Fak Tha district in Uttaradit has become a drought zone. And with the shortage of water likely to spread to other areas, officials in the upper Central region have warned farmers to be cautious about off-season crops.
Narong Inso, the disaster-prevention-and-mitigation chief in Uttaradit, said yesterday that the Sirikit Dam currently had just 2,419 million cubic metres of water for distribution.
The dam, also in Uttaradit, is releasing about 20 million cubic metres of water per day, while its daily water intake is 1 million or 2 million cubic metres only.
"This means there will be adequate water for just 150,000 rai of paddy fields in the province," he said. "So farmers must beware of a possible water-shortage crisis."
In Phitsanulok, Naresuan Dam Project water-distribution chief Somchai Trakoonsawang warned farmers against an off-season rice crop.
"There's a risk that there won't be enough water for your paddy fields," he said.