The word was out among Dala Township residents that rice was being sold for below market prices on Dala-Tontay Road in southern Yangon district.

The residents lined up under the hot sun, waited their turn and handed over 2500 kyats or about US$1.20, for one pyi of rice.

The clear plastic bags weigh about 2.5 kilograms (5.5 lbs). The rice merchants said on Friday that they could only sell one pyi per person that day.

But the residents still lined up, attracted by the lower price.

A mother of 10 children said she sends her children to wait to buy the cheap rice when they are on a school holiday. But others lined up on their own and waited until it was their turn at the back of the parked truck.

The market price of one pyi of low quality rice usually costs between 3500 and 4000 kyats (US$1.67 to US$1.91). But the Myanmar Rice Federation initiative allows people to buy at a discount.

Source: Radio Free Asia