Something of a gold rush has struck Mandalay region after deposits of the yellow metal were unearthed during road works.
Word spread quickly of the find near Chaung Gyi village, Thabeikkyin township on the Mandalay-Mogok road on August 15, drawing hundreds of residents from Thabeikkyin and Singu townships to the scene.
But the prospectors were soon stopped from striking lucky by local government officials, who ordered them to stay away from the site in order to avoid disrupting the road upgrade, according to 7Day News.
Phoe San, head of the Chaung Gyi village General Administration Department, also said the potential for arguments over the precious metal and the Covid-19 ban on groups of more than 30 were concerns.
Locals were selling bags of earth and rocks collected from the road widening project for between 5,000 and 30,000 kyats, a Chaung Gyi resident told Daily Eleven.
"On the night of August 15, someone I knew told me they picked up two pieces of gold. One piece had in it four parts, each worth about 10,000 kyats,” said Hla Shwe, an official from nearby Wat Thay village.
But big-scale prospectors would be wise to curb their expectations, as local parliamentarian Dr Aung Naing said the small deposits would be enough just for artisanal miners to benefit.
Small-scale gold mines are scattered across Myanmar and particularly concentrated in Kachin State and Sagaing, Mandalay and Bago regions. About three hours east of Thabeikkyin is Mogok, known as the “Valley of the Rubies.”
The gold-mining industry has grown over the last decade—and with it, concerns over inadequate equipment and antiquated practices that cause lung diseases and dangerously high levels of mercury for many of the miners.
