KRACHEH

also spelled Kratie, town, northeastern Cambodia. Krchh is located on the eastern bank of the Mekong River, at the head of Mekong navigation. It has a port and is linked to Phnom Penh, the national capital, and to neighbouring areas by a national highway. There are slate quarries near the town, and the region is also a source of white and yellow clays. The surrounding region is traversed by the Mekong River and borders on Vietnam (southwest). It traditionally has had a multiethnic population including both lowland and upland Khmer (Khmer Kandal and Khmer Loeu), and Cham. Agricultural products include rice, grown mostly along the Mekong, and rubber, grown in the rich red-earth zones around Snuol and Krchh. Corn (maize), potatoes, various vegetables, bananas, mulberry, cotton, and sugarcane are also grown. Upland areas have a dense forest cover, including such good-quality hardwoods as rosewood and teak, as well as wild date, mahogany, bean and berry, and rubber trees. There are also vast bamboo groves. Regional industry includes the small-scale manufacture of agricultural machinery. Pop. (1987 est.) 14,000.