(Based on the staff article from the KACHIN-NEWS-GROUP in October 2023.)
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| Bodies of Burmese burnt to crisp. |
The most crucial
train line in Burma, from the ancient capital city of Mandalay to Myitkyinar
the Kachin State’s Capital, has been lying dead silently for more than two
years since the people rebellion in Sagaing Division erupted after the hated Myanmar
Army’s violent coup in 2021.
The nearly 600-mile long train line runs through
most of the Sagaing Division, West of River Irrawaddy, to get to the Kachin
State at the northern end of Burma now known as Myanmar.
For more than 100 years the train had been running daily between Mandalay and Myitkyinar like a clock-work till 2021. The train was the only reliable connection between Myitkyina and the rest of Burma. Plane trips were too expensive and the Irrawaddy there was too shallow to navigate and there were no roads back then.