'Administration Reports of the Persian Gulf, 1945 [-1946]' [‎23r] (56/414)

2.
in^no position to criticise Firuz because his weakness largely
a. ises from uncertainty as to the amount of support Qavam enjoys
from us. Whatever his past Firuz, too, claims'that he wishes
to work with us but lacks precise directives.
7. The results of Qavam 1 s arrival in ^hiraz as the self-
appointed champion of freedom defending Fars against the Russians
onslaught have not been very nappy. Qavam seems to have made up
ris mind that^the best form of defence is attack with the result
that he got mixed up in a very unrewarding newspaper campaign
that resulted in much mud being slung at him and aimed at us.
This profited only the four Tudeh youths that formed the
opposition to Qavam and were delight d at the importance thus
given to themselves.and the publicity they obtained.
8. From his press campaign Qavam preceded to some
violent quarrelling with the Governor-General in which he
was backed and encouraged by Khosru Qashaai, Nasir Khan's youngest
brother and irresponsible and even vicious youth with a capacity
for mischief which there seems to be no bounds. By associating
himself with and suffering himself to be guided by Khosru Cashoai
Qavam lost much face locally,
_ The u overnor-General claims to be as alive as Qavam
to the Russian menace but believes that the greatest immunity
from the infilteration of communistic ideas can be secured by
improving the lot of the poor by for instance undertaking works
of public utility than by embarking on polemics. During his term
of office General Firuz has opened the so-called 100 bed hospital
housed local orphans in new surroundings and orovided a new
permanent home for beggars. He has also laid the foundation stone
of a new medical school that is to open within three months a nd
is intended to provide a supply of doctors for work in outlying
villageswhere at the present moment no medical attention is
obtainable,. The Governor-Generalhas tried to increase the consump
tion of oil fuel in place of the charcoal and firewood the use of
which is responsible for the deforestation of this formally well
wooded province. As a result too of consular intervention a number
oi the A.I.O.G. distributing centres that had been closed iswing
to the war have been reopened. The completelist is now :
Agents : Fasa, Jahrun; Distributing Centres; Sarvistan,
Istahbanat. Darab, Niriz, Abr Quh, Ardekan, Firuzabad, Most of
the bakeries in hiraz have now changed over from wood to oil
fuel. Increased use of oil fuel in bakeries throughout the
province is retarded by the high cost of installing the necessary
burners.
10 • Progress has also been made under the encouragement
of General Firuz with various local water schemes. Two British
engineers have collected on the spot data for the ^reparation of
a plan for piping the ^hiraz town, water supply . It looks as if
this project will materialize. A nother scheme under active
consideration is that to dam the flood waters of the Shesh Pir
springs and valley behind a convenient gorge and so provide a
reserve store of water for the irrigation of the ^niraz plain in
Summer, This scheme if it goes through should render service to
agriculture and encourage local interests to go ahead with similar
schemes in, the Mervdasht (Persepolis) plain, at Fasa and-at
Firuzabad.
11. The crash in price levels that was exoected to follow
the end of the war in Europe did not take place. i'he bazzaar has
remained buoyant and there have been no bankruptcies to undermine
confidence. The tendency of prices is to fall but the downward
movement has been extremely slow,
1^• "V.E" Day fell during the period under review
but it can scarcely be said to have caused any considerable stir
among the loc-l population, there were mild demonstrations in