In a bid to protect his people from drought, His Majesty the King is graciously offering artificial rainmaking.
"His Majesty is concerned about the drought," Deputy Prime Minister Sanan Kachonprasart said yesterday during his inspection trip to the Bhumibol Dam in Tak.
Currently, there are just 4,187 million cubic metres of water in the Bhumibol Dam or just 31 per cent of its maximum capacity. Only 387 million cubic metres of water are available for use.
According to Sanan, who chairs a committee on water resources, His Majesty has thus graciously given both special rainmaking techniques and budget for the rainmaking operations in the hope of giving help to his people in the drought period. The royally-sponsored rainmaking operations usually take place when government-sponsored operations are unable to ease the problems of people in a timely manner.
Sanan said the royally-sponsored rainmaking operations would be conducted via the Royal Rainmaking and Agricultural Aviation Bureau's units in Chiang Mai, Khon Kaen and Nakhon Sawan.
The bureau's director Warawut Khantiyanont said the three units had been active since June 7.
"People need water for general use and farming," he explained, "We also need water to maintain a proper ecological system".
Meanwhile, Bangkok Governor MR Sukhumbhand Paribatra yesterday admitted Bangkok was unlikely to escape floods this year even though the city administration had bolstered its flood-prevention mechanisms.
"Bangkok is in a low-lying area," he explained.
So far, Sukhumbhand said, his city administration would be ready to quickly dispatch mobile pump stations to flooded areas in the capital.
"That should help," he said.
Last year, flooding hard hit Suan Luang, Bang Na and Prawet districts.
This year, floods are also expected to deluge many parts of Bangkok in October and November.