Coll 28/120 ‘Persia. Ahwaz – Consular diaries.’ [‎148r] (296/669)

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AHV/AZ
DIARY
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Ipt to 15th November 194^
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(1) Major-General W. A# K. Fraser, Britieh Military
'Attache in Tehran, arrived in Ahwaz en route or Ahadan and
a tour of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Co. produdfjero area-j on 10th,
November, and returned to Ahwaz on 15th November, '
( 2 ) h.Hw the Maharajah of Bikanir, accompanied by hip
second eon and two pstaff officers,arrived in Ahwaz by car on
12th November for inspection of a battalion of his -tate Forces.
( 3 ) Professor L*M. Winsor, the American irrigation expert,
ieft Ahwaz for Behbahan on 1st November where he ^pent two days
inspecting the Behbahan irrigation and water supply project,
and went on by road to Bushire.
( 4 ) Mr a Howe, Propaganda Officer, Basra, arrived in
/and Ahwaz on the 14th/left on the 15th November.
Il e Movements of Pers ian Of ficials and Notablea.
(5) Colonel Humayuni, the Officer Commanding Persian
troops in Khuzistan, returned from his conference with General
Jehanbani in Isfahan on 1st November. He visited Ram Hormuz
and Hhush before leaving by air for Tehran in response to an
urgent telegram on 10th November.
( 6 ) Colonel Alborz, Police Commissioner for Khuzistan,
visited Andimeshk on 5th November.
(7) Hormuz Khan Ahmedi, de facto proprietor of the
estate of Zaidun, arrived in Khuzistan on 10th November to
visit his estates.
( 8 ) Amir Hussain Bakhtiari, son of *ardar Zaffar,
visited Ahwaz during the fortnight.
III. General .
( 9 ) Nith reference to para IT of the last diary, the
sec Ixt 66 /o/ exiled hoarder Abrishornkar arrived in Ahwaz on 14th November.
, Two days previously the Persian broadcast from London i r - reported
to have attributed the relatively satisfactory condition of
bread supplies in Khuzistan largely to the prompt expulsion of
Abrishomkar and his associates.
(10) The preliminaries of the °hushtar Irrigation Project,
believed to be the only commercial irrigation project on a
considerable scale in Iran, have now been completed by Colonel
Noel. The company has a capital of two and half million rials
and proposes to resuscitate the ancient Bari&n canal which
irrigates 2400 hectares of wheat and barley and 300 hectares of
rice land. The improvements are expected to produce each year
an additional 200 tons of wheat and barley and 350C tons of rice
and other summer crops. In order to avoid having to collect a
share of the crops from the threshing floor and becoming entangled
with the duties of a landlord, Colonel Noel agreed to a relati
vely light water rate. As the Bar/ian canal at present carries
a certain amount of water for irrigating winter crops and the
istHdkisxd landowners could therefore argue that no rate was
leviable on winter crops, more delicate negotiation was involved;
it was finally agreed that no rate should be levied on winter
crops but that all landlords participating should sow one khi?h
/of summer