BANGKOK, 13 July 2015 – The government has completed more than 60% of the urgent maintenance and drilling of 880 groundwater wells nationwide. 547 wells have already been in use with nearly 182,000 cubic meters of water are pumped up everyday for agricultural purposes, according to Director-General of the Groundwater Resources Department Praneet Roibang.
Out of the wells already in use, 511 are located in fifteen drought-hit provinces in Chao Phraya River Basin in the Central and the lower North of Thailand. They have helped revive around 70% of the rice plantations threatened by dry spell. Another forty one wells are under drilling process for the same purpose – the survival of the agricultural sector.
492 of the wells were drilled by the Groundwater Resources Department, and the rest by the Armed Forces Development Command, Royal Thai Armed Forces.
Praneet said the maintenance and drilling process is expected to be completed by 20 July. By that time, water supply for agriculture would increase to 350,000 cubic meters per day, helping restore 100,000-130,000 rai of farmland.
