File 1341/1921 Pt 1 'Khorassan Intelligence Summaries 1921-1922' [‎475r] (597/1080)

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APPENDIX I.
No Bolshevik press has been received during the week, probably on account of further
restrictions.
“ Izvestia” published at Askhabad, July 6th, 1921.
The water question in Trans-Caspia.
(Conclusion).
The Special Preliminary Water Commission has published its Report, up to the 10th June,
on the question of the distribution of water in the Trans-Caspia. A synopsis is as follows :
The Tejen River.—Two oases are irrigated from this river the Sarakhs oasis at the Persian
frontier and the Tejen oasis which lies 130 versts lower down its course and on the further side
of the railway. In the Russian portion of the Sarakhs oasis up to 8,000 desyatins are irrigated
by its water and in the Lower Tejen oasis about 35,000 desyatins.
Since the middle of April of the present year the latter oasis has received no water. Com
mencing from Sarakhs the whole of the river has dried up, and to such an extent that it has
become impossible completely to irrigate the land involved, even with the pumps which draw
water by day from the reservoirs occurring at various points in the course of the above mentioned
130 versts.
Up to the first half of May the conditions pertaining to agriculture in this portion of the
oasis were more than favourable, and had we succeeded in obtaining a supply of water even up
to the end of the month the harvest would have been assured. The Commission made every
effort to show the Tehran Government, the provincial Government of Khorasan, and the local
Persian authorities the exceptional necessity of obtaining water. These representations pro
duced no positive effect as regards this portion of the oasis.
According to Persian opinion the want of water in the river is attributable to its failure at
the Afghan frontier in which country it finds its source and where, under the name of the Hari
Rud, it traverses a great area, irrigating the Herat valley.
The retention by the Afghans of the waters of the Hari Rud has undoubtedly exerted a con
siderable influence on its failure to reach Russian Tejen. Nevertheless, we must not lose sight of
the fact that from Persian territory two large tributaries fall into the Tejen River, the Kashaf
Rud and the Jam Rud. It is not exactly known to the Commission if there has been a shortage
of water in these two tributaries this year which has affected the present question nor is it aware
of the proportion of flow which has been utilized by the Persians.
There are, however, grounds for supposing that a greater proportion of the waters of these
tributaries has been used by the Persians than formerly and the questions involved by the two
areas, that is, by the two oases, require careful investigation.
According to a survey carried out by the Commission in the middle of May in the Sarakhs
area, the volume'offlow was 1 * 15 cubic sazhen a second of which the Persians took as their port-
tion not less than three-fifths. On the 27th May the flow fell to ‘17 cubic sazhen per second
of which the Persians kept three-quarters for themselves.
By means of persistent effort the Commission succeeded in procuring' in the beginning of
June change in this proportion or, in other words, the Persians agreed to allow three quarters of
the water flowing through Sarakhs to be diverted to the Russian portion of the oasis.*
1 It is interesting to note here that during the discussions on the subject the Persian Govern
ment made very definite statement that by the treaty of 26th February they were not bound
to allow more than half the quantity of water traversing Sarakhs but, the delegates explained,
they would agree to an increase purely for the sake of their friendly and neighbourly relations
with Russia. Moreover, according to a treaty of 1894 Russia received, and had the right to
receive, five-sixths of the total quantity of water.
The Area watered by the Kozgan-Chai River .—Fifteen Turkmen auls (villages) are served by
the waters of the river Kozgan, Makhtum Qala, Kasauli, Taza Qala, Khoszov, Kizilja Qala,
Khwaja Qala, Daragan, Qauvshut, Muhammad Araz, Mihilli, Chukur Ogul Qala, Kiurem Qala,
Afghan Hissar, and Persian Hissar, Shilingan, and Babajuk (the indigenous name of Lutfabad.
Trans). The investigations of the Commission have shown that aaccording to ancient -'custom
and established rule the distribution of this water has been two-thirds to Russian and one-third
to Persian settlements but it is evident that this rule has been infringed. Now durirg the present
year there has been observed a considerable insufficiency of water in tha afls of Chukur Ogul Qala
and Kiurem Qala which lie at the tail of the system of irrigation from this river. A tour of the
•According to a statement made to the Translator by a member of the Persian side of the Commission
jHje above would appear to be not quite correct, the proportion having been one to one and not one to three.