Official and Demi-Official Letters, Telegrams, Office Orders, Notifications and Circulars

What the official syllabus says

Main Examination, General Hindi (the Commission's text, in Hindi):

• सरकारी एवं अर्धसरकारी पत्र लेखन, तार लेखन, कार्यालय आदेश, अधिसूचना, परिपत्र।

In English (the academy's rendering, not the Commission's words): writing official and demi-official letters, telegrams, office orders, notifications and circulars.

This part tests the drafting of government correspondence in Hindi, the official language of Uttar Pradesh. Each form has its own purpose and layout, and marks depend on both.

Topics in detail

सरकारी पत्र (official letter)

• Purpose: formal communication from one government office to another, or to a public body or person, in the name of the government or office
• Letter number (patrank) and date
• Sender (preshak): name, designation and office
• Addressee (sewa mein): designation and address
• Subject (vishay) in one line, and reference (sandarbh) to earlier correspondence
• Formal salutation (mahoday) and an opening that states the matter, often "I am directed to say..."
• Body in short numbered paragraphs, in the third person and formal tone
• Closing (bhavdiya), signature, name and designation
• Endorsement (prishthankan) of copies to other offices for information or action

अर्धसरकारी पत्र (demi-official letter)

• Purpose: officer-to-officer correspondence to draw personal attention to a matter, speed up action or exchange views
• Written in the first person, addressed to the officer by name, in a courteous and personal tone
• D.O. number and date at the top, with the sender's name and designation
• Signed by the officer personally; usually no endorsement of copies
• When to use it rather than an official letter

तार लेखन (telegram)

• Purpose: an urgent message in the fewest possible words
• Leaving out articles, postpositions and other words not needed for the meaning
• Short telegraphic address of the addressee; sender's name and designation
• Classes of urgency, and a confirmation copy sent by post, as government practice required
• The public telegram service in India was discontinued in 2013, but the syllabus still lists telegram writing; the skill tested is brief, exact drafting

कार्यालय आदेश (office order)

• Purpose: instructions within an office on internal matters such as distribution of work, postings within the office, leave and duties
• Office name, order number and date; the heading karyalay adesh
• Body in the third person, stating the order and from when it takes effect
• Signature and designation of the competent officer; copies to those concerned

अधिसूचना (notification)

• Purpose: announcing rules, orders, appointments, promotions, transfers and similar decisions that are published in the official Gazette
• Number, place and date; the heading adhisuchna
• Body in formal, precise language, naming the authority or law under which it is issued
• Issued in the name of the government and signed by an authorised officer
• Instruction to publish in the Gazette and copies to the offices concerned

परिपत्र (circular)

• Purpose: the same information or instruction sent at once to many offices or officers
• Number and date; addressed to all the offices or officers concerned
• Subject line and a clear, self-contained body
• Signature and designation; list of recipients

Common requirements

• Choosing the right form for the situation given in the question
• Standard Hindi administrative terms (prashasnik shabdavali) for designations, offices and procedures
• Brevity, clarity and a correct, polite formal tone
• Correct layout: number, date, subject, body, signature and copies in their proper places
• Not using real names where the question gives none: a placeholder such as ka, kha, ga or the designation alone

Comparing the forms

Overlaps

• Governance, citizen charters and e-governance in General Studies II and General Studies V give context for these forms.