Coll 28/97 ‘Persia. Diaries. Tehran Intelligence Summaries’ [‎144v] (288/749)

2
Cabinet Ministers, Deputies of the Majlis, Governors-General and Governors are
also eligible. Extra allowances will be paid on the following scale :—
Per cent.
On the first 1,000 rials or less of monthly salary ... 80
On salary in excess of 1,000 rials up to 2,000 rials ... 50
On salary in excess of 2,000 rials 25 g
The minimum monthly wage will be 1,000 rials for a full day’s work. In
addition, Government employees will be entitled to purchase all commodities
whose sale is a Government monopoly at favourable prices approved by the
Government.
6 . The Government is in considerable difficulties over transport. Theoreti
cally, the Road Transport Department controls some 900 trucks supplied to the
Persian Government on lease-lend terms and some 1,000 privately-owned trucks
on contract. In practice, the drivers of these trucks find it more profitable to carry
goods for merchants than for the Persian Government, with the result that they
escape for long periods from the control of the Road Transport Department.
Immediate transport requirements, among the more urgent of which are the
collection of grain for the towns and of the beet harvest for the sugar factories,
the anti-locust operations in South-East Persia and the supply of oil for civil
needs, cannot be met, and appeal has had to be made to the British military
authorities for assistance. Tehran will be faced with a bread crisis within a
month unless wheat is transported from Kermanshah and Hamadan.
7. The Majlis has passed a law which makes tradesmen, hotel and
restaurant keepers and vendors of provisions convicted of selling their wares at
prices above those fixed by Government or municipalities liable to punishment for
the first offence of 50-100 lashes, three months’ imprisonment and a fine of 200-
1,000 rials. Several shopkeepers have already suffered corporal punishment.
Persian Forces.
A rmy.
8 . There is reason to suspect that the Russians are now endeavouring to
establish some influence in the Persian army, or at least to prevent the foundation
of American and British influence. They regard the Minister for War and the
Chief of Staff as pro-British, co-operative with the American advisers, and conse
quently anti-Russian. As previously reported, they have been paying some
attention to Sartip Razmara, the leader of the Opposition party in the army, and
may perhaps hope to be able, through him in his position as chief of the Shah’s
| military cabinet, to influence the Shah in his capacity of Commander-in-chief of
‘ the Army. One of the Russian-supported papers has recently published articles
addressed to the younger generation of officers heavily criticising their seniors.
Some Persian officers are ready to believe that Russian influence will he
paramount in Persia after the war and that servility to the Russians may be the
best way of achieving their ambitions.
9. Relations between the Minister for War and the Shah are strained. The
Shah accuses the Minister for War of trying to be commander-in-chief. The
Minister for War greatly resents the Shah’s action in consulting General
Razmara before approving papers which he brings up to the Shah . 1 He may
resign.
Police.
10 . Owing to the difficulty of obtaining recruits for the police force, in spite
of their pay having been raised to 1,000 rials a month, the Government have
submitted to the Majlis a Bill to make certain classes of persons who had been
exempted from military service by the revised Military Service Law of the
20 th March, 1943, liable to conscription for service in the police. These are
unmarried men who are the only supporters of certain specified relatives.
Air Force.
11 . Colonel Staudach, a Persian officer of Austrian descent, of the Persian
air force, has left for Mid-East, where he is to be given opportunities to gain
experience to qualify him to command the Persian air force.
A yfointments—Military.
12. Sarhang Amidi to command the 8 th (Khorassan) Division.