INDIAN SITUATION

Greymouth Evening Star, 12 August 1930, Page 5

INDIAN SITUATION

AN OFFICIAL REVIEW [OFFICIAL wireless.] RUGBY, August 11. Little further news is available from Peshawar. Owing to the presence of troops, obviously adequate to deal with the; situation, no alarm has been displayed by the populace of the city during the present trouble. Measures taken by the Air Force have prevented any large concentration by hostile tribesmen, and those remaining in;British territory are split into small and somewhat elusive parties, who have occasionally percolated to the outskirts of the city. When these are located they are promptly dealt with by the defending troops.

The intention was reported that the main body of the .Lashkar should deliver an. attack on the night of August 8, while the detachments, already in the district created a diversion. No attack however was carried out on the city or cantonments. Although the casualties among the Afridis are believed to be severe, the conditions make them difficult to estimate with any accuracy. No casualties have been reported among the British troops, and those among the Indian troops have been very slight. ( There have been serious communal disturbances in Sind. The disorder commenced in Sukkur, but has spread to Rohri and to adjacent villages. The origin is reported to have been a dispute between members of the Swarajist procession and a Muhammadan tonga driver, exaggerated accounts of which gave rise to alarmist rumours, followed by serious clashes between the-two communities. The casualties have been serious and the latest reports indicate the situation is not yet under complete control. Provincial reports describing the situation during the last fortnight of July are the most favourable received for some months. In Madras, the decline in lawless activities is becoming more marked, and in many districts, attempts to defy the law' arc halfhearted and readily abandoned.