Coll 28/110 ‘Persia. Economic & Financial Assistance by H.M.G.’ [‎4r] (7/79)

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British H«idd€noy (k Consulate. Gen era! »
Bueh Ire,
the 3iet Jen uixry i944«
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Sir,
1 have the honour to refer to your olraular Xettex
,10# 81 dated 17 tti October, 1943^ whioh forwarded a oo y of
your feuvlu'. telegram 143 of 5th October, to the Poreitfii
Office on the eubjeot of ^lane for oonorete aeoietanoe to
ierela from the public relatione aepeot end from the point
of Tiew of permanently strengthenix^ our position in the
country #
tim I my m% at once that 1 weloooe any taudei^cy in
our propaganda to stdtofc from the # win the war* to*iu to a
general popular!sailoii of Britieh (whi dti luoludee Indian)
culture and commerce* Of these two, our publioatlone in
Persian are now beginning to give more em,hutd s to culture
(in particular, by tlmt ejwellent aid very po uiar magaalne,
hU£gLkr»i*Hau) $ but the commercial side still lags very sadly
behind, «t*d X suggest that the Jepartment of Overseas Trade,
London and the Director General of Jommeralal Intelligence,
jaloutta, be aeked to do everything in their power to encourage
British end Indian exporters to provide our publicity offioes
with the material for commercial propaganda* They should,
I suggest,be asked to do this now -- without waiting for the
end of the war and without for Ti,e present oou^dering the
availability of goods for export — in order ttiat wc uay be
ade to utilise our present publicity' organisation In thle
country, before the operation of tie treaty with Persia
obliges us to out down our activities*
3* ^or similar reasons, I urge that the appointment of
m Indian Trade dommiesioner should in no ciroumttances be
j delved until the pressure on ordinaxy oommercial ^ roduotirjn
I Is eased. If the increased import quotas noted in paragraph
6 (a) of your saving telegma under reference are to be
fulfilled, Indian ej^ orta (whioh can be usintalned for eight
months in the year without calling on steamships) must
necessarily be drawn upon, possibly even to a larger extent
than these from the United Kingiorj*
4* I particularly welcome the suggestion in your para*
graph 6(6, that Britieh firm should participate in the
industrial development of rersla* of the various possibilities
Indian capital and enter prise are better qualified than those
of at$r other eountxy to undertake the develop ent of irrigation
projects* m op. ortunity for this exists in the vicinity
of Bushire* The Mund river irrigation project in Daehtl has
for long been on the Persian Governments books* The first
stage was due to be completed by the autumn of 1945 at an
outlay of Hials 6 million (£ 86,0C0) aid was ex^ ected to
irrigau hwotarea \ okt&CC acres;* — The second stage
was to double the irrl^tcd area at a f urther outlet' of
dials 6 minion* This oomiares faiourably with the Persian
Government 9 s forecast for the Ohabannareh scheme, also in the
Bush ire area, which was Rials 9 million for tl'ie flret 1C,C0C
/ hectares*
His Hajes^ ’s Minister,
British Legation,
mai»*