পাতা:বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্র (প্রথম খণ্ড).pdf/২৪৫

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বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্রঃ প্রথম খণ্ড
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খরিদ করিতে লোক বাধ্য হইতেছে। এই অত্যাবশ্যকীয় এই নিত্যপ্রয়োজনীয় দ্রব্যের অভাবে জনসাধারণের দুর্দ্দশার অবধি নাই। তাই চারদিক হইতে কিছু কিছু সোরগোল উঠিয়াছে। আমাদের আফজল মন্ত্রী আবার বিবৃতি ঝাড়িয়াছেন, কেন্দ্রীয় সরকারে শৈথিল্য ও অব্যবস্থার জন্যই নাকি এই বিড়ম্বনা। [সাপ্তাহিক নও বেলাল- এ প্রকাশিত সম্পাদকীয়, ১-১১-১৯৫১]

Special motion regarding salt situation in the Province [2nd Nov., 1951]

The Hon'ble Mr. S. M. Afzal: Sir, I beg to move that this Assembly is of opinion that the salt situation in the province of East Bengal be taken into consideration.

 Mr. Chairman, Sir, it was in August, 1950 that the Provincial Government noticed a rise in the price of salt. The rise in price appeared to be due to the monopolistic tendencies of the merchants supplying salt from Karachi. In order to counteract their activities the Provincial Government decided to promulgate statutory order to keep the price of salt at a reasonable level. Accordingly the East Bengal Salt Control Order was promulgated on the 30th August, 1950. The order provided for the fixation of wholesale prices and empowered the local dealers to distribute salt at prices fixed by Government, if this became necessary. The retail trade was excluded from the purview of this order on the ground that salt trade was being carried on by a very large number of persons of limited supplies in all the markets and hats of the province and that any attempt to control salt transactions may result in widespread corruption amongst the minor officials of the Civil Supplies Department. The above measure was considered by it self to be adequate. The Provincial Government, therefore, proposed that the Centre should increase the supply of salt within the Province and they should import salt on Government account. This could not be given effect to because the Central Government decided to trade in salt themselves. They promulgated the Sea Salt Control Order on the 13th November, 1950, under which the sale, purchase or procurement of salt came to be controlled by the Central Government.

 Its import from foreign countries was also licensed. On the 14th December 1950, the Central Government launched the scheme for the monopoly procurement of sea-salt by them and for its shipment to East Bengal on their account. They also asked the Provincial Government not to take any action that the latter might be contemplating with respect to the supplies of salt to East Bengal. It was explained that there was a large accumulation of sea-salt in the Karachi Salt Works which was sufficient to meet the demand of East Bengal. We protested against the monopoly scheme because we were of the view that it was not a wise policy to supplant private importers altogether and assume the entire responsibility for supply. This was not heeded to.

 Since December, 1950, the Provincial Government have been watching dispatches of salt from Karachi with considerable anxiety. During the period from January to May, 1951, 9,70,942 maunds of salt were received from Karachi against estimated requirement of 25 lakh maunds. This deficiency was brought to the notice of the Central Government in the middle of May and they were asked to plan dispatches in such a way that supplies exceeded 5 lakh maunds per month so that something was left over as reserve. Due, however, to difficulties in getting shipping space the Central Government could not speed up dispatches The deficiency noticed in May had been aggravated by July and