Locals are facing difficulties as commodity prices have skyrocketed and the military council has cut off phone lines in Laukkai in northern Shan State.
Trade flow has stopped on the Union Road with the intensification of fighting between the military council and the Three Brotherhood Alliance which launched an offensive operation on 27 October.
The prices of all commodities have skyrocketed. The military council has cut off phone lines since 2 November, according to locals.
In Laukkai, the price of good quality rice has increased from over Ks-100,000 to Ks-400,000 per bag while the price of low-quality rice has increased from Ks-120,000 to over Ks-200,000 per bag.
The price of chicken egg increased from Ks-12,000 to Ks-30,000 per carton. The price of instant noodles increased from Ks-500 to Ks-1,500. So, Myanmar migrant workers have to live in a difficult situation.
A local from Laukkai said: “There is a shortage of commodities due to the road closures and the lack of arrival of cargo trucks. The people have rushed to buy it when China sells rice. Keeping money in our hands during the war is useless.”
At present, merchants import and sell basic food items from China. According to the locals, the people have to buy the commodities based on the daily exchange rates.
Last few days, the 12-wheeled trucks from China came to sell rice bags. Rice was sold at a price of 250 to 300 yuan (over 100,000 Myanmar Kyats) per bag weighing 10 pyi of rice. Only one bag per person was available.
In addition, a migrant worker in Laukkai said that it is currently difficult to communicate with his family due to phone and internet blackouts.
ÒIn the past, only Mytel SIM cards worked. Now, Mytel card no longer works. I am praying for the internet. Chinese phone bills and wifi fees are very expensive. It is impossible to go home. We find it very difficult to stay here,” he said.
Not only a large number of migrant workers but also around 500 foreigners from Nepal, Laos and Ethiopia including 165 Thai citizens are stranded in Laukkai, according to Thai news.
Sent by Shan News