the country for stores, defense equipment; and they come to a very very considerable amount. Then there is the expenditure on Foreign Missions. Import of defense stores into West Pakistan confers no benefits on the economy of West Pakistan. The fact that guns, fire ammunition for training, or vehicles move on the roads of West Pakistan confers no benefit of any kind.
Mr. Abul Mansur Ahmad: Question.
The Honorable Mr. Mohammad Ali: Unproductive defense expenditure which takes away from the resources of the country is not an economic benefit.
The fact of the matter is this, taking a broad view; the bulk of the revenues of the Central Government is raised from West Pakistan and is spent on unproductive defense services. That is the real position. Why does one spend it in a particular place? Not to confer economic benefits. It is spent where forces are located on strategic considerations. There is another class of unproductive expenditure on the Civil Armed Forces in the Frontier. That again is considerable-and again is unproductive. Now it is maintained that salaries paid to armed forces confer a benefit on West Pakistan. For the last hundred years or so, salaries have been paid to the men drawn from certain districts in West. Pakistan and these districts remains the poorest district in West Pakistan, to this day. In fact, before partition, one used to hear complaints-very frequent complaints-that the British Government deliberately refrained from developing these districts economically, kept them poor, in order to be able to recruit men from there/Money which goes into productive activity is fruitful. The payment of salaries merely in certain poor districts without adding to the productive development in those places confers no benefit and, this can be seen by making a comparison between the districts from which most recruitment is made and the districts, like Lyallpur, Multan and others, where practically no recruitment takes place and which are the richest districts in West Pakistan. Now this is not to say that recruitment should continue to be confined to those areas. I agree wholly with those who maintain that citizens all over the country have a right to take part in the defense of the country. (Hear, hear).
His Excellency Mr. Mushtaq Ahmad Gurmani: Duty.
The Honorable Mr. Mohammad Ali: I agree wholly with that, efforts are being made, and I have intensified those efforts, to make up deficiencies in that respect. When some years ago, a Committee was appointed to go into the question of accelerating recruitment in East Pakistan, the most important recommendation it made was that a Military Academy should be set up in East Pakistan for the training of young men there. Unfortunately, no action had been taken on that, or rather a half-hearted attempt had been made at one time and thus not pursued. I have now sanctioned Rs. 40 lakhs for the construction of the Military Academy and work is being taken in hand immediately.
The Honorable Mr. Mohammad Ali: The Honorable Leader of the Opposition asked why a Naval Base was not set up in East Pakistan? He perhaps was not aware that I had already passed orders for the establishment of a Naval Base at Chittagong.
