Tuesday, August 8, 2017

State Counsellor visits recently electrified village



 August 7, 2017

State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi visited Myay Taing Kan Village, Wundwin Township, Meiktila District, Mandalay Region, yesterday and talked with villagers about the area’s socio-economic development.

Myay Taing Kan Village was chosen for the visit because it lies nearly at the geographical center of Myanmar. The village is home to 281 households and a population of 1,242, most of whom earn their living on farming and weaving. Paddy, cotton and pulses are the area’s main crops. The electric grid was extended to the village, for the first time, in March. Prior to electrification, the village had to spend Ks150,000 for diesel oil each month to support a light weaving industry. With electrification energy costs are only one-third of that cost, increasing the income of villagers.

The State Counsellor inspected the transformer which distributes electricity to the village and Chief Engineer U Soe Min Tun briefed her about the system. Afterwards, the State Counsellor had a round of Peace Talks with the villagers of Myay Taing Kan village.

She also viewed light-industry weaving sheds operated by electricity. In the afternoon, the State Counsellor arrived at the Sihar Yama monastery in the village, donating offertories to Sayadaw U Kosalla and Sayadaw U San Vara Sarmi. Of Myanmar’s 10.87 million households, 3.7 million had access to electricity in 2016. By June 2017 4.19 million households are electrified. Of 63,859 villages nationwide, 31,804 villages had been supplied electricity as of May 2017.

The National Electrification Project is being implemented with a World Bank loan of US $300 million. Other funding sources include the national budget, local budgets and international loans and financial assistance.

In the first phase, 5,080 villages, home to approximately 630,000 families, located no more than two miles away from existing power grid lines will be prioritized for electrification. The second phase will provide electricity to 7.5 million people.

A German government loan has electrified 416 villages in Taunggyi, Loilem and Linkhe districts in Southern Shan State.
In all, 1,484 villages across Myanmar are to be electrified in FY2017-2018.
State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi was accompanied on her trip by Union Minister Dr. Aung Thu, Dr. Zaw Myint Maung, Chief Minister of Mandalay Region Cabinet and Deputy Ministers U Min Thu and Dr Tun Naing.
Myanmar News Agency
Ref; The Global New Light of Myanmar

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