THE INDIAN FINANCE BILL 57
Sir F.E. James : It is still quite young.
The Honourable Dr. B.R. Ambedkar : Now, Sir, I come to the definite suggestion made by my Honourable friend Sir Frederick James in the matter of bringing about economy of paper in the Government of India. His specific suggestion, if I understood him correctly, was that a body was appointed in England, a committee consisting of a Chartered Accountant, a representative of the Publishing House and a representative of the Printing establishment. Sir, he has given us no details as to the mode and the manner by which this Committee works in England, nor has he referred to any principles adopted by this Committee in order to bring about economy. It is therefore at this stage quite impossible for me to say that I am ready to accept the suggestion that he has made. But I would like to point out to him the steps that we had taken which I am sure he will agree is more or less along the lines that he suggests. The step that we have taken is to appoint an officer called Commercial Master Printer to advise the Controller of Printing. We have very recently secured the sanction of the Finance Department and the Officer will be appointed before long. I am sure this Officer will be able to do what the Committee in England is said to have done.
Dr. P.N. Banerjea : Is he an Indian or a European ?
The Honourable Dr. B.R. Ambedkar : We have only got the financial sanction just now.
Mr. Jamnadas M. Mehta (Bombay Central Division: NonMuhammadan Rural) : Will he save more than he will cost ?
The Honourable Dr. B. R. Ambedkar : Let us hope so. There is no harm in guessing and hoping. That is all that I have to say with regard to this question of paper.
The next point dealt with by Sir Frederick James was with regard to the housing of families of officers in Simla. He will appreciate that so far as housing is concerned, this is probably the tightest corner in which the Government of India finds itself. The accommodation which it had and the accommodation which it has been able to control as a result of the requisition order is nothing as compared to the officers which the Government of India has had to employ as a result of war efforts. He will also agree that if we are to prosecute the war effort fully, we have to have priority fixed for accommodation, and he will