Page 641 - PERSIAN 9 1941_1947

A OTTO A L ADMINISTRATIVE) REPORT.. OF THEE RESIDENCY.
BiHRAIN. f6r TTO WAR 1M7
®5iCT.CT«E

Review

Residency.
Up to the 31st March 1947 this Residency remained as before
under the administrative control of the Government of India,
With effect from the 1st April control was transferred to His
Majesty*8 Government and was exercised through the India Office,
which was later merged with the Commonwealth Relations Office, up
to the end of the year. The Residency was staffed by officers of
the Government of India until the constitutional changes took place
on the 16th August and after that date some officers continued to
serve under His Majesty's Government on deputation and others were
engaged on contract, Durlng the transition period, however,
there was serious shortage of officers, The Political Resident
was left without a Secretary and the Political Agent Bahrain with-
out any Assistant Political Agent or Political Officer Trucial
Coast, With the permission of the Governments of India and
Pakistan the Ministerial Staff continued to serve on deputation
until the end of the year, In December Mr. Croning who had served
in the Persian Gulf for twenty-five years and had been the right
hand man of a succession of Political Residents over a long period,
went on leave pending retirement. In the course of the year the
Residency severed most of its links with the Persian side of the
Gulf and is now only concerned with a few establishment matters.
Political

No casualties occurred amongst rulers of the Gulf States and
nothing has occurred to impair their relations with the Residency.
Except for some antl-Jewlsh disturbances in Bahrain at the beginn­
ing of December which did not have very serious results, and host!]
ities between the Shaikhs of Abu Dhabi and Dubai on the Trucial
Coast, all the States have enjoyed peace and a reasonable measure
of prosperity. TheSultan of Muscat remained at Dhofar throughout
the year and the administration of the State suffered somewhat
through lack of his personal supervision, He is very anxious to
obtain a British Adviser to look after affairs at Muscat during hi*
prolonged absences. The Iman of Oman who was thought to be dying
recovered his heAlth early in the year and little more has been
heard of the Sultan's plans for extending his authority over the
interior of Oman.

The Kuwait Oil Company are increasing their production
rapidly and forging ahead with the provision of accommodation for
their staff in the face of many difficulties. The large royaltiei
which the Shaikh of Kuwait is receiving constitute a serious prob­
lem as his State is capable of little development and it is diffi­
cult to determine how the money can best be spent, Endeavours
are being made to persuade him to accept a British Financial
Adviser. In Bahrain there has been some increase in production
and the Bahrain Petroleum Company are now taking a deep bore to
ascertain whether there is another stratum of oil below that which
they are at present working. In the autumn they made substantia!
increases in the wages of their Indian and Arab employees to meet
the increased cost of living. In Qatar Messrs. Petroleum Develop*
ment (Qatar) Limited are proceeding rapidly with the drilling of
new wells in the place of those which they were ordered to destroy
during the war and are expected to go into production in about two
years time. Messrs. Petroleum Development (Trucial Coast) Limit*
are continuing their surveys on the Trucial Coast but no find of
oil has yet been announced. No oil operations were carried out
in Muscat territory during the year.