How government departments function

I would like to give an extract from a book I am currently reading which would give readers an idea why things take time at government departments. Happy Independence Day!

On 13th April, 1999 a query came to the Department of Administrative Reform (DAR) from the ministry of steel: ‘Can officers use ink other than blue or black?’ It seems that a couple of officers in steel had made notings in green and red which had raised eyebrows.

• There were serious consultations in the DAR and it was decided that since the matter concerned ink, the Directorate of Printing had to be consulted and so an office memo was sent to it on 3rd May.

• On 21st May a reply came saying that the matter had been deliberated at the Directorate and since no rules were found, they opined that the heads of departments should be allowed to use coloured inks whereas other officers must confine themselves to blue or black ink. They suggested department of personnel in home ministry may be consulted

• The personnel department consulted and on 6th July replied saying that since the matter concerned the Manual of Office Procedures, and since it was regulated by the DAR, it was in their competence to decide. The ball was back.

• In the following Senior Level Officers meeting of the DAR the matter was discussed. It was agreed that since the longevity of inks was an issue of government records, a letter was sent on 12th August to Director General, Department of Archives, asking his opinion.

• On 27th August a reply came that as regards fountain pens blue/black to be prescribed but in case of ball point pens other colours could be permitted. But whatever ink was used its quality ought to comply with the Bureau of Indian Standards

• At the next Senior Officer’s meeting, the chairman of DAR felt that before deciding, the manual of armed forces should be consulted. Accordingly a letter was sent on 4th October to the joint secretary in the ministry of defense.

• On 22nd Dec, he replied saying that red ink is used by chiefs, green is used by principal staff officers and blue is used by all other officers.

• After several further months of deliberation, the DAR passed an order on 28th March amending the manual of office procedures. “Initial drafting will be done in blue or black ink. Modifications in the draft at subsequent levels may be done in green or red by the officers so as to distinguish the corrections made.’ Hierarchy was observed in the order: ‘Only an officer of the level of joint secretary and above may use green or red ink in rare cases.’

The Difficulty of Being Good by Gurcharan Das from where I have extracted this note is a book on dharma based on Mahabharata. It draws episodes from Mahabharata and their parallels in modern world with examples from the The Wall Street, the Ambani brothers, competitive markets etc. I have just completed 2 chapters and I am finding it very interesting.