242. Instructions for the issue of telegrams by station officers. [§ 12, Act V, 1861].
(a)For the purpose of disseminating intelligence to neighbouring stations and to enable supervising officers to arrive with the greatest rapidity at the scene of occurrence, telegrams should, when necessary, be sent and service stamps used in payment of such telegrams. For this purpose, the officers-in-charge of police-stations shall be supplied with service stamps of different denominations according to the criminality of the jurisdiction. The stock of stamps shall on no account be allowed to become exhausted and shall be replenished when necessary by submitting a requisition to the Superintendent. All telegrams shall be entered in the register of letters issued (Bengal Form No. 19) and the value of stamps used should be noted in the appropriate column. To distinguish such expenditure from that for ordinary postage the letter "T" shall be entered in the remarks column.(b)All telegrams shall be written with carbon paper and a file of the duplicate copies of the telegrams despatched shall be kept at each police-station, and inspecting officers shall examine them to see that telegrams have been sent with circumspection and that they have been succinctly worded.(c)Books of telegram forms shall be supplied to police-stations by the Superintendent.(d)Should circumstances require the immediate intimation of information, officers should use special police telegrams in accordance with regulation 184.(e)On receipt of information of the arrival or movement in his jurisdiction of suspicious characters, especially foreigners, about whom there is reason to believe that they are likely to commit dacoity, gang robbery, professional drugging or other serious crime, the officer-in-charge of a police-station, in addition to any other action he may decide to take, shall unless the police-station is situated at the headquarters of the officer addressed, immediately send telegrams to the Superintendent and the Circle Inspector (who shall be responsible for communicating the information received to the Sub-divisional Police Officer, if there is one), and shall also warn by telegram such places in the list drawn up under regulation 250(c) as may be selected at his discretion, giving such descriptive particulars of the suspects as may be possible with a view to action being taken by the receiver of the message under sections 54, 55 and 151, Code of Criminal Procedure. The places to which warning has been sent shall be mentioned in the messages to the Superintendent and the Circle Inspector. Officers-in-charge of police-stations shall also consider in such cases whether telegraphic information should not be sent to dafadars of unions surrounding the place in which the criminals are alleged to be present.II. - Information.
