KARACHI: All arrangements are now complete to accord a grand reception to President Mohammad Ayub Khan on his arrival to Karachi from Rawalpindi this afternoon. The President, who is coming here on his way to a week-long “quest for peace” mission abroad will land at the Karachi civil airport at 3 p.m. in his personal Viscount.

The Karachi airport and the entire route up to President’s House is being decorated and welcome gates set up at different points. The President’s motorcade will pass through the gaily decorated route. Balloons and pigeons will be released on this occasion. On his arrival at the Karachi Airport, the President will be presented an address of welcome on behalf of the Karachi Divisional Muslim League. The President of the Karachi Divisional Muslim League, Commodore Khalid Jamil, yesterday appealed to all the party workers and the public to accord a most befitting welcome to President Ayub Khan who is coming to the City for the first time after Pakistan’s crushing blow to India during the recent naked aggression. He hoped that they will assemble along the route in larger numbers to greet the President.

[Meanwhile, as reported by our Correspondent from Hong Kong,] the acute food shortage now facing India may threaten to become as disastrous as the great Bengal famine of 1943, which killed nearly a million people according to some foreign observers stationed in India.

The point was stressed in a BBC commentary relayed by Radio Hong Kong on Friday night while reporting the introduction of food rationing in New Delhi. Meanwhile, travellers arriving here from Indian cities report that the shadow of death and starvation is seen in the countryside while in towns and cities, there are open talks of famine and hunger marchers, hoarding and smuggling, with a sense of insecurity reigning everywhere.

Published in Dawn, December 6th, 2015