INDIA CONFERENCE

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXI, Issue 14, 30 December 1930, Page 5

INDIA CONFERENCE

NEARING ITS END PREMIER IN CONSULTATION. PAST WORK REVIEWED, (Brltlih Official Wireless.! —I (Received 30, 12.30 p.m.) i Rugby, December 29. The Prime Minister expresses the hope, in a broad outline of the task of the India Conference, that it will be completed before the end of January and, if possible, before Parliament reassembles on January 20th. He was in consultation op Saturday, aud again yesterday, with the Secretary for India, the Postmaster-Gene-ral, and officials and advisers of the Indian Office. The work already done was reviewed, and much consideration was given to the furthermeans to be taken to assist the Conference.

The Indian Round Table Conference to-day resumed work after the Christmas recess, when the Northern frontier-province sub-committee met under the chairmanship of Mr Henderson, the British Foreign Secretary.

WEEKLY REPORT. [British Official Wireless.) (Received 30, 12.30 p.m.) Rugby, December 29. The Government of India’s weekly appreciation says:—The report received from the Provincial Government for the first half of December shows that in most provinces attempts have been made to intensify the various activities of the civil disobedience movement. The Bengal Government records revived activity m Calcutta, including picketing, and a revival also in the Hooghly district, but in other districts there has been no change of importance. In the united provinces there have been several cases of violence, but otherwise the situation has shown littlp change. In the Punjab there has been no particular change. In Sikh the situation is much the same, and attempts to revive the agitation and picketing are not serious in extent. Revived activity has been particularly marked in Bihar and Orissa, where, in several districts, there has been a general increase of interest in the civil disobedience movement, which has taken the form of picketing, the circulation of false rumours calculated to increase excitement and mrest, and encouragement of nonpayment of taxes. There were several of violent resistance to the police. The situation in Madras continues to be very satisfactory, and ; in the Ventral Provinces and Assam attempts to revive enthusiasm met with little success. PRESS CONTROL.

On the 23rd of December the Go-vernor-General promulgated two ordinances providing for the better control of the press and the prevention of instigation to refuse, to pay out certain liabilities. The reasons necessitating this action were given by the Governor-General in a statement issued on the promulgation of ordinances, but it may be mentioned that the deterioration in the tone of the press has been very rapid, and there has been a very definite intensification of the no-tax campaign, especially in the united provinces. Bombay city has been compare, tively quiet during the week which ended on Saturday last. Reports from Gujerat show thaf there is still a considerable migration from British territory to that of adjacent Indian States, which migration is partly due to organised intimidation. Resentment is displayed among all classes, and in the Punjab and Lahore meetings have expressed condemnation of the terrorist movement.