Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1952-06-08
BowIes Seeks Backing.
For 81 Billion, 4-Year
IAid-to-India Plan
BY The Associated Press


BY The Associated Press
Chester Bowies, ambassador to-
India, was reported yesterday to
have worked out 81 billion. four
year plan for aid to India. He
hopes to gain administration sup
port for the proposal this week.
Mr.. Bowles is due in Washing
ton tomorrow from Hartford,
Conn, where he has been under
going medical treatment. Diplo-
matte informants said he is ex-
pected to urge acceptance of his
proposal at the State Department
and to discuss it with President
Truman and congressional leaders.
AS understood here, the proposal
includes the much smaller amount
OF aid already tentatively sched-
uled for India for the fiscal year
beginning July /. It is designed to
enable Prime Minister Nehru's
government to carry through sue
cessfully its own five-year plan,
now year old, for boosting
midas deficient food production.
The production of food is one
Of midas major political as well
as economic problems. Apparently
Mr.. Bowles believes. as do State
Department officials, that success
in the food growing program
would do much to strengthen Mr..
Nehru's position.
Aid Funds Reduced.
Since the Indian leader recently
has been developing somewhat the
same attitude of opposition to
Communism as the United States,
there is considerable belief in the
State Department that it would
be timely now to make an ex-
traordinary effort to assist him.
Aid for India is provided in the
big, one-package foreign aid bill
on which Congress is completing
action. However, the funds au-
thorized by this measure are much
smaller than the administration
originally asked and that in turn
was smaller than would be neces-
sary if the reported Bowles pro-
posal were adopted.
The administration requested
$3.50 million for South Asia. in
GLIDING Sis million for India.
This section Of the bill was cut by
about 80 per cent and if the cut
were applied equally to all South
Asian countries the ALLEGATION to
India would be reduced from Sis
million to SIT million.
Under the new proposal the
United States would give India
an average of $3.50 million over
the four-year period.
Little Time Remaining.
At present the United States is
running $50 million Point Four
program Of technical assistance in
India jointly with the Indian gov
eminent and has substantially
completed grain shipments under
a $3.50 million special loan voted
by Congress last year.
Administration officials said
yesterday that one big difficulty
in the way Of Mr.. Bowles idea is
that Congress has preferred that
all foreign assistance programs. be
packaged in single piece of legis-
lation. Since the legislation for
this session already has cleared
most Of the congressional hurdles,
lit is questionable whether Presi-
dent Truman would want to send
lup a request for special action in
the case Of India. This was
described as a particularly i'm
portant consideration in view of
the little time remaining in this
session and the fact that Congress
has cut heavily the amounts pre-
viously requested for aid to Europe
and Asia.
Nevertheless, officials said Mr..
Bowles was assured of a full hear
ing for his plans, which might
provide a basis for future Ameri-
can policy toward India even if
they cannot be acted on immed-
lately.
Closer Relationship Sought.
The United States has been try
ing for several years to establish
closer working relationship with
the government at New Delhi, with
the idea that India should become
an Increasingly powerful bulwark
against the expansion of Commu-
mist power in the East.
Several events over many months
are now credited with having per-
suaded Prime Minister Nehru to
develop an attitude toward inter-
national Communism more closely
approaching that of the United
States and the other free nations.
These events are said to include
the Communist war in Korea, the
general attitude of the Chinese
Communist regime toward the rest
of the world. and particularly its
conquest of Tibet. and the show
Of Red strength in Southwest India
during the Indian elections Of last
winter.
When the new parliament which
resulted from these elections met
recently, Mr.. Nehru delivered a
speech which was welcomed here
as a declaration of opposition to
the Communists