Prevailing heat won't affect cultivation: Officials

High temperature and hot winds adding to general discomfort

There has been little or no overall increase in rainfall between February and March, the Meteorology Department's Director of Weather Forecasting, AR War na so oriya said.

Ms Warnasooriya said in addition to high temperature readings, the heat carried by the wind is adding to the general discomfort experienced by the public. Limited cloud cover meant that ground heat was more intense too.

She said the prevailing heat should subside by mid or late May.

However, she said, cultivation would not suffer adverse effects as the rainfall received in October and November last year was sufficient to see through this hot spell.

“This will be a dry year, we cannot guarantee high levels of rain,” the Irrigation Department's Director General Seenithamby Mohanarajah said.

He said, except for the Senanayake Samudraya that has only 39% of its full capacity, overall, most of the reservoirs were showing 70%. Reservoirs in Batticaloa and Polonnaruwa were at 90% of their capacities.

“Currently we have no risk, we can give farmers water from the reservoirs,” he said.

Meanwhile, on Friday, the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) successfully carried out the first ever cloud seeding project to create artificial rain over the cat chment area of the Maussakelle reservoir.

An Air Force Y-12 aircraft flew over the reservoir spraying cloud seeding chemicals, followed by over 45 minutes of rains over the reservoir.

Undeterred by the blazing sun this security guard does his duty with the help of an umbrella. Pix by S. Siriwardene

Water tanks have been placed in Kalutara to tackle the problem of a scarecity of drinking water