পাতা:বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্র (ত্রয়োদশ খণ্ড).pdf/৮১০

এই পাতাটির মুদ্রণ সংশোধন করা প্রয়োজন।

782 ংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্রঃ ত্রয়োদশ খন্ড Indian authorities indicated that the number of refugees is 9,744,404. Members of this committee are also aware that the Government of Pakistan has informed the Secretary-General on September 2, 1971, that it estimated the number of persons displaced from East Pakistan to be 2,002,623. I shall not endeavor here an independent projection of numbers into the future, since clearly there are far too many conjectural elements involved. In particular, I would not do so because of the ever present hope that the uprooted people may soon be able to return to their homes. Nevertheless, there can be no preparedness without working hypotheses, and I wish to assure this committee that we are conscious of the contingent. Turning to the third factor, i.e., the norms of assistance, these are well known to us. They comprise the base and the common element in each of the calculations that have been made of anticipated costs, calculations to which I have referred earlier. Broadly, these norms draw a distinction between recurring costs (such as food, medicines, salaries for relief personnel, maintenance of facilities, etc.) and non- recurring costs (such as shelter, medical and other equipment, vehicles, etc.). For the purpose of all the calculations made so far, the non-recurring costs have naturally been treated as one-time expenditure. However, should the problem continue for any length of time, certain of these costs would need to repeated-for example, on some of the polythene flown out as shelter material. As regards the norms themselves, they are modest indeed, They have been worked out in close consultation with the Focal Point and the staff of the other U. N. Agencies associated with this effort treating, as already indicated, non-recurring cost as one time, it has been calculated that average relief expenditure amounts at present to Rs. 2.74 per capita per day (or less than 37 US Cents). Such, briefly, are the direct costs of the relief programme with which we in the Focal Point are concerned. There are other indirect costs, that have a widespread effect on the Indian economy. These have been discussed, inter alia in the recent meeting of the India consortium at which my office was represented. I wish to make it quite clear, however, that consideration of these indirect costs and the long term economic repercussions of the refugee influx go beyond the concern of the Focal Point. Here, I wish to address myself strictly to the direct costs of the emergency relief operation. And these direct costs, a based on the three criteria 1 mentioned earlier, namely the numbers reported, the period for which assistance is provided and the norms of assistance, lead to the staggering requirement that I have referred to earlier. It is not hard to conclude from this that the expenditure involved in sheltering, feeding and treating this mass of several million refugees is already far in excess of the international assistance pledged or delivered. Turning now to the response of the international community, may I say once again, that it is unparalleled in U. N. experience and I cannot sufficiently express my gratitude for it. Till November 16, 1971, the Focal Point had received pledges totaling dollar 161,412,986.84 in kind. Of this amount, dollars 89,261,753 were pledged in cash and dollars 72,151,233.49 in kind. Lists of these contributions are annexed to an information paper that I have made available to this committee. The paper, in essence, recapitulates and brings upto-date information that I provided to my executive committee in Geneva last month. Also contained in this paper is breakdown of the actual and prospective deliveries by the U. N. system to India, as of October 31, 1971. I wish to thank most sincerely all these Governments, non-governmental organizations, and private individuals who have channeled their help through the U. N. system.