absent from duty

About 550 officers are absent from duty every day.

A resident of Naraina village in Haryana's Panipat district, "Om Prakash worked as a truck driver for 12 years in the Signal Corps of the Indian army, before being dismissed in 1988 for being absent from duty for four years", Mr Kumar says.

Around 10 percent of the 10,000-strong police and army forces are absent from duty.

An Admiral had to keep no strict hours when absent from duty, and if only he could look and act the part, the sentries would let him pass and ask no awkward questions.

Naturally, one rule applies to the whole staff, and I shall not expect any one to be absent from duty except on Christmas Day itself, which will be treated as a Sunday.