appointed as Purchasing Agent on Royalty basis. They may be advised to deposit some money as advance before operating their business.
PROPOSAL ABOUT JUTE EXPORT AND
MEETING WITH MR. D. P. DHAR.
With our personal efforts we have been able to obtain an official firm contract subject to authority's clearance from England and Germany in the name of Bangladesh Trade Mission to be valued at about £4, 50,000. For export, some 50/75,000 bales jute is always available to Bangladesh Government, from existing agents.
During the meeting with Mr. D. P. Dhar in Delhi, Mr. Dhar insisted on the Chairman of the Board of Trade to start immediate local business with the State Trading Corporation of India on a share of profit with them and to wait or sometimes for export. Mr. Dhar also mentioned not to rule out about the possibility of raw jute export which will be considered by their Government in near future. On the request of Mr. Dhar, we met Mr. Shwaminathan, I. C. S., Economic Aid to the Prime Minister of India Mrs. Indira Gandhi. Mr. Shwaminathan was very much sympathetic and could realize about the requirement of raw jute export by the Bangladesh Authority. Some news appeared recently in the Indian Press including the 'Statesman' that Bangladesh jute will be exported which are coming in a bulk quantity. About 6/7 lacs bales are being brought to this side. We may convince the Indian Authority to allow only 10% out of the total quantity or a small quantity of 50,000 bales to export, after keeping the interest of the Indian Mills with balance quantity of at least 6 lacs bales for their production. We have got our political and logical ground to convince the Indian authority which are as follows:
(A) The question of transit facilities for exporting jute through India may easily be considered by them while they have already shouldered the responsibilities of the refugees and extended all out materials aid to Bangladesh through their desperate attempts to evoke the world conscious and facilities to our official visit to United Nations and other foreign countries.
(B) Fair price and tremendous encouragement of Bangladesh growers to bring more quantity to this side or to hold further supply to deny Pakistani Economy.
(C) The existence of Bangladesh Government will be a recognized fact to the world with the export of raw jute in the name of Bangladesh.
(D) Raw jute export will enable the world jute importers to cut their import from Pakistan and will come forward to make trade agreement for the present and also for the future.
(E) The Bangladesh Government will find serious hardship in economic field even after liberation, if we lose such long established market in absence of continuity of export and confidence which may be created even with limited supply of jute.
(F) Indian Jute Mills will not be able to keep minimum price level because of heavy supply and less production unless some quantity of Bangladesh jute is exported. This has reference to Indian News Papers comments.
