Page 413 - PERSIAN 9 1941_1947

-5“
(b) MjT.'
Please 603 my report for 1943. The situation has continued to de­
teriorate as we have had, to all inCents and purposes, none of the spare
parts which have been urgently required for the past three years. % 30 Cwt.
Chevrolet lorries have now been sent to Karachi for repair by Naraindas
and Company, whether those- repairs will be possible or not is as yet not
known. ' Wo now have two lorries fit for running between Muscat and Mat rah.
These are only kept going with constant daily attention by the Transport
Havildar, All Murad whom I had trained for three months by Naraindaa and
Company in Karachi. The springs of these lorries which h-.ve been in use
fnn the last two years consist of bumpers which I have bought from old
taxis, no more are now available. The fan-belts are still being made out
of old web-equipment, this, also has now been liquidated. The radiators
of the two remaining lorries are «« so full of cement that they boil every
two or three miles. This constant overheating naturally causes excessive
cylinder wear, and it is unlikely that these lorries will last more than
another six months.
Repairs which would have been possible two y.ars ago, had spares been
supplied, have- now become impossible even if we should received the spares
indented for. Nothing short of a major Workshop overhaul would have any
change of putting these lorries into satisfactory working order, even this,
in ray opinion, may not be possible.

I have asked for an estimate for the repairs of the two lorries al­
ready in Karafhi as I am of the opinion that the cost of these repais
will equal, if not exceed the cost of new lorries.
No spare parts have been supplied fpr tfte V8 Station Wagon, and from
latest information it would appear that Ordnance have no spares for this
model nor are any likely to become available in the future.

The purchase locally in Karachi is impossible under the present
system as, after obtaining the necessary per its from Central Government,
one has to apply to the Provincial I,!otor Transport Controller v;ho proceeds
either to out down the sanctioned quantities as permitted by Central Gov­
ernment, or else he states that he cannot issue the necessary permits
from his province owing to shortage.

As reported lafet year the I/.uscat-Matrah road is in an appalling
condition and causes an immense amount of damage to our lorries. Saiyid
Shihab bin Faisal has at last agreed to my putting the men of the Muscat
Infantry torark on the road for a short time. This will be good training-
for them and useful work, as this ro d is a military necessity.

10. Medical.
We are deeply indebted to our Medical Officer, Captain Matthews
for his .comprehensive report on the Infantry. This is a much ffclt want but
our previous Medical Officers have not been able to produce one. It will
be of the utmost value in ascertaining whether our health measures are
effective or not.* The report is appended herewith.
ANNUAL HEALTH REPORT ON THE MUSCAT INFANTRY, BAIT-AL-FALAJ.

January 1st, 1944 to December 31st 1944*

Introductory.
An Annual Medical Report on this Unit has not, apparahtly, been
rendered during the period of the War, but is is proposed to submit such
reports in future as proposed by the Military Adviser.