Thailand government urges citizens to judiciously use water as drought worsens

Prime Minister of Thailand, Prayuth Chan-ocha urged the people to judiciously use the taps and shower less to cope up with the drought-like situation affecting the northern and central Thailand. The water authority of Bangkok last week said that the tap water was becoming saline as seawater pushed up the depleted Chao Phraya river, which is the main source of central Thailand's water. 

The cabinet came up with a decision on Tuesday to spend 3 billion baht ($100 million) on boring wells and pipelines to extract more ground water to manage a drought that is expected to worsen in the next few months, according to a government spokesperson.

READ: Devastating Drought In Zimbabwe Shrinks Victoria Falls To A Trickle

Government appeals people

The dry season in Thailand generally starts in November and lasts until April but this year authorities say it could go on through June. A drought has been declared in 14 provinces in the central, northern and northeastern farming regions of Thailand. 

PM Prayuth urged the people to save water and turn off the taps when not in use. He also asked to use less water, reduce tooth brushing and shower time by one minute. With a low water reservoir level, the government has appealed farmers near the Chao Phraya River basin not to yield off-season rice.

READ: Worst Drought In Afghanistan, Three Million Afghans In 'urgent' Need Of Food: United Nations

The largest waterfall in the world, Victoria Falls, is now running dry and trickling down because of one of the worst-hit droughts of the century. Southern Africa’s biggest tourist attraction, Victoria Falls is located on the Zambezi River and defines the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe.

The water level of the Falls varies throughout the year with the highest in April with 500,000,000 liters of average water flow and at its lowest in October and early November.

READ: Southern Africa’s Deadly Drought Leaving Millions Hungry

READ: Drought Recedes As Rain Waters Parched Areas Of Southeast