Thai PM reviews water discharges from dams

BANGKOK, February 28 (TNA) - Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has agreed to review water discharges from dams to follow recent advice of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej. Yingluck told reporters after the Cabinet's weekly meeting Tuesday that she has instructed the Royal Irrigation Department to continually and carefully discharge water from dams to prevent floods and drought simultaneously and concerned authorities to review suitable discharges on a monthly basis with water reserves at dams to apppropriately maintain at 45-60 per cent of their full capacities. The prime minister said that she has ordered relevant agencies to accelerate the construction and the development of disaster prevention-related infrastructure and the Comptroller General’s Department to streamline budget disbursement for the task with ensured transparency. The prime minister acknowledged that water drainage will mainly depend on dams, rivers and canals and water will be retained mainly in farmlands, and that designated water retention areas will rarely cover roads, saying that water retention areas will be sufficiently prepared before the upcoming rainy season, and that she, herself, will inspect dredging in downstream areas next week. (TNA)