Aungban

Aungban (Burmese: အောင်ပန်းမြို့) (Pa'o Karen: ဝေင်ꩻအောင်ႏဗန်း) is a major trading town in the southern Shan State of Myanmar that supplies agricultural yield to the rest of the country.

The majority of agricultural products, mainly potato, garlic, ginger, cabbage, tomato, cauliflower, avocado, orange, and tea-leaves, are collected from nearby towns and villages by traders and distributed to other parts of the country, especially Yangon, Mandalay, Naypyitaw, Nyaung U, Tachileik, Kayin and Mon.

Owing to its logistic importance, some of the largest companies in Myanmar's agricultural value chain have set up branch offices in Aungban, which has created many employment opportunities for the local populace.

Renovation and restoration work carried out by the chairman of KBZ Bank transformed the site, and now it functions as a recreational area for residents.

The area displays the classic dry winter – hot summer pattern associated with tropical monsoonal climates.

In the 1920s, the single-line railway was extended from Aungban to Shwenyaung, allowing Heho, a small village of Danu people, to grow into a town.

Evidence of aircraft bunker revetments and bomb craters, especially noticeable from the air, can still be seen on the southern end of the airfield.

Myanmar National Airlines and Air KBZ offer direct flights from Yangon to Heho daily, with prices starting at MMK 66,000 and an estimated travel time of 1 hour and 10 minutes.

[6] In recent times, the motorway passing through Aungban has been expanded to include four lanes, and buildings that fell under the Union Highway zone were demolished.

A decision to demolish Colonel Ba Htoo's Memorial Monument on 28 March 2019 was reached after consultation by a committee consisting of the state government officials, lawmakers, party representatives, and community elders from the town.

As Major Ba Htoo and his company drove the Japanese troops out from Mandalay into southern Shan State, he contracted a severe case of malaria.

He died from malaria in Te Lu village (Burmese: တဲ့လုကျေးရွာ), Ywangan Township, Shan State on 2 June 1945, at the age of just twenty-nine years old.

He died without seeing the letter informing him that General Aung San had promoted him to colonel, and without saying goodbye to his wife and three children, from whom he had been parted since he joined the army in 1942.

The report also showed that the town has a small percentage of resident foreigners; 3.71% from India, 1.24% from China, 1.05% from Nepal, 0.92% from Pakistan and 0.11% from Bangladesh.

The town holds many Kyaung monasteries and every morning a lot of monks collecting alms bowls of food can be seen.

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.

Alms-giving and charity, both religious and secular, including satuditha feasts (စတုဒိသာ), are also commonly undertaken during this festival, as a means of merit-making.

[11] The town is vital in Myanmar's food production as it produces the majority of vegetables and agricultural commodities needed daily by Yangon and other populated cities.

Farmers, village collectors, traders, BSCs (broker sale center), daily wage earners for quality sorting and cleaning products, porters, agricultural input-product dealers, etc.

Many cargo trucks are operated by the townsmen, followed by several vehicle maintenance workshops, fuel stations and car spare part dealers.

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.

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.

A recent boom in the tourism industry of Kalaw as a hiking spot and hill station has brought some impact to Aungban as well.

There is a small resort on Aungban-Indein road, located in the midst of the pine forest, which is well known amongst local and foreign trekkers from Kalaw to Inle.

The large street market circulates on a five-day rota system between the neighboring towns of Kalaw, Pindaya, Heho, Nyaung Shwe and Aungban.

The main agricultural products are potatoes, cauliflower, avocadoes, oranges, tea leaves, tomatoes, beans, damsons, and seasonal fruits.

Upon completion of all construction works on campus, 75 students will be able to enroll on the vocational training programme, in which the curriculum of each course is designed to take about 22 weeks.

He was born at Htai Ku Myit Tan Village (Mon), Kyaiklat Township, Ayeyarwady Region on 10 May 1919.

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.

Demolishing of Colonel Ba Htoo Monument (March 2019)
Town's committee finding the urn of Colonel Ba Htoo (March 2019)
The New Monument under construction (March 2020)
Colonel Ba Htoo Memorial Monument (April 2020)
Locals offering food to monks (March 2020)
Ethnic women selling fermented soybeans on market day (12 January 2020)
Dan traditional meal
Aung Chan Thar Pagoda under construction. (February 2020)