16-bed Hospital opened under Yaungkha Village Project of Myanmar

16-bed Hospital

opened under Yaungkha Village Project of Myanmar-Thai narcotic drugs eradication

and all-round development of border areas

YANGON,

28 Dec- Under the arrangement of Myanmar-Thai narcotic drugs eradication and

all-round development of border areas, the ceremony to open 16-bed hospital

which was one of the Yaungkha Village Project in Monghsat District, Shan State

(East), was held at the venue on 26 December morning.

Chairman of Shan State (East)

Peace and Development Council Commander of Triangle Region Command Maj-Gen Khin

Zaw and Commanding General of 3rd Army Area of Thailand Lt-Gen Picharnmeth

Muangmanee formally opened the hospital.

Speaking on the occasion,

In-charge of Yaungkha Village Project Col San Pwint said that the project is

being implemented according to the agreement of Myanmar-Thai narcotic drugs

eradication and all-round development of border areas after the meeting between

the prime ministers of the two countries in 2001. The Prime Minister of Thailand

provided 20 million Baht to implement the project.

According to the agreement

between officials of the two countries, Yaungkha Village-tract, 30 miles west of

Tachilek, was chosen as the project area in 2001-2002. So, the project will

benefit not only Yaungkha Village but also local people who are residing in

Yaungkha Village-tract formed with 13 villages and its environs. The project

started in January 2003. In implementing the education sector of the all-round

development project, Basic Education Primary School that can accomodate 500

students was built in May 2003. Starting from June 2003, 10 teachers appointed

by the Ministry of Education are teaching 222 students at the school. In the

health sector, construction of the 16-bed hospital was completed in September

2003. At present, one doctor and four nurses appointed by the Ministry of Health

are providing health care service to local national races.

With regard to the agricultural

sector, the plan has been drawn to cultivate opium-substitute crops. Nowadays,

1,300 acres of highland area and 900 acres of farmland, totalling over 2,200

have been put under paddy, and arrangements were made for building small-scale

dams with a view to ensuring cultivation of double cropping. Now, six

small-scale dams together with a 20-metre-long canal were built in cooperation

with local people for supplying water to over 840 acres of farmland all the year

round. So, over 2,000 tons of rice surplus achieved this year. Maize, soya

beans, bamboo shoot, macadamia, etc were distributed to the local farmers and

arrangements are being made to export poppy-substitute crops produced from the

project area to Thailand. Before conclusion, Col San Pwint said that fish,

poultry and pig are being bred in the region in the livestock breeding sector

for distributing them to households of the villages.

Afterwards, Chenmai District

Lwetong Project Chief Executive Officer Mr Disnadda Diskul, in-charge of the

Thai side in Yaungkha Village Project, reported on arrangements for cooperation

in education, health, agriculture and livestock breeding sectors related to the

project.

Next, local national race leader

U Pau Yu Chan presented fruit baskets to Commander Maj-Gen Khin Zaw and Lt-Gen

Picharnmeth Muangmanee of Thailand. Then, Deputy Minister Brig-Gen Khin Maung

handed over seeds of crops for local people to U Pau Yu Chan.

Commander Maj-Gen Khin Zaw and

guests viewed agriculture and livestock breeding tasks in the compound of the

school and the display of fruits produced from the area.

Then, Commander Maj-Gen Khin Zaw

and Lt-Gen Picharnmeth Muangmanee of Thailand formally opened the stone

inscriptions to mark the opening of the hospital.

Next, the commander and party

viewed round the hospital.

Poppy

plantations destroyed in Pinlaung

YANGON,

17 Dec – A combined team comprising members of Pinlaung Township Myanmar Police

Force and the Special Region 6 and departmental staff destroyed 7.25 acres of

poppy plantations in the west of Tarngo village, Htipaung village-tract,

Pinlaung Township, at estimated map references of R 347461 and R 349465 on 18

November this year.

In 2003-2004 poppy cultivation

season, a total of 2,245.17 acres of poppy – 2,179.85 in Shan State (South),

13.48 in Shan State (North), 48.84 in Shan State (East) and three in Kachin

State – have been destroyed.

278.4 acres of

poppy plantations destroyed

YANGON,

12 Dec – A combined team comprising local Tatmadawmen, members of local

intelligence unit, Myanmar Police Force, departmental staff and local people

destroyed 278.4 acres of poppy plantations in the nearby valleys of Bawran

Village and Lwailon Village in Khaung-ei Village-tract, Pekhon Township, Shan

State (North), from 29 November to 2 December.

Up to 2 December during this

poppy cultivation season, a total of 2963.42 acres of poppy cultivation had been

destroyed.