The world a year after the end of the War – September 1946; cities and lives were slowly recovering but there was an endless road still ahead. Former New York Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia/now head of the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration went on an inspection trip of European capitols for a first hand view of the famine conditions.
La Guardia returned from the inspection tour of famine areas with unwonted reticence on the foreign relief situation in Yugoslavia, and his three weeks abroad. Reporters got exactly nowhere when they tried to pry some information out – of the usually voluble LaGuardia on the possibility of terminating relief shipments to Yugoslavia because of the recent destruction of two unarmed American planes by Marshal Tito’s force. “That’s up to the U.N.R.R.A. Council and the Central Committee,” LaGuardia said.
LaGuardia noted that it was too early to chart next year’s foreign relief needs. “Nobody can tell now what the requirements will be. Recovery has been very rapid. Maybe there won’t be need for any relief system.” He also said that Argentina and Russian participation in the United Nations’ Food and Agricultural Organization would be a big help in solving the world’s food problems.
Meanwhile; Jawaharlal Nehru, a 57-year-old Brahmin, heading the new Indian interim Government was sworn in at New Delhi earlier in the week. Nehru is also tipped to take charge of India’s foreign affairs and to represent his country at the Paris Peace Conference.
A report on postwar conditions in the Ruhr Valley, once a vital industrial source for Germany. When the Allied infantry occupied the Ruhr basin its industrial power had been shattered by repeated blows from the air. Although great efforts had been made to bring the mines back into production to keep Europe much warm this winter, only 40% as coal as was brought up before the war was being mined. The once busy cities were still masses of rubble, and most of their inhabitants lived in crowded cellars.
And British scientist Professor A.M. Low discusses on this program (London Column) the possibility of a journey to the Moon.
All that, while the world slowly recovered from the ravages of war as presented by London Column from The BBC World Service on September 11, 1946
