Nargis Consequences Continue with Salt Shortage

June 19, 2008

By HURFOM:

As salt trucks from Mon state continue to move to the cyclone-affected Irrawaddy delta region, residents in Mon state are finding they now face a salt-shortage crisis themselves.

Panga village, located approximately five miles from Thanbyuzayat township, is the location of most salt production in Mon State.

A Panga villager newly arrived on the Thai-Burma border told our reporter, “Each day about ten trucks have been transporting salt from our village to Rangoon.”

As testament to this, a shopkeeper from Mudon in the local markets reported salt-prices as having hit an all-time high of 600 Kyat per Viss (Viss is the common unit of measurement in Burma ); prior to Cyclone Nargis and the mass transportation of salt away from Mon state that followed, salt was typically 100 Kyat per Viss.

“Even if you have money to buy salt it is no longer available for purchase in Panga,” said the shopkeeper.

Due to the onset of the rainy season salt production was set to drop anyway; with this latest consequence of Cyclone Nargis fears are growing of a state-wide salt shortage. This in turn is set to damage the fishing industry, as local fishermen voice their fears; without salt they are unable to preserve their catch and are forced to watch it rot.

Although the UN recently distributed salt in the areas worst affected by the cyclone, many worry Burma is set to face a significant salt shortage.

Mon State produces 75% of Burma’s salt, and the remaining 25% originates in the Irrawaddy delta. Cyclone Nargis damaged all Irrawaddy Delta salt fields, as sea water burst through banks and flooded the area.

Written by HURFOM · Filed Under News