Paragraphs 293 to 304 of Punjab Land Administration Manual.

293.  Kanungo staff. The Kanungo establishment consists of field Kanungos, office Kanungos, and a district Kanungo. Its strength in each district can only be altered with the sanction of the local government. Ordinarily there is one field Kanungo for twenty patwaris, an office Kanungo at each tahsil, and a district Kanungowith at least one assistant at headquarters.

294.  Duties of field Kanungo. The Kanungo should be constantly moving about his circle supervising the work of the patwari on the spot, except in the month of September, when he stays at the tahsil to check the jamabandis received from the patwari.

295.  Duties of office Kanungo. The office Kanungo is the tahsidar’s revenue clerk, his chief work, the maintenance of the statistical revenue records, will be described in a later chapter. He has also charge of the forms and stationary required by patwari, keep the account of mutation fees, records in rainfall, and maintains the register of assignees of land revenue and other miscellaneous revenue registers. He is custodian of all the records received from patwari, and a well- ordered Kanungo’s office is an important factor in the revenue management of a tahsil.

296.  Duties of district Kanungo - The district Kaungo is responsible for the efficiency of the both the office and the field Kanungos and should be in camp inspecting their work for at least fifteen days in each month from 1^st October to 30^th April. He is the keeper of all records received from Kanungos and patwari, maintains with the help of his assistant copies of the prescribed statistical registers for each assessment circle, tahsil and the whole district. It is necessary, as already noted to give him one or more assistants for office work. The pay of a sadder Kanungo is Rs. 75-5/2-100 per mensum, and his assistant received Rs. 60 per mensum, except in simla where he receives Rs. 50-5-75 per mensum, while special Kanungo entertained in connection with the scheme for making the contents of revenue records more ready accessible to litigants in civil and revenue courts are paid at Rs. 65 per mensum.

297.  Kanungo to be employed only on their proper work. All Kanungos must be strictly confined to their own allotted work. It would be example, the improper to allow the district kanungo to be used by the revenue assistant as a reader. Nor should a tahsil office kanungo be used for case work.

298.  Grades and pay of Kanungo. Field and office kanungos are graded on a single list, office kanungo being chosen from among the older field kanungos. On first appointment a field kanungo receives Rs. 40 per mensum. His appointment is on probation pending the obtaining of a certificate of efficiency from the director of land records. No kanungo is confirmed unless and until he has obtained this certificate, and if he does not obtain it within 2 years of his first appointment, his name is struck off the list of kanungos and he received to his original post, if any. No longer remaining a kanungo candidate. Field kanungo in the highest grade, or one month of the whole number draw Rs. 50 monthly. Al field kanungos receive Rs. 20 per mensum as horse allowance. Settlement kanungo are paid at the same rats as field kanungos on the district staff”field kanungo not employed in settlement work get a stationary allowance of Rs. 1 per mensum. Tahsil office kanungos receive rs. 60 per mensum.

Note-: for the purpose of this paragraph is the whole number be one less than a multiple of 4/e.g. 19,23 etc.) it should be considered to be a full multiple. This where there are 19 field kanungo 5 would be entitled to draw pay of rs. 50 per mensum. Punjab govt. letter no. 8 rev. dated Jan., 1914

299.  Kanungo candidate. A register of accepted candidates for the post of Kanungo is maintained. Patwari on the district establishment and settlement patwari drawing Rs. 53 or more per mensum are eligible for this register, provided they have passed the middle school examination, but a lower educational qualification may be accepted in special cases, with the sanction of the financial commission obtained through the director of land records. Most of the candidates should be drawn from this class, as two third of the vacancies of the among kanungo must be given to patwaris. A few men below the age of twenty five who have passed the matriculation examination of the Punjab university may be accepted. But such candidate must not be given appointment till they have served two years as patwaris or as apprentices learning patwari work. No one should be accepted as a candidate who is not of active habits and able to ride. There is no such thing as a hereditary claim to a kanungos post, and the caution given as to the case of patwaris applies equally to that of kanungo. candidate must appear at the local examination held by the director of land records. On passing it and giving evidence that they have received a proper practical training they are entitled to certificates of efficiency.

300.  Claims of kanungos to higher posts. Great care should be taken in choosing kanungo candidate, and there is not much difficulty in getting suitable men. The post itself is a respectable one as regards pay and position, and it carries the appointment of district revenue accountant or a naib-tahsildar. Any kanungo who have served govt. of five years including at least two years approved service as field kanungo may be selected as a naib tahsildar candidate. The commissioner’s register should always contain some names drawn from the kanungo’s list. It is true that few promoted kanungo’s are likely to rise above the rank of naib-tahsildar by becoming tahsildar. They are usually, at least when they have started as patwaris, made naib-tahsildar too late in life to do so. But their previous training fits them to do very good work as naib-tahsildar, and the post of 1^st grade naib-tahsildar is sufficiently honourable and well paid to satisfy the ambitions of most men of the class from which the kanungo staff is mainly drawn. A permanent or officiating district kanungo is entitled to appear at thenaib-tahsildar examination, and, if he passes, his name is put on the register of candidate. A district kanungo of not less than two years standing may be selected by the financial commissioner as a candidate for the post of tahsildar.

301.  Kanungo in districts under settlement. When a district is being reassessed, the kanungo work under the orders of the settlement officer who finds it necessary to employ in addition a number of extra or settlement kanungos. He also becomes responsible for the training of candidates. At the end of the settlement he ought to leave in the district a thoroughly efficient kanungo staff with a number of qualified candidates.

302.  Training of kanungo candidates in settlement work. Where posible the director of land records arranges to give kanungo candidates from districts not under settlement a practical training in settlement work.

303.  Filling up post of district kanungo. A vacancy in the office of district kanungo must be filled by the promotion of an office or field kanungo. The post is one which can only properly be filled by a well educatedman of active habits, of good natural ability and sufficient acquired experience. A fair knowledge of english is an indispensable qualification for appointment. No particular examination test has been prescribed but ability to read and write english reports interlligibly and fairly quickly is demanded.

The deputy commissioner should consult the director of land records demi-offcially when a vacancy in the post for six months or more is to be filled. If they do not agree as to the person to be appointed, each should state his case for the consideration of the commissioner  of the division, who  will make the final selection. An appeal from his decesion will lie to the financial commissioner.

304.  Disabilities of Kanungos. The rule regarding rsidence is the same mutatis mutandis for field kanungo as for patwar , and kanungos are under the same regulations as patwari as regards trading, borrowing and lending, holding land, writing and attesting documents.