Wilson moves for cease-fire
The Prime Minister informed the Lok Sabha [on April 30] that the British Prime Minister, Mr. Harold Wilson, had taken the initiative to bring about a cease-fire in the present conflict between India and Pakistan in the Kutch area. Mr. Wilson had addressed messages to the Prime Minister, and also to President Ayub Khan of Pakistan. Mr. [Lal Bahadur] Shastri said that while these discussions were taking place, it would not be in public interest to spell out the details of the British proposals. At the same time, the Prime Minister assured the House that the Government would not accept anything which was not consistent with what he had told parliament a couple of days ago. The Deputy Minister, Mr. Y.B. Chavan, told the House that he would make a statement on the military situation in Kutch after certain conclusions had been reached. He said it would be improper for him to give any operational details as it might jeopardise the life of our own soldiers. There was a hue and cry from the Opposition that the Government’s attitude was unhelpful and that it was unwilling to take them into confidence.
'Neera' with meals for children
It is proposed to give a cup of “neera” along with midday meals to school children from the next academic year in Madras State. Giving this information to Pressmen [in Vellore] on April 29, Mr. V. Padmanabhan, Secretary, Khadi and Village Industries Board, said that in a couple of schools in Madras City and the Junior Approved School in Ranipet in North Arcot district selected for the experiment, it had been proved that the weight of pupils who had taken “neera” had increased. It had also been discovered by competent medical practitioners after prolonged research that the regular habit of taking “neera” had cured some of the eye diseases.
Increase in national income
The national income of India at constant (1948-49) prices was Rs. 13,910 crores in 1963-64 and Rs. 13,310 crores in 1962-63 as compared to Rs. 12,730 crores in 1960-61, the last year of the Second Five-Year Plan, says an official Press release. The corresponding per capita income at 1948-49 prices worked out to Rs. 299.8, Rs. 293.4 and Rs. 293.2 respectively. At current prices, however, the national income was considerably higher at Rs. 17,200 crores in 1963-64 and Rs. 15,400 crores in 1962-63. The corresponding per capita income at current prices was Rs. 370.7 and Rs. 339.4 respectively. This is revealed by the latest estimates prepared by the Central Statistical Organisation.
