Page 371 - Bahrain Gov annual reports (V a)_Neat

31
ablutions and latrines. The five bungalows for European Police Officers started in 1955 were
completed and anew guard house and entrance gate built facing the junction of AI Mutanabi and
Shaikh Isa Roads.
Buildings for other Departments included extensions to the Law Courts and to the Customs
Offices, a large vehicle repair shop, machine shop and vehicle store for the Transport Depart­
ment, a timber store for P.W.D. and a number of sub-stations for the Electricity Supply
Department.
The provision of housing also made heavy demands. The two large blocks of flats at
Jufair were brought to completion and five bungalows built there for the construction staff of
the new Deep Water Pier, whilst at Budaya a new bungalow was provided for the Director of
Agriculture in place of the old house which was beyond economical repair. At Manama West
72 houses were built for workmen, and at Muharraq an area of 305,000 sq. ft. east of the new
Public Garden was reclaimed as a site for a new housing estate for the workmen of Muharraq.
Other housing works undertaken included a Home for Aged People, built on the orders of
His Highness, the Ruler, as a gift from him to the people of Bahrain.
New Roads and Bridges. Work on the new dual carriageway road to Jufair was continued
and completed by the end of the year except for the pavements. The formation, base and
curbing was undertaken departmentally, whilst the asphalt surface was machine-laid by a
specialist firm, the smooth running surface achieved setting a new standard for roads in Manama.
Other new road works included an asphalt road a mile along through the centre of Hidd, the
completion of the branch road to Aali, and the setting out and grading of the new roads in the
ex-Cable and Wireless area.
Deep Water Pier Project. The dredging of the approach channel and basin was successfully
concluded at a cost of 82 lakhs, a total of 1,100,000 cubic yards of material being excavated.
Owing to the discovery of hard rock on the west side of the basin, its position was moved over
slightly from the position originally planned. The causeway approach to the Pier was also
completed and made ready for the start of the main structure. Tenders for the latter were
received during the autumn and the Contract awarded to Messrs. Gammon (Pakistan) Limited.

Other New Construction. The system of covered drains commenced in 1955 was extended
further, the new deep drain past the B.O. A.C. being extended right back to the Technical School,
and branches run down Belgrave Road and into the Awadhia area. A branch from the Daly
Road drain was also carried southwards into the low area north of Gudhaibiya and a branch
from the Shaikh Hamed Road drain taken to the south-west corner of the Fort. These drains
have had a marked effect in lowering the water table over a considerable area on either side of
them and most of the perennially water-logged areas of Manama have now been eliminated.
Reclamation works were continued, the major item being a site of 106,000 square feet
to the west of the old Customs Pier on which three large storage sheds will be erected and a
stacking ground of 48,500 sq. ft. between the New and Old Piers. The former being in water up
to twelve feet deep, involves the placing of over a million cubic feet of rock fill. In addition a
large volume of hard filling was placed in the new Muharraq Public garden, which is on a site
reclaimed with town refuse, as a foundation for its roads and paths.
Maintenance. Maintenance of Government owned and leased buildings was on an
increased scale the total number of premises on charge rising to one hundred and seventy-five.
Maintenance was carried out according to a regular schedule and little trouble was experienced
with Government constructed buildings, other than the Post Office. Here settlement of the
foundations necessitated underpinning which proved a complex and difficult task owing to the
lack of working space round and inside this busy building. The roof and floors of the old
Women’s Hospital also caused some anxiety and it is evident that as soon as the patients can
be moved to the new Hospital, extensive reconstruction will have to be carried out.
Great difficulty was experienced in maintaining the main streets of Manama due to the veiy
heavy increase in the weight and density of traffic and it was only by intensive patching and
re-spraying that many of the roads were prevented from breaking up. In December, a pro­
gramme was commenced of strengthening these road surfaces by machine laying over them a
3-inch layer of bituminous concrete and by the end of the year Shaikh Isa Road has been
re-surfaced. The present programme of re-surfacing includes the “ring” road—Adviserate—
Shaikh Isa Road—Shaikh Hamad Road—Sea Road—Adviserate, Prior Road, Jufair Road,
Belgrave Road and Awali Road as far as the Zinj .urning.