Coll 30/9 'Persian Gulf: Administration Reports 1926-1938' [‎22r] (48/1028)

Divisional Headquarters were moved to the new building at the end of
the Khiaban-i-Zand the appearance of which is reported with reason to have
displeased the Shah.
The strength of the division remained at about 6/7,000 men.
6. Communications .—The Mashileh causeway on the road from Shiraz
to Bushire was completed, the last ten miles on the Borazjun-Ahmadi section
being metalled with boulders which would test the clearance of a T
model Ford. The road was closed for several days in the winter and early
spring by heavy rain or melting snow but under normal conditions the surface
was fair to good.
The Kazerun-Bushire-Behbehan .road is now fully bridged between Beh-
behan and Guch Saran (Qare-Quli) but the section from Basht to Kazerun is
still subject to periodical wash-outs.
The Shiraz-Firuzabad road (the future road to Bushire was opened in
September and improvements were carried out on the Niriz-Sirjan section of
the Shiraz-Kerman road and also on the road from Fasa to Estahbanat.
Mails from Tehran continued to arrive very irregularly and 5 to 7 days
for a letter from Bushire was no exception.
7. Agriculture .—Heavy rain in February amply compensated for a dry
December and grain crops in general were good. The bread queues in Shiraz
which were a feature of the early part of the year disappeared after the har
vest.
Fruit crops on the other hand were extensively damaged by the late
frosts in May.
The area under cotton remained at approximately 26,000 hectars produc
ing a crop of 20,000 tons, all “ Falestini ”.
Permission was given to grow rice on swampy ground but this is only
temporary as villagers will be instructed in future to grow jute.
8. Trade .—The release of such articles as gum tragacanth, skins, carpets*
almonds etc. from the stranglehold of the various monopoly companies pro
vided a welcome fillip to the export trade. Merchants may now purchase
these articles from the companies concerned and export them in accordance
with the new regulations, whereby 50 per cent, of the proceeds of exports of
all Iranian products may be used against imports. In practice however
these arrnagements only cover about 20 per cent, of the export trade as the
remainder is with the U. S. S. R. and Germany under the Trade Agreements.
In spits of the restriction of credit by the National Bank few bankrupt
cies occurred of any importance.
The report on progress of the Shiraz branch of the Imperial Bank of Iran
for the half year ending September 30th, 1938, showed a profit of Rials 171,721
as against Rials 152,702 for the corresponding period of last year.
British trade, apart from a few isolated consignments of machinery,
remained nil.
9. Industries .—The cotton mills of the Fars Manufacturing Company
and the Fars Electric Company continued to work satisfactorily in spite ot
difficulties in obtaining their supplies of raw cotton and spare parts tor their
machinery.
The sugar factory An East India Company trading post. at Morv Dasht prepared for expansion next year by
purchasing additional plant and encouraging agriculturalists within a 60 km.
radius, instead of 30 km. as previously, to grow beet. Production was expec
ted to reach 50,000 tons as against 10,000 tons in 1937.
The site for the grain silo to be erected at Shiraz by the Kampsax Consor
tium was marked out and materials collected but no construction work
was commenced.
The Shiraz distillery, run by a Jewish company, “ Sherket-i-Kushabeh ”,
under the control of the Finance Department obtained a monopoly for the
manufacture of araq, which it produced at Rials 7 • 55 a bottle.