P.O.W.s in Ranchi camp quite comfortable
From Our Staff Correspondent, NEW DELHI, JAN. 6.—It looked like a mini Army cantonment with POW’s basking in the afternoon winter sun here and there in groups, leisurely sitting on spacious grounds where row of makeshift selfcontained cottages and hutments have been built within barbed wire enclosures to accommodate thousands of Pakistani soldiers, para military men and civilians including women and children who have been taken into protective custody on the request by the Indian Army.
An official of the Indian Army said that those civilians, some of them are family members of the captured Pakistani army men, officer sought shelter of the Indian Army for fear of reprisal by Bangladesh people.
Over 8,000 POWs including a little over 200 officers have been brought to Ranchi so far and == in camps away from the === and bustle of Ranchi city More train loads of POWs are expected to arrive to the course of next few days.
Indian Army who headed the escorting team came with a full train-load of POWs yesterday afternoon at Namkum station. He remarked. “It is easilerto to fight in battle field than to look after such a large number of POWs in transit”.
Although apparently tired as he was on his legs after a special train steamed into to conduct POWs numbering about 1,100 to waiting buses. trucks and army lorries to shift them to crops he talked to newsmen while moving from door to door of compatments to assure POWs that every possible care was being taken to make their stay comfortable.
At that time one Lt. Col. Sarfaraj of Pakistan Army inquired whether night meals would be served in train or in the camp. Another bearded young Pakistani Officer who was in Lt.-Colnel’s compartment and listening to a trainsister radio remarked with a broad snnte that the Colonel was very much particular about his food. Othe POW officers also joined him in his joke.
Among Pak para military men in POWs there were a number of teen-agers sitting in compartments with long faces and looking around non-chalantly.
But army men specially young officers, were often glancing at the curtous crowd on the station platform with apparent contempt.
Questioned major Nimber confirmed that he had seen a large number of human skulls and skeletons and highly decomposed bodies, mostly of young women and men, at different places of Bangladesh while marching ahead from destination to destination and added that the soldiers worth their sait carried out the orders of their superiors faithfully.
Perhaps by saying so he wanted to say that Pakistani military junta and not soldiers should be made responsible for genocide and other crimes,
Reference: Hindustan Standard 7. 01. 1972