East Pakistan A Profile 1962

Abstract

This book, which consists of a collection of essays by distinguished scholars, is an attempt to provide for the general reader a Jbroad survey of East Pakistan’s geography, history,- social life and culture. We hope it will fulfil a long-felt want. Books on East Pakistan are not easy to come by, much less so a comprehensive survey of the kind that East Pakistan: A Profile represents. Some of the essays in this collection, having been written some time ago are perhaps no longer up-to-date. We hope the reader will appreciate that no book of this kind can keep pace with the constantly changing facts of a country’s economy and political history. By the time one finishes evaluating one set of facts, one is'■apt to be confronted with another somewhat different in appe&rSnee. This will not however take away from the usefulness of the essays, because it will be found that many of the conclusions and recommendation advanced in them have since become the basis of current policy. The reader may also be struck by divergences of view between one scholar and another on the same problem in areas where the subjects overlap. We have made no attempt to iron out these differences and fit all conclusions into a neatly shaped frame. We believe that the writers, each of whom is an authority on the subject he has dealt with, have a right to be heard, and we think this will help to make the book livelier reading. We realise that a collection of essays by different hands cannot have the unity, or shall we say poetry, of a book written by one person on the history and culture of his own country. Such a* writer can pour into his'work all the emotions of his heart, allowing them to colour dry facts, and evoke feelings which must be beyond the reach of a book like ours. East Pakistan : A Profile can at best claim to be a harmony of different voices trying to tell the story of this ancient land which also is a focus of interest in the contemporary world. If it helps to promote a better understanding of its problems and a keener appreciation of its culture, the labours of those who have worked on it during the last two years will be considered to have been worth while. We acknowledge our heart-felt gratitude to the scholars whose help and cooperation have made East Pakistan : A Profile possible. We are also thankful to the members of the Editorial Board for their invaluable assistance at every stage in its preparation. Finally, our thanks are due to the Bureau of National Reconstruction, East Pakistan without whose initiative and assistance this work would not have, seen the light of day.