Aungban
Aungpan is a major trading town, supplying agricultural produce to the rest of Myanmar in the Southern Shan State. It is located in Kalaw Township which is part of Taunggyi District.
It lies on the Thazi-Kyaingtong road at an elevation of 4219 feet above sea level.
As of September 2018, its population was recorded 30,389.
It is a junction town in the midst of agricultural villages and thus the majority of agricultural products from nearby towns and villages are all collected thereby traders and distributed to other parts of the country, especially to Yangon, Mandalay, Kayin and Mon.
Overview
As a trade hub in the region, more than half a dozen banks are being operated.Being a logistically important place, most of the biggest companies in Myanmar´s agricultural value chain set up branch offices there, creating many employment opportunities for local people.
The town also plays a strategic role in military works that it has become an army base. The Seven-hundred bedded military hospital started its operation in the 2000s, providing healthcare service not only to military personnel but also to the wider public.
There is a small lake, named Mingalar Lake in Bahtoo Park. Once it was a collection of drain water discharged from living quarters. Renovation and restoration work for the park and the lake was carried out by the chairman of KBZ Bank and now it becomes a recreational place for the locals.
Transportation
Transport-wise, the town is important as a junction town, lying slightly east to Heho at about 14 miles, where roads branch off south to Loikaw, Kayah State, north to the famous temples of Pindaya at about 25 miles and west to Kalaw at 6 miles.Air
The single-line railway line was extended from Aungpan to Shwenyaung, in the 1920s and Heho, a small village of Danu people grew into a town. Later an airport was built, northwest of the town. The airport served as an airbase both for the Allies and the Japanese during World War II and it was heavily bombed by the Allies. Evidence of aircraft bunker revetments and bomb craters can still be seen on the southern end of the airfield, especially noticeable from the air.Myanmar National Airlines and Air KBZ offer direct flights from Yangon to Heho daily; starting price from MMK 66,000 with estimated travel time 1h 10m.
Railway
The Aungpan-Loikaw railroad was constructed in 1992. The Working People's Daily newspaper reported in 1992 that over 300,000 people had contributed 'voluntary labor' for the Aungpan-Loikaw railway line connecting Shan and Kayah states. By the end of the project a year later, the total number had risen to almost 800,000. Many independent and credible testimonies indicated that this labor was forced, not 'voluntary'.Road
The motorway passing through Aungpan is upgraded to four-lane recently. Consequently, buildings fall under the Union Highway zone were removed.Colonel Ba Htoo's Memorial Monument was also decided to demolish on 28th March 2019 after consulting with the committee consisting of the state government officials, lawmakers, party representatives, and community elders from the town. The committee also decided to construct a new monument near the original place.
Colonel Ba Htoo was a senior member of the Burma Independence Army. He was best known for his lead role in the battle against the Japanese forces in Upper Myanmar while Geneal Aung San commanded the resistance in Lower Myanmar.
As Major Ba Htoo and his company chased away the Japanese troops from Mandalay into southern Shan State, he contracted a severe case of malaria. He passed away from malaria in Te Lu village of Ywangan Township, Shan State on June 2nd, 1945 at the age of just twenty-nine years old. He never had a chance to see the letter informing him that Geneal Aung San had promoted him to colonel, nor to say goodbye to his wife and three children, from whom he had been parted since he joined the army in 1942.
In addition to the monument, some residential homes, banks, and other buildings have also been removed in order to widen the Union Highway. According to the reliable sources, the original Monument was opened on 15-June-1945 in honor of Colonel Ba Htoo. The demolished column had been built over the original monument by Assistant Township Officer U Thein Hlaing in the transition period from Aungpan township to Kalaw township in 1-October-1965.
Controversial and criticisms arose around the country for complete demolishment without considering for relocation.
The committee agreed that the urn holding the colonel’s ashes would be retrieved and placed inside the new monument. Nonetheless, the urn had not been located upon further digging inside the monument, indicating that the real urn of Colonel Ba Htoo is inside the monument located in Te Lu village of Ywangan Township, Shan State.
The construction of the Monument was completed and to be opened on March 27th, 2020. However, the opening ceremony was canceled due to the 2019 coronavirus outbreak, which was reported in the country on March 23rd, 2020 by the Ministry of Health and Sports.
The town's 100-years-anniversary clock-tower at the Pindaya junction was removed as well.
Motorway upgrade was completed in April 2020 and now the town gets a newer look.
Demographics
As of September 2018, the estimated population of the town was recorded 30,389; about 68% of which were youngsters below the age of 18 while the rest of 32% composed of the age above 18. The total residential household of the town was reported to be 6256.The male population of the town was 48.3% while the female comprised 51.7%.
The report also showed that the town has a small percentage of foreigners living; 1.24% from China, 3.71% from India, and 0.92% from Pakistan.
Ethnicity
The same census also reported that about 49% of the residents were Bamar, 23% Danu, 13% Pa-O, 6% Taungyo, 1% Shan and Intha. The remaining 7% include Burmese Chinese, Burmese Indians and Gurkha.Religion
The town's prevalent religion is Theravada Buddhism, practiced especially by the ethnic groups. According to the September 2018 report, 96.2% of the town's population self-identified as Buddhists of the Theravada tradition, and the daily scene of the town is characterized by Buddhist tradition.From the same report, 0.6% of the town's population were monks, 2% were samanera, and 0.04 % were Bhikkhunī. The town holds many monasteries and every morning a lot of monks collecting alms bowls of food can be seen.
The town is also home to many Chinese-descendant Mahayana Buddhists and they established a Chinese temple.
Islams constitute the second religious group in the town, comprising 2.53% of the town's population.
Christians represent 1.12% and a small community of Hindus at 0.15%.
There are also Catholic Churches, Baptist Churches, Hindu temple, and Mosques as well.
Food
Various types of Shan traditional food such as Shan tofu, Shan noodle, Hin Htoke, Khaw Pote and fried tofu-curd or salad are sold as street food. Chinese, siamese and, Myanmar cuisine are available at most restaurants.What makes Shan food distinctive is the use of sticky rice and noodles of the same flour. Also soybeans, ju myit and a very unique ingredient called peh-boh in Burmese, fermented soybeans which have been dried into thin disks. This ingredient is used in all sorts of ways, added to curries and or crumbled up into salads or used as a condiment with dried shrimps, chilies, and fried garlic.
Restaurants that specially serve seafood, hot pot, or BBQs spread across the town.
Culture
Religious celebrations are held throughout the year, of all, the Tazaungdaing festival is the most famous and widely celebrated holiday of the town. The Tazaungdaing Festival is also known as the Festival of Lights and it is usually held on the full moon day of Tazaungmon, the eighth month of the Burmese calendar.It also marks the end of Kathina season, during which monks are offered new robes and alms.
During the festival, many hot air balloons are released as an offering to the Sulamani cetiya in Tavitisma, heaven in Buddhist cosmology and home of the deva, or as a way to drive away evil spirits.
Hot-air balloons and firework-launching competition is the most prominent festival of the town.
Alms-giving and charity, both religious and secular, including satuditha feasts, are also commonly undertaken during this festival, as a means of merit-making.
Others return home to pay homage to elders and visit pagodas. In Burmese tradition, during the full moon day of Tazaungmon, Burmese families pick Siamese cassia buds and prepare it in a salad called mezali phu thoke or in a soup. The people believe that eating Mezali buds is beneficial to their health and will cure any illnesses. The salad has to be eaten when the clock strikes exactly 12:00 midnight to get the full effect.
On this night, young men celebrate a custom called "kyimano pwe", by stealing or playing tricks on the neighbors. Burmese people believe that this constellation is related to Pleiades or Saw Ra under whose influence people like to steal things.
Economy
The town is vital in Myanmar's food value chain as it fulfills the majority of vegetables and agricultural commodities needed daily by Yangon and other populated cities. For instance, a study states that the town holds 80% of ginger production and market share in the country. The ILO Vision Zero Fund in Myanmar is providing ginger farmers from the town with better information on the safe use of agrochemicals and other Occupational safety and health related information that can improve their working conditions, as well as empower the government stakeholders including the Department of Agriculture.The town's economy can be briefly classified into agrarian and non-agrarian. Farmers, village collectors, traders, BSCs, daily wage earners for quality sorting and cleaning products, porters, agricultural input-product dealers, etc play at the frontline of the former economy. The requirement for cargo shipment let logistics business to evolve largely and a multitude of cargo trucks are mostly operated by the townsmen, followed by several vehicle maintenance workshops, fuel stations, car spare part dealers, etc. As farming is done on terraced fields and slopes, it is difficult to utilize machines at full scale and farmers still have to rely on animals, especially oxen and buffaloes. There is a periodic animal market in the town. The presence of several cattle spreading around the region leads dairy product firms to be established. The town got a leading yogurt producer in the Southern Shan State, and even for the Kayah State.
The non-agrarian sector involves entertainment businesses, food, and basic supplies to the town's residences, which is doubled by army base stations around the town, boarding schools, and the military hospital. Private hospitals and supermarkets are likely to be developed soon, as the town's geological advantage and spending power of the community are attractive to investors.
Recent Town Committee's permit to set Aungpan's Pindaya exit road as an entertainment zone let KTVs mushroom along the road, forming as an only red-light district in the region. Pin-Hmi golf range which is located near the southern exit of the town is getting popular among local golfers and always crowded on weekends. Special tournaments are often held by the club, which is commonly sponsored by KBZ Bank.
Tourism
A recent boom in the tourism industry of Kalaw as a popular hiking spot and hill station has brought some impact to Aungpan as well. There are star-rated and aesthetically pleasing hotels offering hundreds of rooms to visitors. There is a small resort on Aungpan-Indein road, located in the midst of pine forest, and it is well-known amongst local and foreign trekkers from Kalaw to Inle for its tranquility and pleasantness.The town has an interesting five-day market, where farmers from around the area would come to Aungpan on market day and sell fresh produce in the open market.
The huge and highly popular street market circulates on a five-day rota system between the neighboring towns of Kalaw, Pindaya, Heho, Nyaung Shwe and Aungpan. Aungpan is the largest and bustling commercial trading town. Mostly Pa-O and Palaung, flock into the town from surrounding villages along with local Shan farmers. It’s a very colorful and vibrant scene.
Agriculture
Although the town's main economy is commercial trading, there are many farms and gardens in and outside of the town. Farmers and gardeners are mostly Danu and Pa-O ethnic origins. The main agricultural products are potatoes, cauliflower, avocadoes, oranges, tea leaves, tomatoes, beans, damsons, and seasonal fruits.List of Banks being operated
Climate
Aungpan has a Dry-winter humid subtropical climate, closely bordering a subtropical highland climate according to Köppen climate classification system.Cwa is monsoonal influenced, having the classic dry winter – hot summer pattern associated with tropical monsoonal climates.
The town has three seasons: the hot, dry inter-monsoonal season, the rainy southwest monsoon, and the cool, relatively dry northeast monsoon.
The weather is usually warm and temperate. When compared with winter, the summers have much more rainfall.
The average annual temperature in Aungpan is 19.1 °C.
The warmest month of the year is April, with an average temperature of 22.7 °C. At 14.2 °C on average, January is the coldest month of the year.
In a year, the rainfall is 1654 mm.
The difference in precipitation between the driest month and the wettest month is 290 mm.
The variation in annual temperature is around 8.5 °C.
Education
The town is home to:- Regional campus Yezin Agricultural University
Yezin Agricultural University had established a branch in Aungpan.
Starting from the 2009 academic year, third-year and fourth-year undergraduate students have to select one crop as a specialized subject and study off-campus at one of seven designated farms of the Myanmar Agricultural Service. The aim is to "expose students to their specialized crop and do more research in order to become crop specialists". The undergraduate students come to the Aungpan branch to study and do research on maize and cereals.
The Seven-hundred bed military hospital also serves as a teaching hospital for Defence Service Medical Academy's house surgeons from Yangon. Therefore, several students of various age-levels can be seen in the town.
Health care
Public Hospitals
- Aungpan General Hospital
- 700-bed military Hospital
- Gayunar Yike Nyein Clinic
Notable people
Dagon Taya
Dagon Taya ဒဂုန်တာရာ;, was a renowned Myanmar writer. He was born at Htai Ku Myit Tan Village, Kyaiklat Township, Ayeyarwaddy Region on 10 May 1919. His other pen names were Myaing Thazin, Maung Nan Nwe, Saw Htut, U Toe, Maung Linn Htet, Banya Thiha and U Dagon.He was one of the many dissident politicians, workers, students, and writers detained by the Revolutionary Council after a coup led by General Ne Win in 1962. He was detained in the Insein prison for three years and three months.
He issued an appeal which strongly opposed the Myitsone Dam Project in September 2011.
He was honored with Manhae Peace Prize from South Korea for his literature, leadership for young people and dedication to democracy and peace in August 2013.
He passed away at Aungpan, Southern Shan State on August 19, 2013. His monument can be seen at the Maeko Mountain of Aungpan surrounded by beautiful pine trees.
Lu Min (actor)
is a four-time Myanmar Academy Award winning Burmese actor and director. Born and raised in Aungpan, he was Chairman of the Myanmar Motion Picture Organisation from 2014 to 2017. He acted in over 1000 films.Aungchanthar Pagoda
Locals in the town hope that an ongoing pagoda project of Aungchanthar Pagoda will change visitors’ perceptions of their hometown and will become the landmark and symbol of the religion.Aungchanthar Pagoda is a 162-foot replica of Yangon's Shwedagon Pagoda. It was founded on July 20th, 2005 – the full moon day of Waso,. Its name literally means “Victory and Prosperity”.
Leading the project is U Pyinnya Wunsa, the abbot of Aungchanthar monastery and a member of the State Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee, locally known as Aungchanthar Sayadaw.
There is still a lot of work to do until the Pagoda is complete.
He decided to build the Pagoda because Aungpan is at the center of several famous places in the region, such as Inle Lake and Pindaya, and visitors frequently ask him why the town doesn't have any sacred pagoda.
It has been under construction for about fifteen years. It had been spent about Kyat six billion on the pagoda and it's about two-third finished. In 2005, it was estimated to cost about Kyat 7.6 billion.
The project has been really quite slow in the past ten years but visitors to the region often want to donate after hearing about the project. Now the project is moving much faster.
When completed, the pagoda will be encircled by 107 smaller stupas, ranging in height from 6 feet to 12 feet.
While Aungchanthar Pagoda will replicate Shwedagon Pagoda, it will also incorporate a hollow interior.