154. General Diary. (Section 3, Bengal Act II of 1866) (Section 9, Bengal Act IV of 1866). - (a) A General Diary in West Bengal Form No. 4350 shall be maintained in a book containing 200 numbered pages in all police-stations and in those outposts to which Assistant Sub-Inspectors are attached. The diary shall be written in duplicate by carbon process. If the officer making an entry in the General Diary knows from the nature of the information that an extract must be sent (e.g., to the Detective Department for publication in the "Calcutta Police Gazette") he shall make an extra copy of the entire entry or a part of the entry as required by making an extra carbon copy on a loose sheet of paper.
(b)Entries by whom made. - (i) All entries of a routine or unimportant nature shall be made by the Duty Officer under the supervision of the Officer-in-charge.(ii)Important matters, such as allegations against police officers, friction between members of the public and the staff of bus or tram companies, big fires, important accidents, etc., etc. shall be recorded by the senior Sub-Inspector present at the police station.(iii)The officer who enters a charge in the Crime Register or draws up a First Information Report shall himself make a note of the crime in the General Diary.(iv)An officer leaving the police station or outpost on duty shall himself note in the Diary the reason for doing so and on his return shall note a brief report of the work done. An officer leaving the police station on private business shall himself note the fact.(v)The Officer-in-charge shall on return to police station definitely state in writing in the General Diary that he perused the entries made during his absence and took action where necessary.(c)Information to be entered. - The main purpose of maintaining a General Diary is to furnish a chronological account of all events which occur at police stations and outposts. It shall contain a brief note, entered at the time at which it is communicated to the police station, or outposts, of every occurrence other than petty cases reported. It shall also contain all information relating to accidents, fires, the receipt and disbursement or transmission of cash, taking and making over charge, daily disposition of the staff, the holding of parades, kit inspection, barrack inspection, departure and arrival of officers and men on duty, visits of superior officers, assistance rendered to police officers and officers of other departments, round reports, and information of any apprehended disturbance within the jurisdiction of the police station or outpost and of movements of wandering gangs.The writing of lengthy reports in the General Diary shall be avoided specially in connection with cognizable cases, such as, disputes between the employees of the Tramways and the public, disturbances in public places, inquest reports, accidents, enquiries arising from medical certificates sent from hospitals when an offence has been disclosed. When such incidents are reported or brought to notice only the gist of the information and reports received shall find entry in the General Diary together with the time and place of occurrence and the names of witnesses who can testify to it; the statements of witnesses must not be entered in the General Diary. If an information is of sufficient importance to necessitate an enquiry, the Officer recording the information in the General Diary shall put up the Diary before the Officer-in-charge who shall order an officer to take up the enquiry. The order of the Officer-in-charge shall be noted in the Diary; the enquiring Officer shall submit a separate report incorporating the details of the enquiries and the result thereof. All such enquiry reports shall be filed together in a special file.(d)Arrests on warrants and under sections 54 and 55 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 (Act V of 1898), shall be shown in the Diary immediately after the person arrested is brought to the police station.(e)All complaints and charges made, whether cognizable or not, shall be recorded. The names of the complainants, the names of witnesses cited, the names of all persons arrested, the weapons or property which the police have seized shall be entered.(f)Examination of arrested persons. - Before putting an arrested person in the lock-up he shall be searched for any marks of injuries, and if any are found or if the prisoner makes any complaints these facts shall be entered in the General Diary. If on search no marks of injury are found or no complaints are made, a clear note to that effect shall be entered.(g)Entries relating to extortion and assault committed by professional bullies shall be sidelined in red ink so as to facilitate subsequent search.(h)Entries in the General Diary concerning the arrival and departure of men for duty need not contain the names of the personnel as these names will be found in the Duty Register.(i)The fact of enquiries having been made regarding absconders and surveillees shall be noted in the Diary and also the presence of strangers, suspicious characters, gamblers, swindlers, smugglers and members of wandering tribes or tribes having criminal proclivities.(j)Subdivisional Assistant Commissioners visiting the police stations or outposts shall enter their remarks in the General Diary. When the remarks are in the nature of instructions they should be entered in the Inspection Register, which should also contain comments, if any, regarding the work of police stations or outposts. They shall also record any complaints made by prisoners in custody. Visits of the Divisional Deputy Commissioner, should however, always be found from the Inspection Registers.(k)An entry in this diary does not obviate the necessity of a separate report or entry in any other register of any occurrence which is required by Standing Orders to be specially reported or entered.(l)Every entry made in the General Diary shall be given, a marginal heading and shall be numbered in a monthly series. The Officer making an entry shall sign legibly at the end of each entry.(m)The diary shall be closed at 06-00 hours and a carbon copy thereof shall be sent to the Subdivisional Assistant Commissioner with the daily dak for his perusal and orders.(n)The diary shall be filed in monthly bundles. Each bundle shall be checked and if found correct signed as such by the Officer-in-charge. The General Diary shall be preserved for 3 years.(o)Officers-in-charge of police stations shall record in the General Diary, at the end of each day, the names of officers who actually went on day and night rounds and the hours they were on rounds. Rounds in this sense are to be distinguished from miscellaneous duties such as investigation, court,(p)The General Diary shall, under no circumstances, be used as a medium for ventilating personal grievances.
