Another small point that Mr. Dandekar mentioned was about the pension to widows. He said that they are getting about Rs. 8 or something like that. I would like to tell him for his information that very recently we have increased the quantum and the minimum is Rs. 25.
Well, nothing is enough but certainly this is what we have done to them and it is certainly an improvement.
Here, I must make a mention of certain remarks made by the hon. Member Shrimati Sharada Mukerjee. She expressed her anxiety for the welfare of the, services and I entirely share her anxiety. But I must say that I do not accept the other part of her arguments. She will forgive me for not agreeing on that point. What does she expect in the Report of the Defence Ministry in regard to the framework of the United Nations ? What else does she want us to do ? Does she want us to declare to the world that we want to have aggression, that we have nothing to do with the United Nations ? Does she want us to follow China or does she want us to follow her own ideas about it’?
As far as the border road development is concerned, during the last two years, this has occupied an important place; this was the most important factor in the defence preparedness. As we all know, ultimately these battles in the Himalayan terrain are going to be battles of logistics. And the logistic capability of any Army depends upon the system of communications that we can develop. During the last year and a half or two years, this organisation has made a tremendous progress, at great risk, I should say. In order to see the risk that they arc running in developing these roads, it is better that some Members go and see the thing for themselves; some of the Members had gone and seen those border roads, and they have come back with praise for those people. I know that this programme has still to make a long progress yet and it has to go through a long way yet. But I am sure that if we proceed at the speed with which we are proceeding now for a few more years, this question of communications will be solved satisfactorily.
The last point was about the ordnance factories.
I would like to assure Shri Indrajit Gupta, Shri Banerjee and Dr. Melkote that what has happened during the last few months was not any proposal of retrenchment of any regular workers. Some casual workers who had been taken for some specific jobs for temporary periods had to he discontinued. There is no proposal now, nor do I think there is the likelihood of any proposal in the near future, to retrench the employees. But I must say at the same time that the work that the labour in the ordnance factories have done during the last two years is something worthy of national pride. The way they have functioned is really remarkable. Naturally, Dr. Melkote and Shri Banerjee and other also have written to me about it, asking me, in what way we could appreciate the work done by these people. I do not want to take the time of the House in going through the benefit schemes and welfare schemes that we have got for labour. But we have taken into consideration many schemes, and many schemes are already being implemented. But we shall keep this in mind while dealing with the problems that they’ will have in the future also. Before I conclude, I must thank this House for the fact that they have shown a great appreciation of the work that is being done. I must also thank the members for the good-will that they have shown in the speeches because I know that the type of task that I am entrusted with is something which is rather a difficult one.
One hon. Member made a personal reference to me. He made a mention about my place in the Cabinet. My place in the Cabinet has something to do with my age, and I cannot help my age. But I can tell him that I have got the fullest faith and confidence of my Cabinet colleagues and the Prime Minister in this work of defence preparation or defence efforts; and the good-will that hon. Members here have shown me will also go a long way to sustain me in this task.