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Kanbalu (also spelt Kantbalu[1]) is a town in Shwebo District, Sagaing Division, in Myanmar. Located in the north-western part of the county, the town is the administrative seat for Kanbalu Township. Kanbalu is on the main Burmese north-south railroad between Sagaing and Myitkyina.[1] As of 2014, it had a population of 25,022[2]
Its railyards were bombed by the Allies during World War II.[3] During the Myanmar Civil War, it was attacked by resistance forces, who torched the local police station.[4]
Following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, an ultranationalist monk U Wasawa established a Pyusawhti militia in Hmaw Taw village to launch offensives against the region's People's Defense Force. Several villages in Kantbalu have been turned into Pyusawhti bases, with U Warthawa reportedly forcing locals to join the militias. Initially armed with homemade weapons, around 900 Pyusawhti members in Kantbalu have since been supplied with modern BA-63 (G-3) rifles, MA-1 assault rifles, and carbines. His influence has spread to Kanbalu township, Taze, and Kyunhla—key towns known for their military and Union Solidarity and Development Party support.[5]
The military-run Myanmar Economic Corporation operates two factories, manufacturing sugar and menthol, in Kantbalu.[6] The sugar factory is a joint venture with Thai-owned Sutech Engineering.[7] Kanbalu is also home to the 30 megawatts (40,000 hp) Thaphanseik hydropower plant on the Mu River, a $20-million project financed by the China Import and Export Bank.[8]
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