One evacuee every second
By A Staff Reporter, India is receiving one evacuee from Bangladesh every second according to an official report. Everyday some 100,000 people are driven out from Bangladesh to the Indian side of the border. The cost of food and shelter for each evacuee is estimated at Rs. 4 a day.
The Government of India is bearing the entire expenditure on relief operations for the evacuees from Bangladesh. Up to June 19, the following amounts have been advanced on account to the State Government West Bengal – Rs. 10.57 lakhs. Assam – Rs. 90. lakhs Meghalaya – Rs. 1.50 lakhs Tripura – Rs. 3.20 lakhs, Bihar Rs. 3 lakhs.
The Government of India has also been incurring direct expenditure on various items like medicines etc. A sum of Rs. 8 crores have been advanced to the Food Corporation of India for purchasing adequate quantities of foodgrains and other essential commodities and for stocking them in their godowns in the border areas. A provision of Rs. 60 crores has been made in the Budget Estimate for 1971-72 towards relief of the evacuees.
Subsequent to the Prime Minister’s visit to Calcutta on June 5, it was decided that in view of the heavy pressure of evacuee population in West Bengal, immediate programme for their dispersal from the border areas should be worked out. For this purpose, camps should be set up in the interior of West Bengal or in other States wherever Government land is available. Those camps should be kept segregated and the inmates should not be allowed to mix with the local people. Necessary security guards should be posted in these camps.
As a result of the above decision it is proposed to set up 50 Central Camps with 50,000 persons in each. The distribution in those camps statewise will be : Tripura – 5 lakhs, Assam – 1 lakh, West Bengal – 10 lakhs, Mana (Raipur)- 2 lakhs, Bihar- 2.50 lakhs, Orissa – 1 lakh, Uttar Pradesh – 1 lakh, Madhya Pradesh (Bilaspur) – 1.50 lakhs.
Reference: Hindustan Standard, 08.07.1971