Dry dams worry rice farmers

Dry dams worry rice farmers

SRAGEN, Central Java: Six dams in Sragen regency have reportedly dried up over the past few weeks, worrying rice farmers who are reliant on the water sources.

Head of the regency's Public Works Office Darmawan Minto Basuki said on Monday that the six dams -- Botok, Ketro, Gebyar, Blimbing, Brambang, Kembangan and Ngepung -- supplied water for 150 hectares of rice fields.

Bowo, a farmer in Brambang, Kedawung district, said the bigger Gajah Mungkur dam in Wonogiri had also dried up.

Wells, he said, were another water source but there was a problem in obtaining kerosene for the water pump. "For people in the middle- to upper-income bracket, the kerosene scarcity is not a problem, but for us villagers it really matters," Bowo said. -- Antara