BANGLA DESH

Britain does not recognize as postage stamps the adhesive labels reported here Aug. 8 as emanating from Bangla Desh, the state that the Bengalis of East Pakistan are seeking to establish.

Anthony Lewis, of The New York Times London Bureau, reports that “the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications ruling is that Bangla Desh stamps are invalid be cause they are issued by an unaccredited postal authority. This would presumably be the case worldwide, since the Universal Postal Union does not recognize the is suing authority in this case.

“It is possible, however, that if an individual country recognized Bangla Desh it might also honor its stamps. No letter bearing Bangla Desh stamps has arrived in Britain, according to a spokesman for the Ministry. If and when one does, the stamps will be regarded as worthless and the recipient will have to pay the post age,” the spokesman said.

As reported here Aug. 8, the adhesives were designed by Biman Mullick, an Indian Bengali, resident in London, who designed Britain's 1969 Gandhi memorial stamp. The adhesives were also printed in England.

So‐called first‐day covers were on sale in London, New Delhi and Calcutta, India.

No nation, as yet, has recognized the Bangla Desh.

An inquiry to Postmaster Winton M. Blount regarding the United States Postal Service policy on the Bangla Desh labels has not as yet brought a response.