পাতা:বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্র (চতুর্দশ খণ্ড).pdf/৬৮০

648 বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্রঃ চতুর্দশ খন্ড In terms of military balance, both sides have strengthened their positions since 1965. Pakistan has reportedly taken on loan 75 military Aircraft from Saudi Arabia. It also maintains air force training missions in various West Asian countries, which, in the event of a war, may be expected to assist Pakistan. India's policy of achieving self-sufficiency in military hardware gives it a decidcd advantage over Pakistan. Several new types of films and ammunition are being manufactured in Indian Ordnance Factories. A major break-through was the Vijayanta tank, considered more maneuverable than Centurion which was India's mainstay in 1965. The first Vijayanta rolled out in December 1965 and an informed guess is that between 350 and 400 hundred of these medium tanks equipped with 105 m. m. guns have been put into service. India makes aircraft and ships as well. The Hindustan Aeronautics is currently making the Jet ground-attack fighter HF-24, the supersonic interceptor MIG-21, the jet fighter Gnat, the Jet-trainer HJT-16, the transport aircraft, HS-748 and Alouette helicopters. The Mazagoan Docks in Bombay produces Leander class frigates. Meanwhile. Indian citizens have already been hit by the financial burden of the Bengali refugees and of war preparations. Although the finance minister, Y. B. Chavan, had assured parliament and the people that he had no intention of introducing a supplementary Budget this year, on the eve of Mrs. Gandhi's departure on her foreign tour the Government announced more tax measures to raise Rs. 700 million New levies are being imposed on railways travel, postal services, bills of exchange The Government also is imposing an excise duty of two paisa on each copy of newspaper s. all new measures taken effect from November 15. They were announced through a Presidential Ordinance the first time taxes have been collected in this manner. Parliament is to meet by the middle of November for a brief winter session, and as the tax measures are effective only from November 15 the ordinance came as surprise. In addition to the measures proposed by the Centre the States will have to impose additional duties on certain items falling under their jurisdiction. The new measures arc: 5% surcharge on railway tickets costing one rupee or more; 5% surcharge on au travel within India (the May budget had imposed a 10% foreign travel lax on the value of tickets); a tax of Paisa 5 on all postal articles except postcards; duty of Paisa 10 on bills of exchange, bills of lading, promissory notes, insurance policies, letter of credit and proxies; and paisa 2 levy on newspapers and periodicals. The additional tax measures are being introduced to meet the mounting cost of maintaining the refugees from Bangladesh and to arrest further deficit financing An estimate says between April and December 1971 deficit spending would pave risen to the Figure of Rs. 5700 million. The budget estimate was Rs. 2,300 million And unofficial estimates say that if these levies are collected over a period of 12 months, the yield will be much more than Rs. 700 million.