Local residents in Mrauk-U, Arakan State, are facing water shortages as Latsay Lake, which is the main water supply to the urban areas of Mrauk-U, has already dried up, according to locals.

In order to prevent water shortages in Mrauk-U town, the regime is distributing water from Anuma Lake to Latsay Lake, but residents say the water is not good.

“Water is being distributed from Anuma Lake to Latsay Lake, but the water is not suitable to use. The locals are facing a water shortage this year,” said a local woman from Konthaetan Ward in Mrauk-U.

Currently, water is being distributed to urban wards in Mrauk-U at a rate of once every five days, but residents in some neighbourhoods have to buy and use water due to low availability.

“Our neighbourhood does not have enough water. It is completely inconvenient for us to use the water distributed at a rate of once every five days, and the water is not clean,” said Daw Hla Kyawt Yin, a resident of Pyin Zay Ward in Mrauk-U.

“Even if you drink the water that is supplied now after it has settled, it may be uncomfortable and may harm your health. I want the authorities to purify the water and distribute it only after testing it,” said U Kyaw Yin, a local man from Mrauk-U’s Myothit Ward.

Water supplies in Mrauk-U town dried up faster than expected due to lack of rainfall this year, said agricultural activists operating in and around Latsay Lake.

Water is already scarce in early the summer months, and residents are worried that it will become more difficult in the coming days. Some local residents are also re-digging old wells on a self-reliant basis that were used in the past to solve the water problem.

DMG contacted the executive officer of the township municipality, U Oo Shwe Maung, regarding the issue of water distribution in Mrauk-U Township, but he could not be reached.

Despite the fact that Arakan State is rich in water sources, both urban and rural areas face water shortages annually during the hot/dry season.