I am sorry to state that I applied for a new telephone on 05.02.2016. Though more than two years have passed since the application, I have not received the new connection yet nor have I been informed at what stage my application for the connection is at present. Kindly let me know when I can expect the connection. I shall be highly obliged if you take immediate steps in this regard.
I would be highly obliged if you would take immediate steps in this regard.
My question is, are both the bold sentences correct In the above context? If yes, what is the difference between them?
25.4k 4 4 gold badges 63 63 silver badges 95 95 bronze badges asked Dec 19, 2018 at 8:52 subhajit dalal subhajit dalal 680 5 5 gold badges 19 19 silver badges 27 27 bronze badgesThe first sentence is certainly correct although the difference between "shall" and "will" has largely disappeared in modern American English. (But I have no knowledge of such nuances in Indian English.) The second sentence is what many Americans might well use instead. I am old fashioned enough that I would substitute "if you took" for "if you would take."
As a matter of personal style, the sentence appears very stilted and adds nothing substantive. If I were writing from scratch, I'd probably end with "Please let me know promptly when I can expect the connection," but place it in a separate paragraph. But that is my sense of style, not a comment on grammar or idiom.
answered Dec 19, 2018 at 14:45 Jeff Morrow Jeff Morrow 32.1k 25 25 silver badges 58 58 bronze badgesI don't think "if you took" is old-fashioned. It reads better, given that, as you point out, the sentence looks stilted and unsubstantive.
Commented Dec 19, 2018 at 15:4750 years ago, "took" would have been mandatory in the schools I went to, but today few use the old rules on sequence of tenses.