The Unverified Forward
You are the ministerial assistant in the office of the Superintendent of Police, Lucknow, preparing a 150-word public note on a Central Government scholarship scheme for a community meeting on 15 August. Three inputs are on your desk. A Hindi daily dated 3 August reports that the scheme gives 'about ₹12,000 a year' and quotes a local leader. A WhatsApp forward, with no source, says the annual amount is ₹12,000, the income limit is ₹1 lakh, and the last date is 31 August. The PIB release dated 2 August states ₹10,000 a year, an income limit of ₹2.5 lakh, and a deadline of 30 September. Your senior officer is in a hurry and says, 'Use the newspaper, it is in Hindi and people will trust it.' The office internet is slow and the PIB PDF will not open.
1. Which figures should go into the note, and how should you handle the conflict among the three inputs? Explain the source hierarchy you would apply.
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The note should carry the PIB figures: ₹10,000 per year, income limit ₹2.5 lakh, last date 30 September.
The hierarchy is: official government release (PIB) first; a dated newspaper report second; an unsigned WhatsApp forward last, and only as a lead to verify, never as a source. The newspaper's 'about ₹12,000' is a rounded quote from a local leader, not the notified amount, and a 3 August report may predate a correction. The WhatsApp deadline of 31 August conflicts with the official deadline and could cause applicants to lose time.
Because the PIB PDF will not open, I would try the PIB mobile site, an archived copy, or the district welfare officer's office, and record the confirmation. If none is available before the meeting, I would write 'as per the PIB release dated 2 August' and add a line that applicants should confirm on the official portal, rather than present an unverified figure as final.
2. Draft the operative two or three sentences of the note, and state what you would do with the WhatsApp claim.
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Operative text: 'As per the PIB release dated 2 August 2025, the scholarship provides ₹10,000 per year to eligible students. The family income limit is ₹2.5 lakh per year, and applications are open till 30 September 2025. Applicants should verify details on the official portal before applying.'
The WhatsApp claim is not repeated. If a colleague asks why, I would explain that it has no source and its deadline is wrong; forwarding it in an official note would make the office responsible for misinformation. I would keep a short file note listing the inputs seen and the reason the forward was excluded.
If the forward later proves to contain a genuine local instruction, it can be added only after confirmation from the issuing office.
3. The officer insists on the newspaper because it is in Hindi. Write a two-line response you could give, and state what you would record in the file.
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Response: 'Sir, the Hindi paper says "about ₹12,000" and quotes a local leader, while the PIB release gives ₹10,000 and a 30 September deadline. May I use the PIB figures and add a Hindi source line so the public is not misled?' This is respectful, gives the reason, and offers a workable alternative.
In the file I would record: the PIB release number and date relied on; that the newspaper report and WhatsApp forward were not used because they were rounded or unsourced; the internet problem and the alternative verification attempted; and the officer's approval.
That record protects the office if an applicant later complains and shows the decision was reasoned, not arbitrary.