Rewriting an Official Reply Full of Grammar Faults
The Talati-cum-Mantri of Kadoli Gram Panchayat must reply in English to a villager's registered complaint that a shopkeeper has built a concrete platform blocking the drainage channel along the village road. The office clerk has prepared a draft containing these sentences: (i) 'I am having the honour to inform you that your complaint is under process since last two months.' (ii) 'One of the shopkeeper have constructed a platform which is obstructing the flow of water, and the same is not permissible as per the rules.' (iii) 'The shopkeeper has been requested to kindly remove the same within seven days and information's received from the Talati is attached herewith.' (iv) 'No action have been taken till date because of shortage of fund.' The facts are: a site inspection was done on 12 May, a written notice was served on the shopkeeper on 15 May giving seven days, and the shopkeeper has not replied. The applicant wants a reply he can produce before the Mamlatdar.
1. Identify the grammatical faults in sentences (i) to (iv), name each error type and give the correction.
Read the worked answer
(i) 'I am having the honour… complaint is under process since last two months.' Two faults. 'Have' is a stative verb and is not used in the continuous form for possession: use 'I have the honour'. Since + a period requires a perfect tense: 'has been under process for the last two months'. 'Since last two months' is doubly wrong - 'for' with a duration, 'the last two months' with the article.
(ii) 'One of the shopkeeper have constructed…' 'One of' takes a plural noun and a singular verb: 'One of the shopkeepers has constructed'. 'The same' as a pronoun is legalistic padding; write 'this'. 'As per the rules' is acceptable but 'under the rules' or 'is not permitted' is cleaner; the relative clause should sit closer to its noun.
(iii) '…requested to kindly remove…' 'Requested to kindly' doubles the politeness in a way standard English rejects: write 'asked to remove' or 'requested to remove'. 'Information's' is a false possessive - 'information' is uncountable and has no plural: 'the information received from the Talati'. 'Herewith' is archaic but not wrong; 'is enclosed' is clearer.
(iv) 'No action have been taken… because of shortage of fund.' Subject-verb agreement: 'No action has been taken'. 'Fund' as money for a purpose is plural in this idiom: 'shortage of funds'.
2. Rewrite the reply as a formal letter body of about 70–90 words, using only the facts given.
Read the worked answer
Madam/Sir,
With reference to your complaint regarding the platform constructed by a shopkeeper on the village road, I have to inform you that the panchayat inspected the site on 12 May. A written notice was served on the shopkeeper on 15 May, requiring him to remove the obstruction within seven days. The shopkeeper has not replied so far. The matter will be placed before the panchayat for further action, and you will be informed of the outcome.
Yours faithfully, Talati-cum-Mantri, Kadoli Gram Panchayat
Points to note in the rewriting: each sentence carries one fact with a date; 'I have to inform you' replaces the ornate 'I am having the honour'; the passive 'was served' keeps the office, not the applicant, at the centre; and no assurance of removal is given, because the panchayat has not yet decided what to do next.
3. The applicant says he will produce the reply before the Mamlatdar. What should the letter say and, more importantly, what should it not say?
Read the worked answer
Because the letter may become evidence, it must record only what the office can prove.
It should state: the date of the complaint, the date of inspection, the date the notice was served, the period allowed, and that no reply has been received. These are neutral, verifiable facts, each traceable to the inward register, the inspection note and the notice service acknowledgement.
It should not:
- Conclude that the platform is illegal or that the shopkeeper has committed an offence - that is for the competent authority to decide.
- Promise that the obstruction will be removed by a particular date, which creates a commitment the panchayat may not be able to keep.
- Admit that the panchayat delayed action, or invent a reason such as 'shortage of funds' that is not on record.
- Describe the notice as a final notice unless the panchayat has actually resolved to proceed further.
If the panchayat has meanwhile passed a resolution on removal, that resolution number and date should be quoted. A short letter of verified facts protects the panchayat before the Mamlatdar far better than a strong letter of opinion.