Special envoys to arab countries
July 15, 1972
ALLOWANCES FOR DEPENDENTS OF STRANDED BANGALEES
Prime Minister Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman today issues an order that the dependants of the civilians and member of the armed forces now detained in Pakistan should be paid subsistence allowance by the government. The subsistence allowance will be to the extent of one-third of their pay, subject to a minimum of Tk 100 and maximum of Tk 400.
TWO SPECIAL ENVOYS APPOINTED
Foreign Minister Abdus Samad Azad announces today that two special emissaries of Prime Minister Sheikh Mujibur Rahman will very soon visit Arab and African countries to establish direct contacts and project Bangladesh's cause to these countries. The special emissaries will also create opinion in those countries for the repatriation of Bangalees stranded in Pakistan. Iqbal Athar, a former Pakistani non-Bangalee Ambassador in Sweden who resigned after the army crackdown in Bangladesh protesting against the genocide will be the prime minister's special envoy to the Arab countries. MH Ahmed, an officer on special duty in Bangladesh Foreign Office and former Pakistani Ambassador to Lebanon, will visit the African countries.
PAKISTAN RATIFIES SIMLA
The Pakistan National Assembly has ratified the Simla Agreement, report BBC. The BBC correspondent in Islamabad further informs that the five-day debate over the Agreement was quite stormy and the overwhelming majority of those who spoke were against the recognition of Bangladesh.
TEXTILE MILLS WORK AT 50% CAPACITY
At present the cotton mills in the country are operating 50 per cent below the installed capacity. Out of 8 lakhs installed spindles 4 lakhs are operating in 44 textile mills in Bangladesh. The authority attributes the causes of underutilisation mainly to the shortage of spare parts and other factors. Owing to the underutilization of the installed capacity the overhead costs in the mills have increased manifolds.
SOURCES: July 16, 1972 issues of Bangladesh Observer, Dainik Bangla and Dainik Ittefaq.
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