Overview
- The government said on Thursday it has arranged water deliveries to nearly 72,000 people in seven districts and set up a ministerial panel to manage the response.
- Authorities are supplying about 75 litres of water per family every two to three days and have allocated Rs.4.8 billion (about $14 million) from the budget for distribution.
- Forecasters now expect heavy rains from late September through December followed by a very severe drought from January to April 2027, and officials say the El Niño peak may come sooner than first predicted.
- Hundreds of small irrigation tanks are down to roughly 10 percent capacity while larger reservoirs sit near 56 percent, raising risks to rice planting, other crops and hydroelectric output.
- Wildlife sites including Yala National Park are receiving water with solar pumps in use, and experts warn the event is being amplified by unusually warm ocean temperatures linked to human-driven climate change which heightens the chance of extreme weather.