Help for Bangladesh

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 32819, 20 January 1972, Page 5

Help for Bangladesh

"The Press" Special Service

AUCKLAND.

Women’s organisations in India are working hard to assist refugees and wounded soldiers from the recent war with East Pakistan. Mrs Shanti K. Sinha, from the Uttarpradesh State of India, is in Auckland representing the AU India Women’s Conference at the conference of the Pan Pacific South-East Asia Women’s Association.

Mrs Sinha said: “My home state is in Northern India, not far from New Delhi but luckily not dose enough to the borders of the new Bangladesh to experience any of the effects of war.

“Nevertheless our women’s organisation, like others in India, has sent money for medicines, * food and other essentials, as well as assisted in refugee camps. This is all we can do immediately but in the long trem we will be working in many ways, especially through education to help establish the new country, for this is the wish of our Government.” Mrs Sinha is an education expert. Trained as a teacher, she is now one of eight secondary school inspectors and it is her responsibility to watch over more than 150 girls’ secondary schools in her state.

“I’m pleased to say education for girls is now equal to that for boys, in

our state, and is Stateorganised except for a few schools our All India Women’s Conference runs for special children — those who don’t usually go to school.” ' The All India Women’s Conference is a strong body with over 700 branches throughout India. Mrs Sinha and Mrs Rashida Khan, who’ve both held executive positions with a branch in Uttarpradesh are representing their organisation at the Pan Pacific South-East Asia Women’s Association conference because it plans to become a member of the international group. Mrs Sinha said the All India Women’s Conference had similar aims and was doing similar things.