Page 18 - The Postal Agencies in Eastern Arabia
P. 18

The discovery of oil in Persia early in the 20th century and
        the effects of the 1914-18 war brought great changes to the political
        importance of the area; and improved communications permitted a
        great increase in trade — that of the Arab Gulf States still being
        mainly with India. The establishment of a central authority in Persia
        in the 1920s and the discovery of oil in Eastern Arabia in the 1930s
        resulted in the Political Resident finding his attention diverted more
        and more away from Persia to the affairs of the Western shores of
         the Gulf.

                The British Naval Base was transferred to Bahrain in 1935
        and, before the 1939—45 war, it had been decided that the Political
         Residency should also move from Bushire to Bahrain: in fact, this
        move was delayed, on account of the war, until 1946.

                Throughout the 19th century - and until 1946 - the
         Political Resident and the Political Agents in the various States were
         all appointed from the Indian Political Service; and it was logical that,
         as postal services became necessary, it should be the Indian Postal
         Department that opened Agency Offices in Muscat (1864); in Guadur,
         as a dependency of Muscat (1868); in Bahrain (1884); in Dubai (1909);
         and in Kuwait (1915). As was the custom elsewhere in the area, these
         Post Offices were all established either in, or in close proximity to,
         the Political Agent's premises.
                Many other Indian Postal Agency Offices had been opened
         from the mid- 19th century onwards on the Persian Coast and in Iraq;
         but these had all been closed by 1923, and do not form part of the
         present story.
                In view of the impending transfer of power in India and as
         it was considered inappropriate for India or Pakistan to assume
         political responsibility for the Arab Gulf States, the control of the
         Political Resident’s and the Political Agents’ Offices was taken over
         by the Foreign Office in London on April 1st. 1947. Following the
         creation of the Dominion of Pakistan in August 1947 the five Post
         Offices remained in the control of Karachi but under Pakistani,
         instead of Indian, administration. This was, however, only a very
         temporary expedient until the British G.P.O. was able to assume
         responsibility for the Postal Agencies in the Gulf.

                                    17
   13   14   15   16   17   18   19   20   21   22   23