CHAPTER XVI

RETURNED STORES

1601. The following procedure for returned stores applies to all departments, other than those workshops to which stores depot and Stores and Workshops Accounts Office are attached and for which the procedure is laid down in paragraphs 1539 to 1547. All stores which have been previously issued for the services of the railway and are no longer required on a work should, in the absence of special instructions to the contrary, be returned to the stores depots. If there is more than one stores depot on a railway, the Controller of Stores may nominate the depot or depots to which particular classes of stores may be returned and advise the various railway departments accordingly. In doing this he should have in view the depot most suitable for the final disposal of the returned stores, either by reissue to consumers, or by reclamation, or sale by auction, as the case may be.

1602. Advice Notes.—The Officer returning stores to stores depots should prepare Advice Notes in Form (S. 1539) in six foils by carbon process. Separate Advice Notes should be prepared for each class and for new, secondhand and scrap stores. When the Officer returning the stores is unable to suggests the rates in the Advice Notes, it will be the duty of the divisional or district Officer to have this done before passing on the documents to the Depot Officer, as laid down in paragraph 1603. In the case of scrap, the classification prescribed in the schedule of rates for different classes of scrap should be strictly observed.

1603. General Criterion for Valuation.—The valuation of material returned from works particularly of specialised material, is difficult problem. Engineers and other parties returning stores and plant are prone to claim (and provide in their estimates for) as large a credit a possible for them. But the value of such materials to the railway depends largely on the extent to which they can be made use of. Railway Administrative Officers should examine in consultation, if necessary, with the Controller of Stores or whoever may be thought likely to take the material over, the sums provided in estimates as credits for returned material and see that the theoretical value of the material based on its further life is ignored, and the estimate is based instead of the possibilities of the material being used again within a reasonable period after return. If there is no likelihood of the material or plant being required again within a reasonable
period of return, the credit allowed in the estimate for returned value should be kept within the figure likely to be realised for it as obsolete material or as scrap.

1604. Disposal of the Foils of Advice Notes.—One foil of the Advice Note should be retained by the subordinate returning the stores to the stores depot as his office copy, three foils (the 2nd, 3rd and 4th) should be sent to the depot direct along with the Railway Receipt. Of the remaining two copies, one copy (the 5th) should be sent to the Accounts Officer, Stores, and the other (6th) to the Divisional or District Officer through the immediate superior of the subordinate returning the stores.

1605. Departmental Register of Advice Notes.—The Advice Notes (6th foil) should be carefully examined in the divisional or district office to see that they have been correctly prepared. They should then be listed in a Register of Advice Notes for Returned Stores maintained in the form shown below.


                                                                                                                                     Form No. S-1605

DEPARTMENTAL REGISTER OF ADVICE NOTES FOR
RETURNED STORES
Designation of the Officer returning the stores.

1606. A separate page of this register should be allotted to each returning officer or subordinate as may be found convenient. If the particulars furnished by the subordinates returning the stores regarding nomenclature, rates & c., are found to be incomplete, the Advice Notes (S. 1539) (6th foil) should be completed in the divisional or district office in these respects. The Advice Notes (6th foil) should then be forwarded to the depot to which the stores have
been returned.

1607. The disposal of Advice Notes and the maintenance of the register (S. 1605) mentioned above may be entrusted to the Accounts Office, if any, attached to the division or district. The Register of Returned Stores (S. 1605) should be inspected frequently to see that there is little avoidable delay on the part of the stores depots in acknowledging the stores. Any cases of omission to acknowledge the stores and/or to afford credit for the same within one month
of the Advice Notes should be taken up with the Depot and Accounts Officer.

1608. Procedure in Stores Depot.-Returned Stores should be dealt with in the Store depot in its Receipt Section. The work should, if possible, be divided between two sub-sections, one section dealing with the receipt of the material and the the sub-section being responsible for the accounting for it.

1608. Depot Register of Advice Notes.—As soon as the Railway Receipts and the Advice Notes (the 2nd 3rd and 4th foils) are received in the depot direct from the consignors, the Advice Notes should be entered in a register and serially numbered, the serial number being entered at the same time on the top right hand corner of the Advice Note in red ink or by means of a numbering machine. This register (Form S. 1609) should show the following particulars, viz,—

1. Serial Number.

2. Date of receipt of Advice Note in Depot.

3. Number and date of Advice Note.

4. Number and date of Railway Receipts.

5. Wagon number.

6. Designation of subordinate returning stores.

7. Particulars of stores returned (a) Description (b) Quantity.

8. Date on which stores are received in the depot.

9. (a) Date on which copies of Advice Notes (6th foil) are returned duly acknowledged to the Divisional/district office (b) Receipt order number and date.

10. Date on which stores are posted in the numerical ledger.

1610. On receipt of the stores in the depot, these should be checked with the Advice Notes received direct from the subordinate returning the stores, the date of receipt in column (8) of the register (S. 1609) and the quantities actually received entered in the prescribed column of the Advice Notes against each item of stores as shown therein. Particular care should be taken to see that the quantities entered in the columns "quantity returned" and "quantity received"
agree. In case there are any differences, the depot officer should show the quantity received in the unit adopted by the consignor in addition to that in which the same will be accounted for the depot, so that the returning officer will be able to investigate discrepancies. In such cases brief reasons should be stated in the Advice Notes, and the returning officer should be advised of the differences, without delay. On no account should there be any lumping up of
entries in the Advice Notes. The depot should then check the classification stores nomenclature, price list number & c., complete all the foils in every respect and inform the divisional or district office of any differences that may come to light.

1611. Inspection and Valuation.—The material should then be inspected and valued by the gazetted officer of the stores depot. In the case of store, the depot's stock of which has already been declared as dead surplus, scrap value only should be afforded. Second-hand serviceable stores will be credited at half the price list rate for new stores except in those cases where a different method of valuation has been authorized (paragraphs 1612 to 1617). If the
officer returning the stores does not accept the valuation by the Depot Officer the matter should be referred to the Ganeral Manager whose decision will be final.

1612. Valuation of Second-hand Rails.—Each railway should annually fix a rate for second-hand rails returned to stores; but in the case of second-hand rails released from existing lines and supplied to new projects (whether financed by the Central Government or not ) or to other administrations, their price should be taken as 65 % of the market price of new rail.

1613. Valuation of plant & Machinery.—(a) In the case of serviceable plant & machinery their value should be determined according to the following formula viz., R-N/L (R-S) where R is the present day price of new boiler or pump, N is the age of article, L is the estimated life of the same and S is the scrap value. The scrap value should be pre-determined for each class of plant & machinery. When the article is repaired, the cost or repairs should be added to the book value arrived at using the above formula. If the article is condemned and cut up in the workshops, a work order should be allotted to which should be charged the book value of the article and the cutting up charges. The credit for scrap and any serviceable parts should be booked to the work order. Any outstanding balance should be adjusted against the department which returned the article.

(b) In case of Machinery & Plant, the returning Officer should furnish the following information in the advice note.

(i) Scurce of receipt.

(ii) Maker's name.

(iii) Year of Purchase.

(iv) Original Cost.

(v) Period it has been in use.

(vi) Whether it is good working order for sale or for offer to other railways.

(vii) Reason for return.

(viii) Whether the material is likely to be redrawn in the near future. If not, proposal if any, with regard to its disposal.

1614. Valuation of Boiler Tubes.—In the case of boiler tubes removed from engine boiler and returned to the stores depot from running sheds or workshops, it cannot be determined whether they are serviceable or not unless they are ""rumbled". They should not therefore be credited at half value of new stores but at scrap value. When the tubes have been rumbled the serviceable tubes should be held as second-hand stock at half the value of new stores. The difference between the book value of the "unrumbled" tubes, plus the cost of rumbling and the second-hand value of the tubes when taken into stock after rumbling should be credited to Stock Adjustment Account.


1615. Valuation of Repairable Items—Advice notes for material which though unserviceable, could after reconditioning or repairs be rendered serviceable and would thus be useful for another term of life, should be accepted as "Repairable." Credit should be afforded by the Stores Depot for wholly and partly ferrous articles at 1/3rd and non-ferrous articles at 1/2 of the current book rate for the new articles. Such articles would generally be stock items of locomotive, carriage and wagon parts and fittings.

Separate ledger cards under their relevant price list number affixing the correct category code to the price list number of the new article, should be maintained for repairable ones. As soon as it is desired or advantageous to do so, the Stores Depot should get the repairable material made serviceable for issue to consuming department for adding to serviceable stock instead of ordering for new materials.

The repaired articles should be taken on books at the book rate for repairable ones plus the actual cost of repairs or average cost of repairs, as convenient. No distinction should be made between new and repaired articles in the matter of storage, and the issue prices of the materials should be the same.

Note :—In case the stock of repairable article exceeds the annual consumption of the made and new repaired, articles investigations should be necessary action taken for the disposal of the excess stock.

1616. The actual cost of repairing or reconditioning such material will rarely be identical with the difference between the new value and the rate at which the material has been taken into stock before repairs.

The difference should be debited or credited to the appropriate Revenue Head of Account for overcharges and under-charges manufacture and repairs. A watch should be kept on such adjustments and where ever it is found that they are very heavy, the rates for repair should be reduced or increased by a suitable percentage to make them accord as near as possible with the actual as indicated by past transactions.

1617. Non-stock Repairable Items.—In case of non stock items, such materials should not be reclaimed or repaired until a requisition is received for the material.

1618. Delay in Receipt of Stores.—In the event of any stores not arriving within 14 days after receipt of the Advice Note (S. 1537) the Depot Officer should take up with the traffic department and inform the subordinate returning the stores at the same item If such stores are not received within 30 days after submission of the report, the Depot Officer should take necessary action according to the rules for stores lost in transit, vide paragraphs 2128 to 2138.

1619. Stores Received in Aadvace of Documents.—If any returned stores are received in a depot before arrival of the Advice Note, the fact should at once be reported to the subordinate returning the stores, giving details of the stores received, the station of despatch and the number and date of the Railway Receipt. The particulars of the stores should also be entered in columns (4), (5), (6), (7) and (8) of the Depot Register of Advice Notes (S. 1609). If the Ad vie Notes are not received within a week after the submission of the above report, a special report should be made to the divisional or district Officer. If the concerned Advice Notes are cot received within 14 days after the arrival of the stores, these should be dealt with as "excess found in stock" and accounted for accordingly.

1620. Posting of Numerical Ledgers—The Depot Officer, after having the necessary enteries made in the numerical ledgers bin cards as well as in the Depot Register of Advice Notes (S. 1609) should retain one copy of the Advice Note (2nd foil) as his cilice record and send the two copies (3rd and 4th foil) duly completed in all respects to the Accounts Officer, Stores.

1621. Disposal of Receipt (6th) Foil—The sixth foil of the Advice Note should also be sent by the Depot Officer duly receipted to the divisional or district officer concerned to be retained as the latter's office record after making the entries in columns 7 to 9 of the Departmental Register of Advice Notes (S. 1605). He should take up with the depot and returning officers any discrepancies in quantities (vide columns 5 and 9 of the Register) if the reason
given on the Advice Notes are not satisfactory.

1622. Accounts Register of Advice Notes.—The three copies of the Advice Note received by the Stores Accounts Officer will be dealt with in his office according to the following procedure. On receipt in the Stores Accounts Office of the 5th foil direct from the returning officer, the particulars of the Advice Note should be entered in a register (S.1622) containing the following columns :—

1. Number and date of Advice Note.

2. Designation and station of subordinate returning stores.

3. Date of receipt of 5th foil.

4. Date of Receipt of 3rd and 4th foil.

5. Receipt order No. & Date.

6. Date and No. of Advice of credit.

7. Remarks.

A separate portion of the register should be reserved for each sub-ordinate or division or department with separate pages for each date or month.

1623. This register will enable the Stores Accounts Officer to watch the prompt accountal of returned stores by the Depot officer concerned. The Stores Accounts Officer should inspect this register once a fortnight to see that there is no avoidable delay on the part of the Depot O0ic«r in acknowledging receipt of returned stores and accounting for them. Any delay in accountal should be promptly taken up with the Depot Officer. Any items outstanding for over
three months should be extracted in a summary to avoid their being lost sight of and a special report of such items should be made to the Controller of Stores.

1624. The Pairing of Advice Notes.—The 3rd and 4th foils received from the depot should be paired with the 5th foil received direct from the returning officer, and the date of their receipt entered in the register S. 1622.

1625. Pricing of Advice Notes and Posting of Priced Ledger.—The 3rd and 4th foils should then be priced at the valuation fixed by the depot officer. The 4th foil will be used for posting the priced ledgers and kept as the record for the Stores Accounts Office.

1626. Advice of Credits.—Advice of Credit will be prepared & sent to the Divisional/District Officer. The number and date of the Advice of Credit should be noted in the Accounts Register of Advice Notes (S. 1622) against the entries of the Advice Notes included in the Advice of Credits. The Advice of Credits with the 3rd foil as supporting vouchers and the corresponding 5th foils should then be sent to the divisional or district officer concerned.

1627. Deleted.

1628. Procedure in the District or Divisional Office.—On receipt of the copies of the Advice Notes along with the Advice of Credit from the Stores Accounts officer in the division or district office, the 5th foil should be transmitted to the subordinate concerned after noting on it the fact of credit having been received. The Advice of Credit supported by the 3rd foil should then be carefully checked with the noted in the Departmental Register of Advice Notes (S. 1605).
The Divisional or workshop Accounts Officer concerned will be responsible for taking up with the Stores Department any discrepancies in quantities, shown in the copies of the Advice Notes (3rd foil) as compared with the corresponding entries in column 9 of the register S. 1605. (When there is no Accounts officer attached to the office of the head of the returning department, this check should be exercised by his own office). Necessary adjustments should then be made by debiting "Transfers Stores" and crediting the head of account concerned. In case where there is no Accounts Officer attached to the office of the department returning the stores, the latter should send the Advices of Credit to the Accounts Officer concerned for necessary adjustment.

1629. Freight on Stores returned to Stores Depots.—In the case of materials returned from revenue maintenance, the freight should be debited to the head "Carriage of Revenue Stores" under the various revenue abstracts of the returning departments. In the case of materials returned from special works, the freight should be debited to the estimate of the work concerned, i.e. Capital, Depreciation Reserve Fund or Revenue as the case may be. But if the stores are returned on account of incorrect issue by the Stores Department, the freight should be charged
to the head K. 693.