ACHIEVEMENTS, SHORTCOMINGS IN WIRE COMMUNICATIONS IN SEVEN USSR REPUBLICS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00809A000700110474-2
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 5
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: September 14, 2011
• Sequence Number: 474
• Publication Date: June 8, 1953
• Content Type: REPORT

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LANGUAGE
CLASSIFICATION CONFIDENTIAL
CENTRAL INTEVEREEI G WON
INFORMATION FROM
FOREIGN DOCUMENTS OR RADIO BROADCASTS
PUBLISHED Daily newspapers, monthly periodicals
WHERE
PUBLISHED USSR
DATE
PUBLISHED Jan 1952 - 23 Jan 1953
HOW
COUNTRY USSR
SUBJECT Economic - Communications, telephone, tele-
CD NO.
DATE OF
DATE DIST. 8 Jun 1953
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO.
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ACRIEVEME,N15, SHORTCOMINGS IN WIRE COMMUNICATIONS
IN SEVEN USSR REPUBLICS
The following report is a compilation of information on the
growth of wire communications in seven republics of the USSR, as
reported in Soviet newspapers and periodicals in 1952 and January
1953.
Numbers in parentheses refer to appended sources]
Latvian SSR
On 31 July 1952, Izvestiya reported that the plan for providing the Lat.?
vian SSR with telephone facilities had been completed in 1951. The paper
stated that 3,530 telephones had been installed in 1,540 kolkhozes, and that
about 3,000 kilometers of telephone lines had been reconstructed in the course
of 3 years.(l)
According to Sovetskaya Latviya of 1 April 1952, the Riga telephone ex-
change was introducing the immediate system for interurban telephone communi-
cation.(2)
Lithuanian SSR
On 23 January 1953, Sovetskaya Litva reported that the "order" system
used at the Vil'nyus interurban telephone exchange enabled it to handle
1,500 - 2,000 calls a day. The article stated that the exchange has connec-
tions with 90 points in the republic and with the largest cities in the USSR.(3)
Ukrainian SSR
I. Kirichenko, the Authorized Representative of the Minister of Communi-
cations for the Ukrainian SSR, reported in Pravda Ukrainy on 14 June 1952 that
the Ukraine is following the example of the Latvian SSR in putting wired radio
centers and telephone exchanges of small capacity in one place and commission-
ing one worker tc. operate both. In 1951, the operation of wired radio centers
and telephone substations was combined in 77 populated points. Kirichenko
STATE I Al NAW 161 NSRB
ARMY AIR FBI
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stated that in Rovenskaya Oblast means of communication including radio, tele-
phone, and telegraph had already been combined in 25 rayon offices. As a re-
sult, the staff of workers had been reduced by 50, and 800 square meters of
space had been freed. Kirichenko added that the simultaneous operation of
communications was to be achieved by July 1952 in 284 rayon offices in the
Ukraine, and by the first half of 1953 in all rayon centers. As a result,
1,500 workers were to be freed and used elsewhere.(4)
I. Epifanov, chief of the Kiev interurban telephone exchange, described
his exchange as one of the largest communications enterprises in the USSR.
He stated that it has the latest equipment and that its capacity is more than
three times greater than before World War II.(5)
According to Sovetskiy Svyazist of September 1952, the Administration
of the Authorized Representative of the Ministry of Communications for the
Ukrainian SSR, together with the Khersonskaya, Nikolayevskaya and Zaporozhskaya
oblast administrations of communications, worked to supplement interurban tele-
phone communication of Kherson, Zaporozh'ye, and Kakhovka. They satisfied
urgent requests for the installation of telephones and wired radio speakers.
The article stated that the Main Administration for Construction of the South
Ukrainian and North Crimean Canal had put an automatic telephone exchange with
great capacity into operation. It reported that switchboards had been put in
operation and the condition of the telephone network improved in many rayon
centers along the line of construction, such as Vasil'yevka, Snigirevka, Ok-
tyabr', and cther3. Thousands of telephones had been installed at construc-
tions, 70 kilometers of lines built, and 370 kilometers of wires suspended.
Sovetskiy Svyazist pointed out that work was under way to increase the
capacity of telephone communications from many construction points to Moscow,
Kiev, Khar'kov, and Dnepropetrovsk. It explained that a total of eight de-
partments aid three agencies of communications were to be opened in 1952, and
city telephone exchanges expanded in Snigirevka, Berislav, and Oktyabr'. The
article concluded with the statement that this enumeration of work being con-
ducted was far from complete.(6)
Georgian SSR
On 16 September 1952, Zarya Vostoka reviewed the progress of communica-
tions in the Georgian SSR for 1951 and for 7 months of 1952, as follows: The
length of telegraph-telephone lines grew by 14 percent, and the length of non-
ferrous telephone circuits increased by 57 percent /presumably over the length
in operation on 1 January 19517. Twenty-four hour telephone service was intro-
duced between Tbilisi, Kutaisi, Batumi, Sukhumi, Stalinir, Gori, Khashuri, and
other towns and rayon centers. Improved fast operating equipment was intro-
duced, and the number of intra-rayon telephone exchanges increased. In
21 towns, the telephone network was reconstructed.
Zarya Vostoka commented, however, that despite all these accomplishments
the work of the Tbilisi automatic exchange was going badly. The exchanges in
Kutaisi, Sukhumi, Batumi, Stalinir, and other towns were extremely.overworked
and unsatisfactory. The article closed with a summons to Leshavili, the Au-
thorized Representative of the Ministry of Communications for the Georgian
SSR, to correct the situation.(7)
Armenian SSR
During 1952, complaints were directed against telephone facilities in
Yerevan, capital of the Armenian SSR.
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1
On 1 August 1952, a reader of Kommunist, N. Kazaryan, sent a letter to
the paper complaining that there were great inadequacies in the work of the
Yerevan telephone network. He described the situation as follows: Scores of
people turn to Tokmadzhyan, director of the telephone network, with a request
for a telephone, but usually receive the answer that there are no numbers
free. On other occasions, he sends "importune" visitors to Engineer A. Zaru-
benko, who can install a telephone even without the permission of the direc-
tor for a special fee. People who do not really need telephones receive them,
and those who have real need for them do not.
Kazaryan insisted that there are free numbers. He charged that telephone
equipment is not taken care of properly and is lost. He declared that Tok-
nadzhyan had reported a deficit of 1,745 rubles for the first quarter 1952 in-
stead of an actual deficit of 42,500 rubles.
Kazaryan continued as follows: In December 1951, the director gave in-
structions for publishing a telephone book, but the work on it was poor.
Workers artfully exceeded the established fee by two times, which brought the
cost of the directory to 16,100 rubles. In addition, the directory contained
mistakes and many numbers were omitted. The subscribers division has failed
for several years to make up cards for owners of 60 apartment telephones and
for 2-3 years has not collected fees from them. As a result, the state has
not received 38,000 rubles. The former cashier of the network, 0. Kristo-
faryan, embezzled 3,745 rubles, while the bookkeeper, O.Simonyan, embezzled
972 rubles in April and 400 rubles in May. Not one of them has been brought
to trial. On the contrary, the director of the telephone network, M. Tok-
madzhyan, made an award of 150 rubles to Simonyan on 25 May.
Kazaryan charged that, when these facts were brought to the attention of
the Authorized Representative of the Ministry of Communications for the Ar-
menian SSR, T. Minasyan, he came to their defense. Kazaryan summoned the re-
public prosecutor to take an interest in the activity of M. Tokmadzhyan and
other workers.(8)
On 2 September 1952, Kommunist confirmed the charges that there had been
irregularities in the operations of the Yerevan city telephone network. On
27 August, T. Minasyan, the Authorized Representative of the Ministry of Com-
munications for the Armenian SSR, reported that the questions raised had been
discussed and decisions taken for bringing order to the telephone network.
The paper expressed the hope that the measures taken would correct the situa-
tion.(9)
Kazakh SSR
According to Izvestiya of 27 February 1952, there are 40 branch stations
of communications in Alma-Ata. Only in 24 are there points for the dispatch
and receipt of telegrams, while trunk-call offices exist in only two. Iz-
vestiya complained that telegrams are not delivered, particularly during
evening hours. and that their texts are often distorted.
On an average day, one city branch station of communications failed to
deliver 43 telegrams in the prescribed period of time. Izvestiya noted that
since the beginning of 1952, 107 papers and journals had been sent to the
wrong addresses. The interurban telephone exchange failed to fulfill orders
for a whole week. Izvestiya complained that nothing was being done to im-
prove the station.(10
On 24 October 1952, R. Vizel'tir, chief engineer of the Karaganda Admin-
istration of the Ministry of Communications reported in Kazakhstanskaya Pravda
that the Osakarovka-Kiyevka telephone line had been put in operation by the
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beginning of spring field work. Communications workers had completed the con-
struction of two new telephone cables: Karaganda-Dzhezkazgan, which is
600 kilometers long, and Karaganda-Karkaralinsk-Kuvskaya, which is 350 kilo-
meters long. The Karaganda -Karkaralinsk line was completed in record time at
great financial savings.
According to Vizel'tir, the construction of these main cables provides
the possibility of telephone communication between Karaganda and the rayon
centers of Dzhezkazganskiy and Zhana-Arkinskiy rayons, and the new industrial
centers of Kengir, Novaya-Rudnaya, and Uspenka. In addition, he continued,
they have created the necessary conditions for providing the ryon centers of
Shetek, Ulu-Tay, and Aktogay with telephone facilities. Visel'tir stated
that after the completion of the 70-kilometer Zharyk-Shetek line, all atten-
tion was concentrated on the Dzhezkazgan--Ulu-Tay line, which was put in opera-
tion by the opening of the 19th Party Congress. According to Vizel'tir,
communications workers subsequently concentrated all their attention on a new
400-kilometer line between Karaganda and Aktogay. When this line is completed,
Karaganda will have telegraph and telephone connections with all the rayons
of the oblast.(11)
Uzbek SSR
Pravda Vostoka of 31 October 1952 printed a complaint against the Au-
thorized Representative of the Ministry of Communications for the Uzbek SSR
for failing to do anything about cormnunications in Muynakskiy Rayon. The com-
plaint declared that the significance of radio communications is heightened
wherever it is impossible to install wire communications. Practice has demon-
strated, the article continued, that with the all of the Urozhay broadcasting
station, telephone communication can be achieved for a distance of 50-70 kilo-
meters. It charged, however, that several rayon offices do not use the Uro-
zhay radio stations for antra-rayon communication. It added that in Muynek-
skiy Rayon, for example, it would be possible to connect kolkhozes and vil-
lage soviets with the rayon center, particularly in the region embracing the
southern end of the Aral Sea and the delta of the Amu-Darya, which is broken
up by expanses of water.(12)
According to Sovetskiy Svyazist of January 1952, telephone communication
had been established between Nukus and Takhia-Tash.(13)
Turkmen SSR
On 29 October 1952, Turkmenskaya Iskra criticized the directory of the
Ashkhabad city telephone network. The article pointed out that since the
directory was put out in March 1950, many changes have been made so that of
the 1,500 numbers listed in the directory only 300-400 are correct. It stated
that the accuracy of the remaining numbers can only be established through the
information bureau. Turkmenskaya Iskra urged the leaders of the Askhkabad
telephone exchange to publish a corrected edition of the directory.(14)
SOURCES
1. Moscow, Izvestiya, 31 Jul 52
2. 'Riga, Sovetskaya Latviya, 1 Apr 52
3. Vil'nyus, Sovetskaya Litva, 23 Jan 53
4. Kiev, Pravda Ukrainy, 14 Jun 52
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50X1-HUM
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F
5.
Moscow, Sovetskiy Svyazist, No 6, Jun 52
6.
Ibid., No 9, Sep 52
7.
Tbilisi, Zarya Vostoka, 16 Sep 52
8.
Yerevan, Kommunist,
1 Aug 52
9.
Ibid., 2 Sep 52
10.
Izvestiya, 22 Feb 52
11.
Alma-Ata, Kazakhstan
skaya Pravda, 24 Oct 52
12.
Tashkent, Pravda Vos
toka, 31 Oct 52
13.
Sovetskiy Svyazist,
No 1, Jan 52
14.
Ashkhabad, Turkmensk
aya Iskra, 29 Oct 52
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