60,000-acre monsoon paddy more to be planted in Thaphanseik dam-irrigated area this year

A total of 60,000 acres of monsoon paddy more than last year will be planted this year within the Thaphanseik Dam- irrigated area, according to the Head of the Shwebo District Department of Agriculture, Sagaing Region.
Last year, more than 420,000 acres of monsoon paddy were planned to be planted in the irrigated area of the dam and, this year, it is planned to cultivate more than 480,000 acres of monsoon paddy depending on the remaining water of the dam.
“Last year, the Thaphanseik Dam had a capacity of 390,000 acre-feet and it covered 420,000 acres of monsoon paddy were cultivated in the irrigated area, and this year, since the dam has 850,000 acre-feet, 480,000 acres of paddy were planned to be planted, which is more than 60,000 acres than last year,” said Head of the Shwebo District Department of Agriculture U Tin Maung Swe.
If it rains more this year and the inflow of water into the dam increases, the dam will supply more paddy fields than the planned, he added.
In the Thaphanseik Dam irrigated area, 67,110 acres will be planted in the Kindat canal, 95,000 acres in the Kintat right canal, 202,890 acres in Shwebo canal and 115,000 acres in YeU canal, a total of 480,000 acres will be planted this year. The water supply for planting and ploughing will be distributed starting from 1 July 2021, according to the Sagaing Region Agriculture Department.
The plan to cultivate 480,000 acres of monsoon paddy in the Thaphanseik Dam irrigated area was approved by the coordination meeting of the district/township agriculture departments on 8 June 2021. —Lu Lay/GNLM