Page 57 - Office Practice and Accounting -9

off. Records disposal is concerned with destruction of unnecessary records. If there
is no system of disposing dead records, it will increase the cost of an office. So,
management should make clear policy about the disposal of records so that valuable
records are better preserved. Dead records are disposed off as per the provision of
"Record Disposal Regulation Act 2027" in the government offices of Nepal. According
to this provision, the records are classified into following four types:
1. Very important records: These very important records are also known as
permanent records. The records which are to be preserved forever or at least
15 years of time are called very important records. They include the documents
related to legal action, international treaties and border maps, trade agreements,
peace and security related documents, etc.
2. Important records: The records related to general or financial administrations
which are to be preserved at least 5 to 10 years are called important records.
They include invoices, outstanding bills, sales records, accounting statements,
financial sheets, audit reports, etc.
3. Useful records: The records having temporary importance which are to
be preserved for maximum 1 to 5 years from their creation are called useful
records. Such records are useful only for a short period of time. They include
ordinary letters, banking statements, inter-office notices, annual budget record,
etc.
4. Useless records: The documents which are created for general communication
purpose and are not repeatedly used in future fall under this category. Such
records have no future value and become useless immediately after they are
created. They include invitations, greetings, condolences, return receipts etc.

Principles of record management

i. Principle of classification: Records must be properly classified for use because
unclassified facts are masses of confusion. Records can be classified according to use,
subject and chronology as per need and nature of the organization. Classification of
facts helps in proper analysis of activities of organization.
ii. Principles of purpose: The records are to be kept with some purpose in view.
It is an unsound argument that recording of all types of facts may prove useful for the
organization one day. Records without purpose are a waste of time, manpower and
money. If some records have no purpose, they should never be preserved.
iii. Principle of verification: The facts recorded must be capable of verification
in case of need. For example, if records cannot be verified, they may not serve as good
evidence.

Office Practice and Accounting 9 53