Manual of Office Procedure Terms

• Demi-official letter: This form is generally used in correspondence by one Government officer with another with the purpose of drawing his/her personal attention in an official matter of importance and/or urgency. 
• a. Since demi-official letter is written in the first person in a personal and friendly tone, it should be addressed by an officer to another of similar level /rank as far as possible. In the event of non-availability of officer of same level at receiving end, the same may be addressed to an officer at one or two levels below the officer to whom such communication is addressed. It should not be written by an officer who is more than one or two level below the officer / dignitary to whom the D.O. letter is being addressed.
• b.  Demi-official letter may be used for communicating with officers in other public offices except chief of the Constitutional authorities. In such cases, communications are addressed to the Secretary of such authorities. A Minister may communicate with another Minister at Centre or State Government or a Member of Parliament or State Legislature using D.O. letter.
• c.   Communications to non-officials may also take the form of a demi-official letter.
• d.  D.O. letters to General Managers should not be sent by officers below the rank of Executive Directors, except when an Executive Director is on tour or otherwise absent and issue of a D.O. to General Manager is urgently required and cannot wait, in which case it may be sent by a Director. DO letter to a Minister may be sent as from CRB&CEO or Board Member or as from Minister of Railway/Minister of State of Railways. In no case, a lower level functionary should address a DO letter to a Union Minister.
• e.  Similarly on Railways, D.O. letter to the Union Minister/Ministers of State Government should not be issued under the signature of middle level officer like DRMs.
• f.     The personal staff of the officer signing the demi-official letter will be responsible for fair typing of the D.O. letter.
• g.  The colour code and use of National Emblem on D.O. letter will be as per the instructions issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs from time to time.
• Office Memorandum: This form is generally used for corresponding with other Ministries/Departments or in calling for or providing information. It is written in the third person and bears no salutation or subscription. The name, designation, Room No., e-mail ID, telephone number and fax number of the officer signing it will, however, be indicated. OM is not the mode of correspondence with Zonal Railways/PUs. Further, OM as a form of communication is also not to be used while corresponding with Constitutional/Statutory authorities like UPSC, Election Commission etc.
• Office Order: This form is normally used for issuing instructions/intimation in routine internal administration (within Board’s Office), e.g. procedural instructions so as to supplement any of the provisions of this Manual or otherwise, administrative instructions/orders/ change in procedure etc for information and compliance by all concerned, distribution of work amongst officers and sections, etc. There is, no salutation or subscription in such communications. Copies are endorsed to all the persons/authority concerned This form of communication is not to be used for correspondence with Zonal Railways/PUs , instead letter or DO letter is to be used. In order to have proper record, Office Order number may be obtained from Secretary’s Branch (G/Acc).
• Order: This form is generally used for issuing certain types of Financial and Administrative sanctions and for communicating Government Orders in disciplinary cases to the official concerned. Order is not generally addressed to anyone instead endorsed to the persons/authority concerned. 
• Notification: This form is used in notifying promulgation of statutory rules and orders, appointments and promotions of certain categories of officers etc. through publications in the Gazette of India. The composition of the gazette, the types of matter to be published in each part and section thereof, the instructions for sending the matter for publication therein.
• Resolution: This form of communication is used for making public announcement of decisions of government in important matters of policy, e.g., the policy of industrial licensing, appointment of committees or commissions of enquiry. Resolutions are published in the Gazette of India. 
• Press Communique/ Press Note: This form is used when it is proposed to give wide publicity to a decision of government through media. A press communiqué is issued where matter is to be published as per the text given by the issuing authority (and is expected to be reproduced intact by the Press), while a press note, on the other hand, is intended to serve as a hand-out to the press which may be edited, compressed or enlarged by the respective press or media channel. 
• Endorsement: This form is used when a paper has to be returned in original to the sender, or the paper in original or its copy is sent to another department or office, for information or action. It is also used when a copy of a communication is proposed to be forwarded to parties other than the one to which it is addressed. Normally, this form will not be used in communicating copies to state governments, statutory/constitutional bodies. The appropriate form for such communication is letter. 
• Minutes: A record of discussions is prepared immediately after the meeting and circulated to the other Ministries/Departments concerned, giving date/time/venue of the meeting held, who chaired the meeting and list of participants, setting out the conclusions reached and indicating the Ministry(s)/ Department(s) responsible for taking further action on each conclusion. In case, it is perceived by a participant of the meeting, that the minutes recorded are not as per the understanding / perception of the participant, the same may be immediately referred in writing to the authority which has issued the minutes.