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Coll 28/41 ‘Persia. Trade Reports. Kerman 1924–’ [‎88r] (175/313)

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The record is made up of 1 file (154 folios). It was created in 14 Dec 1925-20 Apr 1943. It was written in English. The original is part of the British Library: India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Records and Private Papers Documents collected in a private capacity. .

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facilities which in view of the present tightness of
money is a source of great help to their business.
\Yith the departure of the Indian traders from
Kerman the Imperial Bank of Persia have no doubt
lost a considerable and not unimportant part of
their clientele.
3. Taxation.
The heavy increase in the Customs taxes on the
principal articles of import has greatly lessened the
purchasing power of the inhabitants whose resources
are diminishing rapidly on account of the slump
in the carpet trade, the chief industry of the pro
vince. No new Municipal taxes were announced
during the year, but those already in force help a
good deal to add to the already high prices of food
stuffs.
4. Military.
(a) Commandeering of transport. —The Military
authorities have been considerate in their methods
of commandeering transport and no complaints
have been heard of, though they have had occasion
to send out troops at various times during the year.
There were no cases of undue interference with
Indian drivers.
(b) Extortions and interference with trade and
industry. —Complaints against Military subordinates
have been fewer than in previous years and cases
brought to the notice of their superiors have been
dealt with drastically. There has* been no inter
ference with trade and industry on the part of the
Military, except in the cases of conscription where a
number of qualified weavers have been enlisted,
but as the carpet industry is not at present in full
swing the effect has not been so important.
(c) Effect of conscription. —The public are getting
more accustomed to the rules and regulations of
conscription and the authorities are more careful
in adhering to the letter of the law.
5. Agriculture.
(а) Area under cultivation more or less. —There
has been no noticeable increase in the area under
cultivation which appears to remain the same as
before, viz., between 300,000 and 400,000 acres.
Owing to the greater demand for articles of export,
land-owners have been endeavouring to increase the
number of pistachio gardens and now sow more
cotton with the result that the area under wheat,
barley and millet cultivation was smaller than in
previous years.
(б) The harvest. —There being no invasions by
locusts during the year under report, the outturn
of the two main crops, wheat and barley, was sub
stantial and the prices for these commodities lower
than the average for the last 15 years.
The production of pistachio nuts did not reach
the average figure owing to the crop having been
damaged by insects. The total export was in con
sequence much below that of the previous year in
spite of a bigger demand.
Almonds were exported in greater quantities owing
to a plentiful harvest.
The cotton crop was fairly good and the decrease
in the quantity exported was due to the fact that
the greater part of the produce was used in the
province for the weaving of ‘ Karbas ’, a locally
made cotton fabric of rather coarse texture, w r hich
has, to a certain extent, been made a substitute for
calico (T. cloth). It might be mentioned that the
manufacture of this article has increased extensively
in the districts on account of the great rise in the
price of foreign cotton fabrics, and fetches good
prices.
(c) Introduction of new crops and new methods
{machinery ).—American cotton seed is now sown
in greater quantities than the Egyptian seed, as
experiments with the former have given more
satisfactory results. The Russians are showing the
land-owners the improved and modern methods
for cotton cultivation, through a Persian agent,
who has his headquarters at Rafsinjan, the chief
cotton producing centre in the province.
In the month of January the Russians gave an
exhibition of their agricultural tools which did not
create much impression on the cultivators who
decided that their present methods of cultivation
were more suited to their requirements. Horses
had to be employed for the pulling of the ploughs
exhibited, while only bullocks are used in the Ker
man province and these too are as a rule in a miser
able condition.
No fresh attempts were made during the year
to extend the cultivation of the indigo plant.
There was a talk, during the year, of the Persian
Government establishing an experimental farm in
Kerman, but nothing has so far materialized.
(d) Fixation of prices and registration. —The local
Municipality has done little to control the prices
ruling during the year under report, as owing to
sufficient stocks of grain available, there was no
need for this.
An office for registration of property has not yet
been opened in Kerman but it is expected that when
one does start functioning there will be a good many
disputes as regards land titles.
(e) Irrigation, more or less water .—There has been
no change in the old and primitive method of irri
gation. AVater is supplied chiefly by the qanat
system and as, in various cases, a qanat is owned
by numerous owners, the work of repair, which is
essential for the proper up-keep of these under
ground channels, is a difficult task, with the result
that owing to neglect the bulk of the water in these
channels decreases every year, Nothing further has
been heard of the irrigation scheme in connection
with the Halil Rood in Jiruft, a report on which
was prepared by the representative from the Ministry
of National Economy in 1931.

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Content

Printed trade reports for the Kerman Consular District in Persia [Iran], submitted by a succession of British Consuls for Kerman (Henry Duncan Graves Law; John Hunter Davies; Edward William Charles Noel; Cecil Henning Lincoln; George Arthur Falconer).

The contents of the reports vary from one year to another, but usually feature summaries of: the district’s financial situation; foreign trade; taxation; military affairs (commandeering of equipment, conscription); agriculture; industry (including textiles and carpet manufacture); communications and transport; state undertakings and control of trade; public utilities; social conditions (standard of living, unemployment, public health); information for travellers. Most reports include appendices with statistical data on trade, including: imports and exports at the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. port of Bandar Abbas [Bandar-e ʻAbbās]; imports and exports of key commodities into and out of Kerman; prices of foodstuffs; imports of Russian and Japanese goods.

Each report is preceded by India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. minute papers containing handwritten comments on the enclosed report. Many of the reports have pencil annotations.

The file includes a divider, which gives a list of correspondence references contained in the file by year. This is placed at the back of the correspondence.

Extent and format
1 file (154 folios)
Arrangement

The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the rear to the front of the file.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 156; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. side of each folio. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 2-156; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.

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English in Latin script
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Coll 28/41 ‘Persia. Trade Reports. Kerman 1924–’ [‎88r] (175/313), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/3444, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100055834077.0x0000b2> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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