Latest estimates indicate that nearly one million people have been affected by the drought and the impending rains are the only hope in the drought stricken areas, while people living in areas not so affected by the drought are getting affected too, with the National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWS&DB) announcing that it will have to limit the supply of water to 18 hours per day.
Records from the Disaster Management Centre (DMC) indicate that 872,694 people belonging 231,966 families have been affected due to the drought in almost all the districts in the country. According to the DMC, Polonnaruwa, Anuradhapura, Trincomalee, Batticaloa, Ampara, Kurunegala, Puttalam, Kilinochchi, Vauniya, Mullaitiv, Ratnapura, Kegalle, Moneragala, Matale, Kandy, Gampaha and Kalutara are the most affected districts.
North Central and the Eastern provinces are worst hit by the drought situation.
When contacted by the Sunday Observer, a spokesperson of the Met Department, said that showers are expected in the Eastern, Northern and North Central provinces by this week. The cause of the delay in the monsoon is attributed to the several cyclones that occurred in Taiwan.
“The low humidity caused by this alteration in atmosphere is the main cause,” the spokesperson said. There are also strong indications that the monsoon will arrive around the October 18. The present cloud formations and wind patterns indicate that the rains will arrive soon. Fairly strong winds with gusts up to 50 km/h are expected over the hills. However, the present weather patterns show promise of showers or thundershowers in the Western and Sabaragamuwa provinces and in the Galle, Matara and Jaffna districts. The Met Department yesterday forecast showers or thundershowers will occur at several places in the sea areas off the coast extending from Puttalam to Trincomalee via Galle and Batticaloa.