BEFORE THE FILE IS PREPARED FOR RECORD, IT WILL BE ARRANGED PROPERTY FOR RECORDING ,BY TAKING ACTION IN THE DEPARTMENT CONCERNED:-

A statement showing the retention period recommended for records of the common interest to departments is placed on the record of the of the department of personnel (Administrative Reforms) office manual for which the Heads of Departments and offices should follow these recommendations unless there are specific reasons in the particular cases .Care should be taken to see that files containing papers which are important or likely to become important in future,however indirectly,as sources of information on any aspect of history whether political, military,social , economic,etc or which are or may in future prove to be,of biographical or antiquarian interest are not destroyed.However files containing papers of the following types, which have a definite historical value, should invariably be preserved .(a) Original papers containing discussions of important principles and questions of policy.(b) Original papers relating to the legislation .(2) PREPARING  A FILE FOR RECORD :-- After a file has been marked for record ,it will be arranged properly for recording.This would involve the following action in the department:-(a) amendment or revision of the title of the file, where necessary,so that it describes adequately it's contents. (b) completing references, that is removing alphabetical slips and giving Permanent identification marks to the references quoted in the notes and correspondence.(c) preparing a fresh cover for the file with the revised title.(d) marking numbers of previous or later files or volumes on the subject, on the cover of the file.(e) removing from the file , routine notes and papers ,which may have to be weeded out. (f) marking the approved classification on the cover of the file.(g) noting in the File register the date of recording and classification (and the year of destruction in due course ) .After action as above is completed the files classified will be entered in the register of files for Record in the form and will be sent to the Record section along with the Register .