T

housands of people in the neighboring regencies of Banyumas, Cilacap and Purbalingga in Central Java are facing a clean water crisis and harvest failure due to the drought over the past three months.

In Banyumas, the drought has affected the five districts of South Purwokerto, Patiraja, Sumpiuh, Gumelar and Somagede, and triggered a water crisis.

Welfare, Health and Community Empowerment division head at the Banyumas regency administration Wahyu said his office had provided clean water to the five districts.

"We are helping those who face difficulties in getting clean water. We have prioritized supplying water to the worst-hit area of Nusadadi village in Sumpiuh district on Wednesday," Wahyu said Thursday.

"We will prioritize clean water aid to another three districts. Based on reports, at least 60 villages in 15 districts are prone to water crisis."

The local administration supplies clean water by using 2,000-liter capacity tanker trucks to the villages daily.

The peak of the drought is expected to take place from August to October, when demands for clean water from residents rise drastically.

Hundreds of hectares of farmland in Cilacap regency are facing the risk of harvest failure due to the extended drought.

More than 1,000 ha of rice fields in a number of districts, such as Cimanggu and Majenang in West Cilacap are currently facing crop failure due to water shortage as a number of rivers have dried up.

In Purbalingga regency, 11.64 percent of the total rice harvest is threatened with harvest failure.

Purbalingga Agriculture and Plantation agency head Lily Purwati told the media that the harvest failure would be caused by pest attacks as well as drought.

Purbalingga Regent Triyono Budi Sasongko promised to help farmers affected by the water crisis.

"We will provide funds to build new irrigation channels for farmland that currently depends on rain."

Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of people in Kuningan and Cirebon regencies in West Java are face a lack of clean water following the decreasing number of springs in the Mount Ciremai mountain area.

Deforestation, growing at an alarming rate, has contributed to the loss of springs. The extended drought and impact of El Nino, could further aggravate the situation.