"“Drugs worth more than US$250m seized across the country were destroyed, and more than half of it was from Shan State as we burnt drugs worth over US$150m. This is because Shan State is a hub for illegal drug production,” said Shan State Police Brigadier General Zaw Khin Aung. He said Shan State contributed the largest numbers to the seizures and arrests across the country in terms of drug users, drugs, and raw materials for drug production because there are restricted areas in the state that offer an opportunity for criminals to carry out their illicit trade. The state’s police said that although poppy cultivation has declined compared to previous years, the seized amount of drugs has increased. While some 5489 hectares of poppy fields were destroyed in 2015, the number has been steadily declining over the past three years. In 2016, 3380ha were destroyed, 2411ha in 2017, and 2144ha last year. According to a report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, there were about 41000ha of poppy fields in Myanmar in 2017 and about 37300ha in 2018. The production rate of opium was 550 tonnes in 2017 and 520 tonnes in 2018..."