Abstract: The file comprises correspondence relating to the shipment and transhipment of cargo on local vessels (frequently referred to as country craft) from Karachi to Qatar (spelt in various ways, including Kattar, Gutter, Quatar) and, to a lesser extent, other ports on the Arab coast of the Persian Gulf, including Bahrain, Jubail [Al Jubayl], Katiff [Al Qaṭīf], Ra’s al-Khaymah, and Dubai. The file’s principal correspondents are: the Collector (and Assistant Collector) of Customs at Karachi; the Political Agent at Bahrain (Captain Charles Geoffrey Prior, Lieutenant-Colonel Percy Gordon Loch, and staff from the Agency’s Vernacular Office); the Director of Customs at Bahrain (Claud Cranbrook Lewis DeGrenier); the Ruler of Qatar (Shaikh ‘Abdullāh bin Jāsim Āl Thānī).Much of the correspondence is routine, and follows an established pattern: 1) enquiries from the Assistant Collector of Customs to the Political Agency at Bahrain after specific vessels, listing the contents of their cargo and requesting confirmation of their arrival at port and the landing of their cargo; 2) letters from Political Agency staff, in English and in Arabic, forwarding enquiries about inbound vessels to the Director of Customs at Bahrain (for vessels headed to Bahrain), the Ruler of Qatar (for vessels headed to Qatar) or the Residency Agent at Sharjah (for vessels headed to the ports of the Trucial Coast); 3) replies from the Director of Customs at Bahrain, the Ruler of Qatar, and the Residency Agent at Sharjah, either confirming the arrival of vessels and the landing of their cargo, or writing that the vessel has not yet arrived in port; and 4) letters from the Political Agency back to the Collector of Customs at Karachi, replying to the original enquiry, occasionally making reference to enclosing landing certificates, which are accepted as proof of the landing of the cargo. Some letters from the Assistant Collector of Customs at Karachi to the Political Agent at Bahrain, dated 1936 and later, make reference to enclosed export manifests, and enquiries about the authenticity of their endorsements.In addition to the routine correspondence, the file also includes:correspondence between the Political Agent at Bahrain and the Director of Customs at Bahrain, concerning the shipment of goods to Bahrain via Qatar as transhipment cargo (ff 12-15);correspondence between the Political Agent at Bahrain and the Secretary of the Calcutta Marine Insurance Association, relating to loss of vessels at Persian Gulf ports, and regulations at Dubai for registration of vessels (f 28, ff 30-31, ff 46-50).Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 298; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 4-273; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence. A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.
Abstract: The file comprises correspondence relating to the shipment and transhipment of cargo (chiefly rice, sugar, spices, piece goods) from India (Karachi) to the ports of the Persian Gulf, chiefly Dubai, Katar [Qatar, also spelt Gutter, Quatter in the file] and Bahrain. The file is a direct chronological continuation of ‘File 12/7 I Shipping. Arrival of Sailing Crafts at Qatar and other places with Cargo.’ (IOR/R/15/2/1375). The file’s principal correspondents are: the Collector (and Assistant Collector) of Customs at Karachi; staff at the Political Agency in Bahrain; the Director of Customs at Bahrain (Claud Cranbrook Lewis DeGrenier; George William Reginald Smith); the Ruler of Qatar (Shaikh ‘Abdullāh bin Jāsim Āl Thānī); the Ruler of Dubai (Shaikh Sa‘id bin Maktūm Āl Maktūm).The correspondence chiefly concerns routine enquires made about specific vessels travelling from India to the ports of the Persian Gulf, and involves the delivery and return of export manifests. The enquiries begin with letters from the Collector (or Assistant Collector) of Customs, or other administrators, at Indian ports (Karachi, Bombay, Veraval) informing the Political Agent at Bahrain of named vessels travelling to ports in the Persian Gulf, with details of their cargo and cargo markings, and requesting confirmation of their arrival and the landing of their cargo. These letters are followed by enquiries made by the Political Agent to the Director of Customs at Bahrain (for vessels travelling to Bahrain), the Residency Agent at Sharjah (for vessels travelling to the ports of the Trucial Coast), and the Ruler of Qatar (for vessels travelling to Qatar), with further correspondence, including replies from the Residency Agent at Sharjah (in English and Arabic) and letters from the Rulers of Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Ajman, and replies from the Ruler of Qatar. Correspondence is concluded with a letter from the Political Agent at Bahrain, back to the Collector of Customs at Karachi, confirming the arrival (and sometimes non-arrival) of named vessels.Other papers in the file include:correspondence in response to an enquiry made by P N Candavarkar, Collector of Customs at Bombay, to the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, dated October 1938, relating to the status of the customs administration at the port of Dofar [Dhofar], prompting broader questions, answered by the Political Agent at Bahrain and the Residency Agent at Sharjah, of how certificates for the landing of cargoes are managed in the ports of the Persian Gulf. This correspondence includes copies of earlier papers, dating from 1924 (ff 95-110);a copy of an export general manifest, dated 1941 (f 237).Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 500; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 3-331 and between ff 427-462; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence. An additional mixed foliation/pagination sequence is also present in parallel between ff 463-492; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
Abstract: The file comprises correspondence relating to the shipment and transhipment of cargo from India (chiefly Karachi but also Veraval) to the ports of the Persian Gulf, principally Dubai, Sharjah, Qatar (often spelt Quattar) and Bahrain. The file is a direct chronological continuation of ‘File 12/7 II Arrival of country craft from India’ (IOR/R/15/2/1376) The file’s principal correspondents are: the Collector of Customs at Karachi; staff at the Political Agency in Bahrain; the Residency Agent at Sharjah; the Political Officer on the Trucial Coast; the Director of Customs at Bahrain (George William Reginald Smith).The correspondence relates to routine enquiries made concerning cargo on specific vessels travelling from Karachi (and Veraval) to the ports of the Persian Gulf, and involves the exchange of export manifests detailing goods landed at different ports. The enquiries begin with letters from the Collector of Customs at Karachi (or Veraval) informing the Political Agent at Bahrain of named vessels travelling to ports in the Persian Gulf, with extracts of their export manifest, and requesting confirmation of their arrival and the verification of the landing of their cargo. These letters are followed by enquiries made by the Political Agent (enclosing export manifests) to the Director of Customs at Bahrain (for vessels travelling to Bahrain), the Residency Agent at Sharjah (for vessels travelling to the ports of the Trucial Coast), and the Ruler of Qatar (for vessels travelling to Qatar), requesting verification of the export manifests. Replies from the Director of Customs at Bahrain, the Residency Agent at Sharjah (in English and Arabic) and the Ruler of Qatar, confirm if vessels have arrived in port or not. Further correspondence includes letters from the Political Agent at Bahrain to the Collector of Customs at Karachi (or Veraval) confirming the arrival (and sometimes non-arrival) of named vessels, enclosing verified (or unverified) export manifests.Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 199; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 2-149; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence.
Abstract: The file comprises correspondence received by the Political Agency relating to the arrival and departure of foreign vessels at Bahrain. The file’s principal correspondents are: the Bahrain shipping agent Yusuf bin Ahmed Kanoo [Yūsuf bin Aḥmad Kānū]; representatives of the Government of Bahrain; representatives of the Mesopotamia Persia Corporation Limited.The file includes:correspondence dated 1933 relating to an enquiry from the Political Resident as to the whereabouts of the SS
City of Dundee, after its departure from Bahrain in October 1932 (ff 2-5);correspondence dated 1934 relating to a dispute raised by the Bahrain importer Abdulaziz Ali Al Bassam, over landing rates for cement at Bahrain (ff 6-10);miscellaneous correspondence dated 1935-1938 relating to foreign vessels calling at Bahrain (ff 11-16);letters from Yusuf bin Ahmed Kanoo, dated 1946 to 1948, reporting the arrival and departure of vessels at Bahrain, and the nature of their cargo (ff 17-50).Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the inside back cover with 56; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. An additional foliation sequence is also present in parallel between ff 2-21; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence.
Abstract: The file comprises correspondence, memoranda and statistical data relating to the monitoring of imports and exports of important commodities into and out of Bahrain and the states of the Trucial Coast, as part of the wider export license controls and Navicert system of trade and contraband control during the Second World War. The principal correspondents in the file are the Political Agent at Bahrain (Major Reginald George Evelin William Alban), the Residency Agent at Sharjah (Khan Sahib Saiyid ‘Abd al-Razzaq), and the Director of Customs at Bahrain (Claud Cranbrook Lewis DeGrenier).The file includes:copies of correspondence exchanged between the India Office in London, the Government of India, and the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Geoffrey Prior), relating to proposals for the extension of export control licenses and the Navicert system to the states of the Persian Gulf. The correspondence includes a request for an estimate of annual imports and consumption of commodities in the Persian Gulf, and details of the decision to monitor on an ongoing monthly basis, imports and exports of important commodities, and commodities important to war purposes, at Bahrain and the Trucial Coast (ff 50-51);following a request from the Political Agent at Bahrain (f 53), dated 11 June 1941, monthly submissions from the Customs Director at Bahrain of imports and exports of commodities at Bahrain, starting July 1941 and running through to December 1942;following an identical request from the Political Agent at Bahrain (f 54), dated 11 June 1941, monthly submissions from the Residency Agent at Sharjah for imports and exports of commodities at Sharjah and Dubai, starting July 1941 and running through to February 1943;statistics for the import and export of commodities at Bahrain, Sharjah and Dubai, collated from the reports received by the Customs Director at Bahrain and from the Residency Agent at Sharjah, forwarded to His Majesty’s Secretary of State for India at the India Office, the Secretary to the Government of India in the External Affairs Department, and the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf;correspondence and file notes (ff 355-356) relating to the need for an additional clerk at the Political Agency in Bahrain, to handle the increased volume of work created at the Agency by the War, including correspondence between the Political Agent in Bahrain, the Political Resident, and representatives of the Customs House at Karachi, over the employment of one of latter’s own clerks at Bahrain (ff 112-113, ff 131-136);correspondence relating to a request from the Foreign Department, Delhi, for statistics on the amount of rice, wheat and wheat flour imported from India into the Persian Gulf for the six-month period June to December 1942 (ff 304-310).Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the back cover with 375; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. An additional foliation sequence is also present in parallel between ff 355-370 and a mixed/foliation/pagination is in the file notes at the back between ff 355-370; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence.
Abstract: The file comprises copies of statistical reports on the imports and exports of important commodities into and out of Bahrain and Sharjah and Dubai on the Trucial Coast, as part of the wider export licence controls and
Navicertsystem of trade and contraband control during the Second World War. The principal correspondents in the file are: the Political Agent at Bahrain (Major Tom Hickinbotham); the Residency Agent at Sharjah (Khan Sahib Saiyid ‘Abd al-Razzaq until February 1945; Jasim ibn Muhammad Kadmari thereafter); the Political Officer on the Trucial Coast (Captain Maurice O’Connor Tandy until April 1944; Reginald Michael Hadow until October 1944; Captain Richard Ernest Bird thereafter); and the Director of Customs at Bahrain (G W R Smith). The file is a direct chronological continuation of ‘File 28/5 (a) I War. Proposed extension of export licensing system’ (IOR/R/15/2/684). The mispelt title of the file refers to the proposed extension of the license export system.The file contains:monthly submissions from the Customs Director at Bahrain of imports and exports of commodities at Bahrain, running from January 1943 through to March 1945;monthly submissions from the Residency Agent at Sharjah, or the Political Officer on the Trucial Coast, for imports and exports of commodities at Sharjah and Dubai, running from March 1943 through to March 1945;statistics for the import and export of commodities at Bahrain, Sharjah and Dubai, collated by the Political Agent from the reports received by the Customs Director at Bahrain, the Residency Agent at Sharjah, and the Political Officer on the Trucial Coast, and forwarded to His Majesty’s Secretary of State for India at the India Office, the Secretary to the Government of India in the External Affairs Department, and the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf. The imports tables include columns for: commodity; source; quantity (measured in long tons for commodities into Bahrain; measured in hundredweights, bales, cases, tins, etc. for commodities into Sharjah/Dubai). The exports tables include columns for: commodity; destination; and quantity.Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the back cover with 257; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. An additional foliation sequence is also present in parallel between ff 2-224; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled. and are located in the same position as the main sequence.Pagination: the file notes at the back (ff 251-256) have been paginated using pencil.
Abstract: The file comprises correspondence and other papers relating to the transport and trade in contraband goods through the Gulf during the Second World War, with particular reference to the trade in goods of enemy origin or destination. The principal correspondents in the file are: the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Geoffrey Prior); the Political Agent at Bahrain (Major Reginald George Evelin William Alban; Edward Birkbeck Wakefield; Major Tom Hickinbotham) and the Senior Naval Officer in the Persian Gulf (including Commodore Cosmo Moray Graham).The file includes:correspondence dated late 1939, relating to a request from the Government of India for information on the trade in wool in the Persian Gulf, the reply from the Residency Agent at Sharjah being that there is no export trade, only a small import trade of goat hair from Persia (ff 3-7);correspondence dated 1940, relating to a proposal from the Admiralty for the institution of a Contraband Intelligence Centre in the Gulf, based at Bahrain, and intended to monitor trade outside the Shatt-al-Arab. The proposal is made in response to the completion of the railway line from Istanbul to Basra, and fears that goods could be shipped from the Far East, through the Persian Gulf, and onwards overland into Europe (ff 14-30);correspondence relating to a number of separate intelligence reports suggesting that various goods, including German dyestuffs and parachute silk, were being traded through the Persian Gulf for enemy purposes (ff 27-33);detention and release in January 1941 of the vessel
Puerto Ricanat Bahrain (ff 42-49);in 1941, correspondence relating to the use of Gulf ports, including Kuwait and Dubai, to re-forward goods to Iraq, Syria and Beirut (ff 51-55);in 1942, correspondence marked most secret relating to intercepted messages instructing an increase in rug exports from Dubai, and British suspicions that rugs, not actually exported from Dubai, may be a code for tea, sugar or textiles (ff 57-60);correspondence (ff 62-90) relating to intelligence reports that German agents are shipping drugs and other contraband on dhows travelling from Goa to Basra, including reports of specific vessels to be stopped and searched. A copy of a report from the Collector of Salt Revenue at Bombay, dated 5 February 1943 (ff 89-90) provides details of the nature and methods allegedly being used to smuggle contraband through the Persian Gulf;in 1945, correspondence relating to instructions from the Naval Officer-in-Charge at Karachi to stop and search vessels at Gwadar (ff 92-105).The file notes (ff 116-127) reference correspondence, some of which relates to the import of tea, which is no longer included in the file, having been moved to other files (File 29 War: Food Supplies, IOR/R/15/2/766-794).Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the back cover with 128; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. An additional incomplete foliation sequence is also present in parallel between ff 3-111 and a mixed foliation/pagination sequence is present in the file notes at the back (ff 116-127); these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled.
Abstract: The file contains copies of correspondence and other papers relating to the export of foodstuffs from Pakistan to the sheikhdoms of the Persian Gulf, as part of the Civil Requirements Programme. Principal correspondents in the file include: Political Agency staff at Bahrain; the Director (or Acting Director) of Customs at Bahrain (George William Reginald Smith; Charles Dalrymple Belgrave); various officials of the Government of Pakistan (including representatives of the Ministry of Food, and the Assistant Chief Controller of Imports and Exports at Karachi).The file includes:correspondence dated December 1947 and January 1948, intimating that the Civil Requirements Programme in operation before the partition (i.e. the creation of an independent Pakistan after the partition of India) will continue, and that the sheikhdoms of the Persian Gulf should indicate their food requirements to the Government of Pakistan, which will be forwarded to the Ministry of Food for the setting of export quotas (ff 2-3);correspondence dated January and February 1948, from the Director of Customs at Bahrain, specifying requirements for commodities at Bahrain and Qatar, in the form of lists of commodities and required tonnage (ff 4-5, ff 6-7), and from the Political Resident, specifying commodity requirements for Kuwait, Muscat and Gwadar (ff 9-11);correspondence dated July 1948, relating to the request from the Government of Bahrain for the Government of Pakistan to allow the export of a small quota of bran to Bahrain for use as cattle feed (ff 17-20, f 26, f 28);two letters from the Assistant Chief Controller of Imports and Exports, Karachi, dated 18 October 1948 and 23/25 July 1949 respectively, detailing foodstuffs (with quantities) permitted for export, with details of their allocation to the Persian Gulf sheikhdoms (f 29, f 43);correspondence from the Government of Pakistan, dated June 1949, relating to the surrender of export licenses due to unfavourable market conditions in the Gulf and increased market prices in Pakistan (f 35);correspondence from the Director of Customs at Bahrain, and the Political Officer on the Trucial Coast, dated October and November 1949, providing details of the firms to whom export licenses may be granted (ff 51-53, f 54).Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the back cover with 64; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.
Abstract: The file comprises copies of correspondence and other papers relating to the implementation of the Navicert system in the Persian Gulf, which was intended to regulate and control shipping in and out of the Persian Gulf during wartime. The file’s principal correspondents are: the Political Agent at Bahrain (Major Reginald George Evelin William Alban; Edward Birkbeck Wakefield; Major Tom Hickinbotham; Cornelius James Pelly) and representatives of the shipping agency Gray, Mackenzie & Company Limited, who had offices in Bahrain, as well as in other Gulf ports.The file includes:correspondence and notices relating to the introduction of the Navicert system for steamships and dhows sailing into or out of the Persian Gulf from 15 May 1941 (f 7, f 10, f 18);correspondence relating to enquiries and concerns regarding the implementation of the Navicert system in the Persian Gulf, including: fears voiced by representatives of the Bahrain Petroleum Company (BAPCO) that the system would duplicate the existing system of oil export licensing (ff 13-17); the use of Bandar Abbas [Bandar-e ʻAbbās] as a port for the issue for Navicerts for outgoing vessels; vessels from Dubai and Sharjah having to stop at Bandar Abbas to obtain Navicerts (ff 21-22); confusion over the Muscat Political Agency’s failure or refusal to issue Navicerts (ff 80-82);several letters from the Collector of Customs at Karachi, informing the Political Agent at Bahrain of vessels arriving in Karachi from the Persian Gulf with no Navicert (examples at ff 44-46), and the subsequent investigations by the Political Agent, enquiring as to why Navicerts were not issued;a sample of a blank Navicert application form (f 17), and two completed application forms (f 71, f 93);an enquiry made by the United States Consulate at Dhahran, in December 1944, concerning applications for Navicerts for oil shipments from Dhahran (f 108, ff 112-113);correspondence concerning two oil tankers, the
Empire Bronzeand the
San Vito, that left Bahrain without Navicerts (ff 118-124, ff 126-135);correspondence between the Political Agents at Bahrain and Kuwait over the applicability of the British Government’s Oil in Navigable Waters Act (1922) to the Persian Gulf (ff 159-160);a letter from the Political Resident to the Political Agent at Bahrain, dated 30 November 1946, enclosing an extract from
The Times, dated 25 September 1945, announcing that Navicerts would no longer be required by ships from 30 September 1946 (ff 162-163).Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the back cover with 184; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. An additional foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 2-97, and a mixed incomplete foliation/pagination sequence between ff 98-166; these numbers are written in pencil, but are not circled. Pagination: the file notes at the back are paginated between ff 166-179 in pencil.
Abstract: This is a correspondence file about the operation and impact of the quota system and export licensing restrictions that were imposed by the Government of India, on the supply of Indian tea (and to a lesser extent the supply of coffee) to Bahrain and also to Eastern Saudi Arabia and Qatar, during the Second World War (1939-1945). The main official correspondents are the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf; the Political Agent, Bahrain; the Adviser to the Government of Bahrain; the Director of Customs and Port Officer, Bahrain; the Food Controller, Bahrain; the Tea Controller for India, Calcutta; and other Government of India officials in the Departments of Commerce and External Affairs. Included in the file are various circular lists that give the names of Indian tea exporters and Bahrain tea importers, such as the monthly list of India tea quota allotments prepared by the Political Agent, Bahrain and similar lists, complied by the Director of Customs and Port Officer and the Food Controller on behalf of the Government of Bahrain.The file also contains merchants' correspondence between: Indian tea exporters and Bahrain tea importers about their shipping consignments; the Chairman of the Persian Gulf States Pool (an association of Indian tea exporters) and the Political Agent, Bahrain about the distribution of tea quotas among members of the Pool; Bahrain tea importers and the Political Agent, Bahrain about Indian tea importations allowed to be landed at Bahrain under the Government of India quota system.Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the back cover with 225; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. An additional incomplete foliation sequence is also present in parallel between ff 93-204; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence. Pagination: the file notes at the back of the file (ff 204-224) are paginated in pencil. The original front file cover, containing the original file title and file reference number, is missing.
Abstract: This is a correspondence file about Indian tea and sugar exports to Bahrain under the quota system and the export licensing restrictions imposed by the Government of India during the Second World War (1939-1945), when essential food commodities were in short supply. The file contains the correspondence of the Political Agent, Bahrain with the British Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, Bushire; the British Consuls in Persia (Iran) at Bandar Abbas, Kerman and Khorramshahr (also referred to by its former name of Mohammerah); the Tea Controller for India, Calcutta; the Director of Customs and Port Officer, Bahrain and the Food Controller for the Government of Bahrain. They discuss arrangements for the importation, payment and distribution of the Indian quota tea and sugar supplies that are shipped from Bombay, landed at Bahrain and then re-exported to British Consular staff in southern Persia. The file also contains a substantial amount of merchant correspondence, mainly with Indian exporter the Poojara Trading Company, Calcutta; importer Dhamanmal Isardas and shipping agent Gray, Mackenzie & Company, both Bahrain. Included in this correspondence are invoices, debit notes and bills of lading.Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover and terminates at the back cover; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. An additional incomplete foliation sequence is also present in parallel between ff 2-192; these numbers are written in a combination of pencil and blue crayon/ink, and are located in the same position as the main sequence. Pagination: a short pagination sequence is also present between ff 225-245; these numbers are written in pencil, and are located in the top outermost corners of each page. Condition: the front file cover is damaged.
Abstract: This is a correspondence file about the operation and impact of the quota system and export licensing restrictions that were imposed by the Government of India, on the supply of Indian tea (and to a lesser extent the supply of coffee) to Bahrain and also to Eastern Saudi Arabia and Qatar, during the Second World War (1939-1945). The main official correspondents are the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf; the Political Agent, Bahrain; the Adviser to the Government of Bahrain; the Director of Customs and Port Officer, Bahrain; the Food Controller, Bahrain; the Tea Controller for India, Calcutta; and other Government of India officials in the Departments of Commerce and External Affairs. Included in the file are various circular lists that give the names of Indian tea exporters and Bahrain tea importers, such as the monthly list of India tea quota allotments prepared by the Political Agent, Bahrain and similar lists, complied by the Director of Customs and Port Officer and the Food Controller on behalf of the Government of Bahrain.The file also contains merchants' correspondence between: Indian tea exporters and Bahrain tea importers about their shipping consignments; the Chairman of the Persian Gulf States Pool (an association of Indian tea exporters) and the Political Agent, Bahrain about the distribution of tea quotas among members of the Pool; Bahrain tea importers and the Political Agent, Bahrain about Indian tea importations allowed to be landed at Bahrain under the Government of India quota system.Physical description: Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1 and terminates at the back cover with 240; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. An additional foliation sequence is also present in parallel between ff 176-217 with numbers sporadically appearing on other folios; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence. A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.