Irrigation dept bets on big rice harvest this year

Deputy Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives Minister Prapat Pothasuthon said at a meeting, the Rice Policy and Management Committee reckoned that between November 2019 and April 2020, the Chao Phraya River basin would have 5.5 billion cubic metres of water, which would cover 59 per cent of the country’s water supply.
The committee then resolved to boost rice crops over the 2020-2021 period by allocating 59.88 million rai to the grain – 27.5 million rai for jasmine rice, 2.084 million rai for Pathum Thani rice, 13.48 rai for normal rice, 16.25 million rai for sticky rice and 559,000 rai for specific types of rice. All this farmland is expected to produce up to 24.65 million tonnes.
Thongplew Kongjan, director general of the irrigation department, said the Meteorological Department reckons there will be 5 per cent lower than average rain this year, compared to 11 per cent less last year.
Over the past four years, rain in Thailand has been 5 to 10 per cent less than average due to global warming, and this has become a new normal for the rainy season.
Two storms are expected to hit the country between August and October, but rain may be absent between June and July, the Meteorological Department said.
RID is working on all structures under its management and is getting rid of obstacles in water streams to ensure water preservation at full capacity.