POST OFFICE GUIDE PART I (RULES AND REGULATIONS RELATING TO THE INLAND POST) Corrected up to 1 July, 1985 Issued by Director-General of Posts PREFACE This Post Office Guide Part I contains information on all items of business transacted in a Post Office. The positions relating to the Savings Bank, CTD, RD, TD and Cash Certificates have been removed from this Part and will be incorporated in a separate volume to be entitled as the P.O. Guide Part IV. Two new Sections, one on PHILATELY and the other on POSTAL LIFE INSURANCE have been added to this volume. 2. The Post Office Guide will now be divided into the following four parts. Part I Rules and regulations relating to inland post Part II Rules and regulations relating to foreign post. Part III List of Post Offices (in two volumes). Part IV Post Office Savings Bank and Post Office Savings Scheme. 3. The Postal rates are given in a separate pamphlet, attached to Part I. As these are revised from time to time, public are requested to ascertain the latest rates from the nearest Post Office. 4. All the clauses of this Guide are based on the Indian Post Office Act and Rules framed by the Government under the said Act. Nothing in this Guide, therefore, supersedes any of the provisions in the Indian Post Office Act or Rules. 5. Amendments as may be necessary will be issued from time to time by the Director General, Posts. Suggestions for additions and alterations should be addressed to the Postal Technical Section of this Directorate. Secretary NEW DELHI: Department of Posts & Chairman, Postal Board & Director General, Posts. CONTENTS INLAND POST SECTION I – GENERAL CLAUSE Organisation 1. Control . 2. Types of Offices . 3. Night Post Offices . 4. Mobile Post Offices . Business Hours 5. Normal week days . 6. Deleted . 7. Business on Sundays . 8. Post Office Holidays . Payment of postage 9. Desirability of prepayment of postage . 10. Postage stamps and stationery . 11. Franking Machines . 12. Prepayment of postage in Cash . 13. Spoilt or defaced stamps . 14. Fictious stamp . General Rules as to posting 15. Packing . 16. Sealing . 17. Posting of coins etc. 18. Train and steamer letter boxes . 19. Posting in special letter boxes . 20. Presentation of official & other letters in bulk . 21. Articles requiring special treatment . 22. Desirability of posting early . 23. Manner of affixing postage stamps . 24. Non-Postal stamps, charity stamps, lezels, seals etc. 25. Use of the minimum number of postage stamps . CLAUSE Method of Address 26. Particulars to be furnished . 27. Mails for Defense Services Personnel . 28. Mails for Navy personnel serving in INS ships . 29. Articles bearing indefinite address . 30. Addition of sender’s address . 31. Intimation of address to correspondents abroad . Certificate of Posting 32. Object in issuing certificates . 33. Manner of obtaining . Recall of Articles Posted 34. Conditions . Delivery 35. Definition . 36. Delivery of registered articles . 37. Refusal of registered articles presented for delivery . 38. Special procedure for delivering registered articles to firms – etc . 39. Delivery of registered articles addressed to Pardhanashin women . 40. Delivery of damaged registered articles of the letter and parcel mail 41. Delivery of Parcels weighing above 10 Kg. 42. Delivery of parcels and period of their detention at the office of delivery 43. Delivery of insured articles . 44. Delivery of V.P. articles . 45. Delivery of articles on which customs duty and fee is due . 46. Arrangements for delivery of overvalue articles at no-delivery town post offices . 47. Payment of money orders . 48. Duties of postmen and other delivery agents . 49. Delivery of articles at Post Offices without a delivery agent . 50. Refusal of articles . CLAUSE 51. Obligation to pay charges . 52. Remedy of Post Office for recovery of charges due . 53. Articles maliciously sent unpaid . 54. Correspondence for Defense Services Personnel . 55. Post Boxes . 56. Post Bags . 57. Window delivery . 58. Delivery of articles to messengers sent from places not served daily by Postmen . 59. Payment of money orders to messengers from places not served daily by postmen . 60. Delivery of registered articles etc. to messengers or to care party . 61. Delivery of registered articles etc. and payment of money orders addressed or payable to students of educations institutions . 62. Accounts with planters . 63. Identification cards . Poste Restante 64. Definition . 65. Disposal of Poste Restante articles . 66. Responsibility of the Post Office . Redirection 67. Redirection . 68. Interception and place of redirection . 69. Conditions of free redirection . 70. Penalty for breach of conditions . 71. Redirection fee on parcels . 72. Instructions regarding change of residence . CLAUSE 73. Period for which instructions valid . Treatment of Undelivered Articles 74. Period of detentions of undeliverable articles in post offices 75. Disposal of articles sent to the Returned Letter Office . 76. Obligation of sender to pay postal charges . Enquiries and Complaints 77. Suggestions and complaints book . 78. Authority to whom complaints should be addressed . 79. Transmission of public complaints . 80. Circle Complaints Officers . 81. Period within which complaints should be preferred . 82. Particulars to be given in complaints . Notes for Public Information 83. Post Office monopoly in the conveyance of letters . 84. Legal responsibility of the Post Office . 85. Secrecy . 86. Licences for sale of Postage Stamps . 87. Non-exchange of postage stamps and stationery . 88. Acceptance of small coins . 89. Articles addressed to deceased persons . 90. Liability to detention of certain mails . 91. Facilities provided by village postmen in rural areas . 92. Issue of Post Office forms . 93. Services which cannot be claimed . 94. Acceptance of cheques . 95. Latest date for payment of dues . SECTION II – LETTER AND PARCEL POST Introductory 96. Inland Post . 97. Postal article . 98. First class and second class mails . Letters 99. Payment of postage . 100. Limits of weight and size . 101. Unpaid and insufficiently paid letters . Special Packing Instructions 102. Cinematograph film . 103. Biological Specimens . 104. Articles enclosed in transparent envelopes . 105. Articles enclosed in open panel envelopes . Letter Cards 106. Description . 107. Letter cards of private manufacture . 108. Conditions for the transmission of letter cards . Post Cards 109. Description . 110. Postcards of private manufacture . CLAUSE 111. Special rules . 112. Penalty for breach of conditions . 113. Recorded Delivery . Quick Mail Service 114. Description . 115. Conditions of posting . Business Reply Service 116. Description . 117. Conditions of posting . 118. Penalty for the infringement of the conditions . Book Packets 119. Unpaid and insufficiently paid book packets . 120. Contents . 121. Special facility for Greetings cards and invitation cards . 122. Special provisions . 123. Prohibitions . 124. Size . 125. Weight . 126. Packing . 127. Penalty for breach of conditions . Book packets containing printed books 128. Conditions . CLAUSE Book packets containing periodicals 129. Conditions for charging special rates for book packets containing periodicals . Pattern and Sample Packets 130. Unpaid and insufficiently paid pattern and sample packets . 131. Contents . 132. Size and weight . 133. Packing . 134. Penalty for breach of conditions . 135. Prepayment of postage in cash . Blind literature packets 136. Exemption from postal fees . 137. Contents and conditions of posting . 138. Penalty for breach of conditions . Registered Newspapers 139. Definition . 140. Conditions . 141. Procedure for registration . 142. Renewal and termination of registration . 143. Packets of newspapers . 144. Posting of newspapers without prepayment of postage . Parcels 145. Contents . 146. Weight and size . 147. Packing . 148. Human and other viscera . CLAUSE 149. Plague cultures and anthrax Spore Vaccine . 150. Tuberculosis Sputum . 151. Strong smelling articles . 152. Celluloid . 153. Osmic acid . 154. Perfumes . 155. Manner of prepaying postage . 156. Manner of posting . Air Mail Services 157. Articles given airlift . 158. Conditions . 159. Redirection of air mail correspondence . 160. Limited airlift . 161. Air parcels . Registration 162. Object . 163. Articles which can be registered . 164. Payment of postage and fee . 165. Manner of registering . 166. Senders receipt . 167. Booking of registered articles in bulk . 168. Special acknowledgements . 169. Attested copies of receipts . 170. Compensation . 171. Cases in which registrations is compulsory . Insurance 172. Articles which can be insured . CLAUSE 173. Insurance . 174. Offices which can insure . 175. Prepayment compulsory . 176. Packing . 177. Size and other conditions . 178. Manner of insuring . 179. Failure to comply with conditions . 180. Receipt given to sender . 181. Special acknowledgement . 182. Responsibility of the Post Office . 183. Compensation . 184. Cases in which insurance is compulsory . 185. Declaration of value of Gold coin or bullion . Value-Payable Articles 186. Value-payable post . 187. Value-payable articles . 188. Declaration . 189. Post Offices from and to which V.P. articles may be sent . 190. Manner of posting and receipt . 191. Booking of value-payable articles in bulk . 192. Conditions . 193. Payment to sender . 194. Detention in office of delivery and levy of demurrage . 195. Insurance of V.P. articles . 196. Complaints regarding value-payable articles . 197. Responsibility of the Post Office