, Madras, Nagpur, New Delhi, Patna, Shillong, Simla, Trivandrum, 1 CBPO C/o 50 APO and 2 CBPO C/o 99 APO. Overseas orders are executed at the Indian Philatelic Bureau, Bombay G.P.O.Bombay.

N.B. :- For details refer to Section VII of this Guide.

Clause-11. Franking Machine.

A postal franking machine is a stamping machine intended to stamp impressions of dies of approved design on private and official postal articles in payment of postage and postal fees. A commission of 3 % per cent is permitted on the value of franks used.

2. For being recognized valid, the impressions of ‘frank’ should consist of the following dies :-

(a) Value Die and                                                      (b) Licence Die.

3. At present the following are the authorized dealers in Postal Franking Machines:-

(i) M/s. Roneo-Vickers India Ltd., 184 JorBagh, New Delhi-110003 for ‘Neopost’ manufactured by them;

(ii) M/s. Gillanders Arbuthnot & Co. Ltd., Gillanders House, Post Box 174,Calcutta 1 for ‘Stamp master’ manufactured by Republic Engineering Corpn. Ltd.;

(iii) M/s. Macneil&Magor Ltd., 2 Fairlie Place, Calcutta-1 for Kilburn 999 &Kilburn 9999 manufactured by them;

(iv) M/s. PostaliaInterfrank Pvt. Ltd., 1/13, Edward Elliots Road, Madras-4for ‘Armcess’ manufactured by Armcess Engineers Pvt. Ltd.

(v) Northern Zone distributors – M/s. Continental Commercial Co. Ltd., M43.Block Connaught circus, New Delhi-110001 Eastern Zone Distributor. M/s. Continental Commercial Co. Ltd., 8/1, Dalhousie Square, East, Calcutta 70001 and southern Zone Distributors M/s. Sarada Agencies,1/155, Mount Road, Madras – 60002 for ‘RECO Twelve value Postal Franking Machines manufactured by Republic Engineering Corporationltd., 16, Bamasharan Roay road, Calcutta-700034.

(vi) Messrs. Business Forms Limited, 6-A Middleton Street, Calcutta-700071and its branches for ‘Postmete’ Electrical Multi-value Postal Franking Machine manufactured by them.

4. The use of a franking machine except under a valid licence issued by the Head of the Postal Division in which the machine is located, is prohibited. Any person wishing to use a franking machine shall apply to the Head of the Postal Division concerned in the prescribed form through the authorized dealer. A licence is necessary for each franking machine used.
5. Machine franked articles can be posted at not more than two offices specified by SPO in the licence. Where only one office of posting desired, these must be handed in by a representative of the licensee at the Counter of the post office. Where the licensee desire to post them at two offices, they may be handed in either at a Post Office and, or at a Post Office and a night post office. The franked articles will be tendered at the counter bundled in separate bundles according to the value of the franks and each consignment must be accompanied by a Window Delivery Ticket for identification of the licensee’s representative.
6. With the last despatch of the day or on the close of the business hours of the day, the licensee will be required to tender at the office of posting a Daily Docket (in the prescribed form) duly filled in, signed and dated.
7. The impressions of the franking machines recorded on postal articles should not be interfered with in any way. Impression should be of bright red colour, clear and distinct and should not overlap. As far as possible, they should be on the right top corner on the address side of the article itself or an address wrapper or an address label firmly attached to it. Franking will be allowed up to any amount. There may be more than one impression of the value die but only one of the licence die on each article.
8. Machine franked articles posted in letter boxes shall be treated as unpaid articles. Unregistered articles bearing impressions of the previous date shall also not be accepted.
9. In places where the authorized dealers have their own servicing centers with qualified and experienced staff, the repairs and servicing will be carried out at those centers in the presence of the postal official deputed there for the purpose. In other places, the machines will be sent to the post office where the Daily Docket Register is maintained. The post office will remove the license die from the machine before it is sent for repairs.

23-7/80CI

80. 11-6-80.

The re-setting of franking machine may be done at the premises of the holders of the machines and the machine need not be brought to the post office for this purpose. If any discrepancy in the meters is noticed, the licensee shall immediately stop using of the franking machine and take it to the post office for setting it right.

10. The licence is granted subject to the following conditions.

(i) A licence for the use of a Post Office Automatic Franking machine in India will be granted on application to the Head of the Postal Division concerned who reserves to himself the right of refusing or canceling a licence without assigning any reason.

(ii) The Franking Machine must be obtained by the licensee only from the firm authorized by the Director-General of Posts and Telegraphs and specified in the license, and before being brought into use must be shown to the post office.

(iii) The Director-General will not accept any responsibility for any damage done to or repairs required by the franking machine. Any arrangements for the maintenance of the machine must be made between the licensee and the firm supplying the machine.

(iv) Each machine will be sealed by the suppliers before being delivered, and the post office will affix a lead seal at the bottom. The seal must not be broken or handled in any way by the licensee.

(v) The licensee must all reasonable times allow an authorized officer of the Department to inspect the machine without notice.

(vi) The licensee must take adequate steps to guard against the fraudulent use of the machine, in particular he must have the detachable meter, where provided, padlocked to the body machine and the key kept by a responsible person.

(vii) The licensee will pay in advance a sum representing the amount of postage for which he wishes the machine to be set at the time of the purchase. This sum must not be less than Rs. 100 or more than Rs. 50,000. A rebate @ 1 ½ per cent will be allowed, whenever the meter is reset, on the value of impressions used.

(viii) (a) Wherever the licensee wishes to deposit any sum to advance and to have the meter of the machine reset, he will produce the franking machine with the Franking Machine Record Book and the Window Ticket at the post office specified in the licence and tender an application for the same. Meter of the machine will in all cases be rest at the post office.

(b) For the purpose of the accounts, two registers shall be maintained, one by the post office and other by the user in which each reading shall be recorded and the settlement of accounts shown. All servicing and repairs to the machines will be carried out by the authorized suppliers at the premises of the post office except at places where there are separate servicing centers of the suppliers. In the latter case, the servicing and repairs will be done in the presence of the postal official deputed for the purpose. At places where servicing and repairs to the machines cannot be carried out by the authorized suppliers at the premises of the Post Office, the machine will be sent to the

Post Office, where the Daily Docket Register is maintained, for removing the licence die from the machine before it is sent for repairs. The re-setting of the meter after repairs will be done at the post office.

(c) Any change of location of the machine, except in cases of repairs, shall be notified to the Head of the Division and the office of posting.

(ix) All stamp impressions for the purpose of pre-payment of postage must be made as far as possible on the right hand top corner of the address side of the postal article itself or a wrapper or label firmly attached to it. Cut-out labels with frank impressions on them for pre-payment of postage can be used on all postal articles subject to the following conditions:-

1. Not more than one cut-out label bearing the frank impression or impressions in full payment of postage and other fees will be permitted to be affixed on such postal articles.
2. When more than one frank impression is obtained on a cut-out label or wrapper, the impressions should not overlap nor be more than 1 cm. Apart. In such cases, the impressions of the stamp bearing the name of the firm, the licence number, the date and any slogan used should appear only once and should not overlap and frank impression.
3. The cut-out label should be securely pasted to the postal articles on the right-hand side above the name and address of the addressee. Cut-out labels may not be affixed to separate address labels attached to such postal articles; frank impressions in such cases should be taken on such address labels themselves.
4. The cut-out labels should have the name and address of the sender printed on the left hand side.
5. The total value of the frank impression or impressions should be written in figures in red ink on the cut-out label below the printed name and address of the sender. In cases where the name and address of the sender is printed elsewhere on the address side of the postal articles, it will not be necessary to have his name and address printed on the cut-out labels.

(x) Franking will be allowed up to any amount. Impressions which must be of a bright red colour must be clear and distinct, otherwise the article is liable to be refused by the post office.

(xi) (a) Postal articles for dispatch franked by a machine must be tendered at the window of the office/offices for posting shown in the licence on the very day of the date of frank borne by them. Those bearing previous or later dates or posted in the letterboxes will be treated as unpaid while those tendered or any other post office will not be accepted. Articles bearing the frank of a date immediately preceding the date of presentation of the articles will, however, be accepted provided they bear also the impression of the licence die of the date of presentation. Each consignment shall be accompanied by the Window Ticket for the identification of the licensee’s servant or representative.

(b) Each dispatch of articles should be tendered in separate bundles according to the value of frank. Along with the last dispatch made on any day, the licensee shall deliver at the office of posting a daily docket in the prescribed form duly filled in and signed, under receipt to be obtained at the counter-foil thereon. A separate daily docket should be submitted for each machine possessed by the licensee. In case, where the licence has been permitted to post the articles at two offices, the daily docket shall be submitted to the office where the last dispatch is tendered.

(xii) Allowance will be made for any impression made in error (less deduction of5 per cent on face value) on surrender of the envelopes or wrappers, provided that the impression is legible and that the entire envelope or wrapper is produced and that the claim is preferred within three months of the date of the first impression.

(xiii) An advertisement device may also appear alongside the date stamp impression provided that :-

1. it relates solely to the business or professions of the licensee.
2. it is quite separate from the impressions of the identification mark, license number and the date stamp and postmark.
3. it is confined to the top left hand corner of the envelope or card.
4. the cost of cutting the dies is met by the licensee.

(xiv) (1) No advertisement device shall appear on the stamping die unless it fulfills the conditions laid down in the preceding paragraph and has first been approved by the Head of the Postal Division; (2) the licensee can get approved from the Head of the Division as many slogans and advertisements as he desires provided not more than one slogan or advertisement is used on one article; (3) No change in the tenor of the advertisement shall be made once it is approved, without similar prior consent from the Head of the Postal Division concerned.

(xv) In the event of a breach of any condition of the licence, the licence will be forthwith cancelled by the Head of the Postal Circle who will not be responsible for any loss which the licensee incurs thereby. Any sum that may be due to the licensee on account of postage advanced will, however, be refunded to him and any sum that may be due to the Department on account of postage will be recovered from him.

(xvi) The above conditions can be varied, altered or supplemented by the Director-General, Posts and Telegraphs. This licence shall be subject to such varied, altered or supplemented conditions with effect from the date of their notification.

11. (ii) Conditions for Hiring the Franking Machine to Government Offices/Ministries/Departments. General Conditions :
12. A licence for the use of Franking Machine on hire from Department of Posts by the Government Offices will be granted by the Postmaster General concerned on the Ministry/Office making an application for the same.
13. The hiring scheme of Franking Machines for Govt. Offices/Departments/Ministries will be available at the places where postal machines repair organizations are available.
14. The Postmaster General concerned reserves to himself the right of refusing or canceling licence without assigning any reasons therefore.
15. The licensing authority shall specify in the licence the two offices where the mails of the licencee will be accepted. One of the two specified offices shall be the main office an the status of that office should be Lower Selection Grade or above.
16. The Franking Machine will be supplied by the licensing authority.
17. The Department of Posts will not accept any responsibility for any damage done due to the machine.
18. Word ‘Service’ will be used in the licence die to facilitate identification of such letters as official dak.
19. The licencee must take adequate steps to guard against the fraudulent use of the machine by its employees.
20. Any change in location of the machine shall be notified by the licencee to the Postmaster general and the Office of posting.
21. A licence is necessary for the possession of each Franking Machine.
22. The machine so licensed will be utilized for franking of official mails of the office of licencee only.
23. The licensing authority will also issue window delivery ticket to the licencee, along with the licence.
24. The licencing authority shall maintain the following records :

(i) Franking Machine Register regarding Postings.

(ii) Franking Machine Record Book.

These registers should be scrutinized by the gazetted officer incharge of the dispatch section having the Franking Machine on the last working day of every week to see that they are being properly maintained. He will furnish a certificate about meter reading as on the last working day of each month.

14. The licencee must at all reasonable times allow the authorized officer of the department of Posts to inspect the machine and connected records without notice.
15. The main Post Office shall maintain the following records :-

(i) Register showing list of licencees of Franking Machines authorized to post their articles in the Post Office. (This should be maintained in the 2nd Office also).

(ii) The register showing payments of advance rentals. The register will have a separate page allotted to each licensee.

(iii) Franking Machine record book.

(iv) Franking Machine ledger.

Payments setting/Re-setting and sealing of the Machine.

16. The licensee will pay in advance the amount of annual rental. The licensee will also pay the sum in advance representing the amount of postage for which he wishes the machine to be set at the time of hire and on subsequent occasions. This sum must not be less than Rs. 100/- or more than Rs. 9900/-.
17. The payments including those of advance rentals should be either by cheque or by bank draft.
18. The Post Office shall grant a receipt for any money paid by licencee inform ACG-67.
19. The entries in respect of advance payments should be made by the setting/re-setting official in the Franking Machine Record Book. He will also make entries thereof in the connected records of the Post Offices and these entries should be got attested by the PM/DPM/SPM.
20. The entry regarding advance payments should also be made by the setting/re-setting official in the body of the Franking Machine register of Postings. Before doing so he will check the entries in the said register with reference to the entries in the said register with reference to the entries in the F.M. Ledger and re-concile the discrepancy, if any.
21. The machine will be set/re-set by an officer of the Department not below the rank of Public Relations Inspector (Postal) at the premises of the Ministry Department on 1st or subsequent deposits made by the licencee.He (Officer of the Deptt.) will also seal the meter of the machine with his seal at the same time.
22. One of the bottom lead seals will be of the PMRO and the other of Gazetted Officer in charge of the dispatch section of Govt. Offices /Deptt./Ministry having the Franking Machine.
23. The licencee will ensure that the seals on the Franking Machine are not tampered with/broken/handled in any way.
24. No official other than the one authorized for the purpose will tamper with the seal in any way. The instances of the tampering with the seals should be reported to the Postmaster of the main office where the postings are authorized.
25. The seals for franking machines and pliers for lead seal for sealing the franking machines shall remain in the personal custody of the official/officer authorized to use them during office hours. The incharge of the office of the custodian of the seals & pliers thereof will be responsible to keep the same under proper joint custody after office hours. In the case of Post Office the seals and pliers will remain in the joint custody of the PM/DPM/SPM and the treasurer/Joint Custodian of Cash after office hours. Conditions for accepting of Franks :
26. Franking will be allowed up to any amount.
27. All frank impressions for the purpose of pre-payment of postage must be made as far as possible on the right hand top corner of the address side of the postal article itself or a wrapper or label firmly attached to it. Cut out labels with franking impressions on them for pre-payment of postage canbe used subject to the conditions laid down in the post office guide.
28. Impressions must be of a bright red colour, clear and distinct otherwise the article is liable to be refused by the Post Office.
29. i. The franked articles shall be posted in not more than two offices specified in the licence and the franked articles must be handed over at the counter of the Post Office or mail office authorized to receive the franked mail on the very day of the date of frank. In mail offices such articles must be tendered before the latest hour notified by the Supdt. RMS.The main office shall be a Post Office of lower Selection Grade status or above.
30. The franked articles bearing previous or later dates or posted in the letter box will be treated as un-paid, while those tendered at any other PO will not be accepted. Articles bearing the frank of a date immediately preceeding the date of presentation of the articles will, however, be accepted provided they bear also the impression of the licensed die of the date of presentation.
31. The following procedure must be insisted upon and should be strictly endorsed in all the offices :

(i) While accepting the posting production of window delivery ticket. Franking Machine Register of Postings and dispatch slip should be insisted upon.

(ii) Articles should be given for acceptance in separate bundles offixed no. like 50 for each value of frank.

(iii) Such letters should have the name and address of the sender on the left side bottom corner of the cover.

(iv) Office which accepts the posting should test check the bundles to see if various articles have been granked for correct postage and also the total value of the articles tallies with the details given in the dispatch slip & that entries in col. 1 to 3 of the Franking Machines register of posting have correctly beenmade. A separate dispatch slip should be there for articles franked with different machines. He will then put his initials, date and date stamp in the Franking Machine Register of Postings and return the same to the licencee or his agent.

(v) Along with the last posting of the day, submission of daily dispatch docket as prescribed should be submitted for each machine.

(vi) If any of the postings is done at an office other than the main post office, the dispatch slip and the daily dispatch docket should be transferred to the main office which should ensure continuity of the daily docket by referring to the meter reading as indicated on the last daily docket on record and that the amount of daily consumption has correctly been recorded therein with reference to dispatch slip(s) for the day.

(vii) If any docket or slip is found missing in the main office, a copy thereof should be called for from the licencee and kept in the file at the appropriate place. The Franking Machine Record Book and ledger should be maintained properly and checked by the Inspecting Officers during the annual inspection.

(viii) The entries in the Franking Machine ledger should be checked once in a month by the PM/DPM/SPM to see if they are correctly being made w.r.to the daily dockets etc. He will sign the last entry checked in token of having carried out this check.

31. Procedure for the repairs of the hired Franking Machines

(i) Arrangements for the maintenance, repairing and oiling machines will be made by the deptt.

(ii) in case the defect does not relate to the meter the machine should be opened and repaired by the mechanic in the presence of the Gazetted drawing and disbursing office or an officer of an equal rank in charge of the dispatch section having the Franking Machine.

(iii) In case the defects relate to the meter also the machine should be repaired by the mechanic in the presence of the aforesaid officer and the PRI.

(iv) In case the machine required extensive repairs in the workshop of the Deptt. a stand by machine will be supplied by the Deptt.to the licensee for use during the period the defective machine remains in the workshop. The meter in the standby machinewill be set according to the reading of the machine of the licenses. A record to this effect will be made in the Franking Machine Record Book and FM Register of postings under the signatures of the mechanic PRI and the officer in charge of the dispatch section having the Franking Machine.

(v) The entries to the effect that the machine was defective and repaired should be made in the Franking Machine Record Books, where meter readings before and after the repairs should also be recorded. These entries should be attested by the mechanic and other officer (s) mentioned in item (ii) & (iii)above as the case may be. These entries should also be made in the PO records viz. F.M. Record Book & F.M. Ledger &three entries should be attested by the PM/DPM/SPM.

(vi) I. The Manager PMRO will maintain a register for repairs in respect of the repairs carried out to the hired new machine. The register repairs and the job card are to be preserved for2 years and will be open to check by the authorized official of the Deptt. of Posts at any time.

Miscellaneous

32. Refund will be made for any impression made in error (less a deduction of5 per cent on face value) on surrendering the envelopes or wrappers provided that impression is legible and that the entire envelope or wrappers produced and that the claim is preferred within one month of the date of first impression.
33. An advertisement device will also be provided by the Department alongside the stamp impression on specific request of the licencee on the conditions that it relates solely to the business or profession of the licencee and the cost of cutting the die is met by the licencee.
34. In the event of breach of any of the prescribed conditions the licence will be forthwith cancelled by the licensing authority who will not be responsible for any loss which the licensee may incur thereby. Any sum that be due to the licensee on account of postage advance will, however, be refunded to him and any sum that may be due to the Department on account of postage will be recovered from him.
35. The above conditions can be varied, altered or supplemented by the Director General, Posts. The licence will be subject to such varied, altered or supplemented conditions with effect from the date of their notification.

Clause-12. Prepayment of postage in cash

(1) Certain important post offices are authorized by the Head of the Circle to realize the postage charges in cash from firms or other persons who post a very large number of unregistered packets subject to a minimum of 500 packets at a time in big cities and 250 in small towns. Certain post offices in Bombay, Calcutta, Madras, Nagpur and Delhi are also authorized by the Heads of the circle to realize the postage and registration fee on ordinary registered articles of letter mail in cash provided the sender uses special registered journals for booking of registered articles and the total number of articles of the same type and weight to be registered at one time is not less than 50. Particulars of this facility can be ascertained from the nearest principal post office. The facility of pre-payment of postage in cash is also available at selected Gazetted and H.S.G. Post Offices to Firms or business establishments who post not less than 500 articles at a time in respect of letters (closed covers). Inland Letter Cards, Post Cards and un-registered parcels.

(2) A similar procedure is extended in the case of registered newspapers, details of which will be found in clause 143.

(3) The facility of prepayment of postage charges in cash is not available for any other classes of postal articles.

Clause-13.Spoilt or defaced stamps

(1) Postage stamps (whether adhesive, embossed, or impressed) which have been obliterated, defaced, torn, cut or otherwise rendered imperfect, or which have any work, letter, figure, or design written printed or impressed upon them otherwise than by the authority of the Central Government or which have been cut or otherwise separated from embossed envelopes, postcards, or wrapper, cannot be recognized in payment of postage. The special registration envelopes provided by the Post Office, cannot be used for the transmission of unregistered postal articles.

NOTE – The perforation of postage stamps with initials, or other identifying marks traced in minute holes is not prohibited, provided they do not render the indications regarding the country of origin and value of stamps illegible.

(2) The using for the payment of postage or postal fees, with intent to cause loss to the Central Government, of a stamp that has already been used for that or any other purpose, is an offence under the Indian Penal Code.

Clause-14. Fictitious Stamps.

The manufacture and use of fictitious postage stamps for any purpose whatsoever is prohibited, and is an offence punishable under Section 263-A of the Indian Penal Code. Reproduction of stamps is, however, allowed for illustration purposes in a philatelic publication or in an article or section relating wholly to postage stamps which may appear in a publication or a general character. Such productions, however, must only be in black.