KANGAR: The water level at Timah Tasoh dam in Beseri, which stands at 38.5 per cent, will last for only three more months if the dry spell in Perlis continues, said the state Irrigation and Drainage Department (DID).
It recorded a water level reading of 26.90m dam yesterday, placing it at the warning level.
State Agriculture, Plantation, and Food Industry Committee chairman Razali Saad today said the state government was aware of the concerns faced by 1,221 farmers whose padi was damaged this season.
"This issue mainly affects farmers outside the Muda Agriculture Development Authority (Mada) area, which covers Titi Tinggi, Beseri, Paya, and Bintong.
"The inability to supply water from the dam to these areas is due to the drop in the dam's water level, caused by the dry spell.
"The dam can hold up to 40 million cubic meters of water."
He said of this amount, only 33.3 million cubic meters could be used for domestic purposes, averaging 75,000 cubic meters per day.
"This is followed by 55 million cubic meters per year for irrigating 3,075ha of farmland, while the remainder is for storage.
"This dam also functions as a flood- control mechanism during the rainy season.
"However, due to the lack of rain and dry weather in recent weeks, this function is not a priority now."
He said according to weather forecast, rain was expected to become more frequent during the transition from the southwest monsoon to the northeast monsoon between this month and September.
"So the water level at the dam is expected to return to normal only if rain increases during this period.
"But if the dry weather continues, we (the state government) will take action to address the situation.
"A request for cloud seeding has been submitted to the National Disaster Management Agency, and we are awaiting approval and coordination from the authorities."
Razali said the state government would conduct a special prayer for rain at the dam.
Also, the state Agriculture Department and the Farmers Organisation Authority would give aid from the Disaster Relief Fund to farmers, he added.