BEDAI, India, April 21—The disorganized western units of the Bengali independence forces are regrouping in the districts bordering India's West Bengal state, trying to marshal them selves to carry out guerrilla counterattacks.

The Pakistani Army, in its offensive of the last two weeks against the independence movement in East Pakistan, has taken virtually all the major towns and cities in the western districts. The Bengali soldiers have retreated in the face of the larger and more heavily, armed force, sometimes with out a fight.

But they have not thrown down their weapons. Most have merely faded into the country side, in both East Pakistan and India.

In this Indian border town about six miles from the East Pakistani town of Meherpur, which was given up three days ago without significant Bengali resistance, many Bengali soldiers and officials have gathered to try to pull themselves together.

“As long as one single Bengali is alive,” Yusuf Ghany, a 21‐year‐old student at Meherpur College, said calmly, “we will not give up our fight.”

Man Bursts Into Tears

The student started to go on, but a man next to him suddenly burst into sobs. Tears ran down his cheeks and his body shook. “One of my cousins was killed,” the man blurt ed. “He was coming back from the market. They shot him in the back. I found him lying on his face.”

The distraught man was Abdul Aziz, 42‐year‐old grain and jute merchant from Meherpur. He is a worker in the Awami League of Sheik Mujibur Rahman, the leader of the 75 million people of East Pakistan. Sheik Mujib is the symbol of the independence movement and is believed to be under arrest in West Pakistan, more than 1,000 miles away, across Indian territory.

The merchant said that when he left Meherpur last night, “dead bodies were still lying around.” He said that the army had sought out students, professors, members of the home guard and Awami League workers, tied their hands behind their backs, and then machine gunned them from behind.

The army, consisting entirely of West Pakistani troops, also looted shops and destroyed food supplies, the merchant said.

“I am afraid to go back,” he added. “I will stay here until I am trained In arms and can go back to fight them.”

The Bengalis acknowledge their very serious problems— shortage of ammunition, lack of heavy weapons, poor or non existent communications and coordination with independence forces elsewhere in East Pakistan, the lack of training of most of their volunteers and the shortage of officers.

But they are angered by reports that the army has crushed all armed resistance in the western areas of East Pakistan.

“We couldn't think of put ting up resistance in Meherpur,” said a home guard officer. “They had mortars and artillery. The only thing to do was to go into the countryside to prepare for guerrilla warfare. We don't have the big guns to fight them face, to face.”

The officer, Faridul discussed the Bengali strategy as he sat on a cot in an empty jute storage building in Bedai — now one of the headquarters of the independence army.

Stack against one wall of the room were six Enfield rifles and two shotguns. Some ammunition was on the floor. As the officer spoke, a man came in with some cartridges for the Enfield in a cloth bag and proceeded to pile them on the floor.

Future Believed Difficult

Despite the determination of the Bengali independence forces, many diplomatic observers in India believe that without some outside help, the movement faces a difficult, and perhaps impossible, future.

The fact that Indians have been providing assistance of various kinds—food, transport, hospital care for the wounded, refugee camps—is observable, but the Bengalis insist that there has been no official military help from the Indian Government.

Bengali soldiers — many of them members of the East Pakistan Rifles, a border force— are camped in and around Bedai, including some at the Indian border security post there. Several independence army jeeps and trucks are parked there.

Shortly after an American correspondent arrived at the entrance to the border post, the green, red and gold Bangla Desh — Bengal Nation — flags were removed from the vehicles.

When the correspondent asked to see Capt. Azim Chowdhury, commander of the Bengali forces in the area, the Indian soldiers said that he was not at the post. But Bengali sources said later that the captain was there.

Bengali troops wandered freely through Bedai today, getting haircuts, buying food, tea and betel leaves. Several Bangla Desh vehicles were traveling back and forth to Calcutta, about 100 miles to the south.

This correspondent's hired car had a minor collision with a Bangla Desh jeep a few miles north of the town of Krishnan agar. The jeep and a truck accompanying it, both manned by East Pakistan Rifles troops, were carrying empty fuel drums and empty ammunition and TNT boxes. The two vehicles were heading from Bedai to Krishnanagar for supplies.

There was considerable Indian military activity on this road today, too. Truck convoys carrying troops headed toward border areas in the north. One army truck, also heading north, had its markings deliberately concealed by mud; its contents could not be determined be cause its rear canvas flap was closed.

The Indian Army has been reinforcing its positions all along the border with East Pakistan. Indian officials say it is merely a routine precaution because of the heavy Pakistani Army activity near the border.