The following instructions should be adhered to when disposing of damaged or unserviceable articles in stock.
Description of Articles and Disposal Methods
| Description of Articles | How to Dispose Of |
|---|---|
| Acme covers Bags for postmen, etc. Bag-stands Belts Bicycles and accessories Boxes (e.g., office boxes, mail boxes, etc.) |
Should not be returned to the Stores Depot. If damaged, they should be repaired locally. When they become unserviceable, they should be sold by auction under proper authority. |
| Furniture Hammers Hand-bags for sorters, etc. Hand-carts and trucks Label cases Lamps Leather wallets, etc. Notice-boards and sign-boards Safes Sorting cases Tarpaulins Wicker baskets |
Same as above: Should not be returned to the Stores Depot. If damaged, they should be repaired locally. When unserviceable, they should be sold by auction under proper authority. |
| Letter boxes Knives Pads (ink and stamping) Portfolios Scissors Stoves Type-boxes |
If damaged, they should be repaired locally, if practicable; otherwise, they should be sent to the Stores Depot for repair. When unserviceable, they should be sold by auction under proper authority, ensuring that letter boxes are thoroughly broken up before sale. |
| Locks and padlocks | When damaged or unserviceable, they should not be repaired locally and must be returned to the Stores Depot. |
| Badges Bags Clocks and time-pieces Metal tokens Scales and weights Stamps and seals |
If out of order, they should be repaired locally, if possible; otherwise, return them to the Stores Depot for repair. When unserviceable, obsolete, or surplus, they should be returned to the Stores Depot. |
| Obsolete publications and forms | Should not be returned to the Stores Depot but should be sold as waste paper or destroyed per regulations. Obsolete large forms printed on one side only should, unless destruction is required, be sent to the Government of India Forms Press, Aligarh, for use in making envelopes. |
| Straw-board covers of used-up or obsolete books and forms and unserviceable file boards | If not smaller than 8½ inches by 6¾ inches, they should not be destroyed when no longer required but sent to Circle Stores Depots for transmission to the Government of India Forms Press, Aligarh, for use in bookbinding. When a sufficient number accumulates in a Stores Depot, they should be forwarded in bags through the Railway Mail Service to the Government of India Forms Press, Aligarh. |
Important Regulations
- When articles are sold as unserviceable, the proceeds should be credited to the Government. If the articles are valueless and cannot be sold, they should be destroyed.
- Orders from the Superintendent regarding the disposal of damaged and unserviceable articles must be obtained in every case, except for post offices where the inspector has ordered the return of unserviceable articles to the Store Depot during an inspection.
- No articles should be repaired, sold, or destroyed without such orders, which should be documented in the book where the articles in question are entered. First-class postmasters will record their orders concerning such articles in their own offices’ Stores book.
(Rule 329 and Rule 330 of Postal Manual Volume II)