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Coll 28/41 ‘Persia. Trade Reports. Kerman 1924–’ [‎122r] (243/313)

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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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3
I ID
and some 60 trade taxes of the total
value of about 500,000 krans p.a.
The figures of taxes collected for the complete
year 1306 are not yet available. The following
are the figures for 1305 and for seven months of
1306, in thousands of Krans :—

1303.
1306.
(7 months).
Direct .....
3,433
1,477
Indirect. ....
366
218
Fines .....
41
13
Public Domains
152
142
Central Cash Office *
793
Khanewari ....
48
• •
Other sources . . .
37
Total .
4,870
1,850
* The meaning of this item is not clear,
the Cash Balance.
Possibly it is only
(b) Incidence of taxation .—From the Duzdap and
Bunder Abbas Customs figures' it appears that the
value of the imports of matches, tea, sugar and
piece-goods alone constitute nearly half the total
value of all the imports. As each of these articles
is used to some extent by even the poorest class
(to the opium smoker of whatever class tea and
sugar in considerable quantities are essential) the
conclusion seems inevitable that the customs taxation
falls unduly heavily on the poorer classes. It may
be assumed that half the Land tax, which consti
tutes about £ of the other taxes levied, falls on the
peasant. It is clear therefore that (apart from a
few luxury items in the Customs Schedule) there
is no taxation specially designed to make the wealthy
pay in proportion to their wealth. This fact, coupled
with the failure of the Government to foster any
nation-building departments (roads, agricultural
works, public health, particularly with regard to
5. Agriculture.
(a) General .—It is impossible to obtain any kind
of figures of the area under cultivation as the Malieh
Department keep no record of this. It is, however,
safe to say that the area under cultivation has re
mained fairly constant the last three years and
that it is probably slightly less than it was ten years
ago. No new crops or methods of cultivation have
been introduced. There is a tendency for landlords,
either through lack of means or short-sightedness,
not to spend sufficient money on keeping qanats
in repair, with the result that the supply of
water diminishes or, even in some cases, dries up
altogether. Sufficient water is available to allow
of a very considerable increase in the area under
cultivation in the province if the capital could be
found to build dams in certain places and to improve
some of the bigger qanats. Money so invested would
almost certainly bring a fair return, but the sums
required are too large for private individuals to
risk under present conditions, when there are no
roads to put the produce on the market, and no pros
pects of commercial expansion, which might lead
to a rise in the standard of living and so to an in
creased local demand.
It is estimated that about half of the agricultural
land in this province is in the hands of a compara
tively small number of landowners. In certain
districts, such as Jiruft, which is perhaps the dis
trict with the greatest agricultural potentialities,
in the province, many landlords never visit their
property for years on end, and no efforts are made
at effecting any kind of improvement. In other
districts they pay more attention to their property,
but, with rare exceptions, they are reluctant to put
any money into the land or to take the trouble
to effect even such improvements as they know to
be necessary and feasible. Of the remainder of
the land, which is in the hands of small proprietors,
the amount hypothecated is not unduly large.
Generally speaking agriculture continues at a dull
level of mediocrity. The Alimentation Service
the evil effects of opium and epidemics), accounts _ y . —
for the low economic level of life in this province. Wg not functioned in this province.
(c) Interference by Tax-collectors .—There has been / ]^>| Opium .—This has formed the subject of a
a marked improvement in this respect as the result^ special report and it is only necessary to summarise
of the efforts of the American Mission, except as the main points here.
regards opium.
4. Military.
There have been no instances of commandeering
of transport this year in this province, nor, with a
few exceptions in Jiruft, which were dealt with by
the Officer Commanding as soon as they came to
his notice, have the Military Department indulged
in extortion or interference with] trade. On the
other hand they have done useful work in restoring
security in Jiruft and Narmashir, and they pay
a proper price for all their purchases in Kerman and
in the villages. The conscription law has not yet
been enforced in this province.
The opium question has a two-fold aspect; {i)
its value to the cultivator as an agricultural crop,
(ii) its deletrious effect upon the inhabitants of the
province, who consume it.
There can be no denying that opium is at present
one of the staple crops of the upland tracts. It
has many advantages over other crops. It requires
less water than wheat and barley, as it is collected
before the hot months ; being a valuable crop it
is manured, and, opium itself being a good manure,
the ground is considerably enriched, and a much
improved wheat crop can be raised the following
season ; whilst in the case of all other crops the
ground has to be fallow 2 or 3 years before it can

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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.

Written in
English in Latin script
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Coll 28/41 ‘Persia. Trade Reports. Kerman 1924–’ [‎122r] (243/313), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/3444, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100055834078.0x00002e> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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