The government of Myanmar has decided to scrutinize the Muse-Mandalay railway project connecting Mandalay with the capital city of Yunnan province in China.
Speaking about the decision of the government, Myanmar Railways Managing Director U Ba Myint said on Wednesday that a Swiss company will review the feasibility study of the railway project submitted by the Chinar Railway Eryuan Engineering Group (CREEG), reported Irrawaddy.
According to the report, the Swiss company will check the detail of the feasibility study including route details and alignments. It will also look if the cost projection by the Chinese company is justified. U Ba Myint said that Myanmar has no plan to implement the project if it is bad for the country.
The 430 kilometre long railway project is a key component of the China Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC) which is part of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) for creation of infrastructure spanning the Asia Pacific region.
The 8.9 billion dollar project seeks to connect Kyaukphyu in western Myanmar’s Rakhine State with Kunming via Muse in Shan State through a high speed railway connection.
There have been criticism from the local people about the influx of Chinese people, environmental and other implications of the project like displacement and water resources depletion.
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