DR MYINT THEIN SCIENTIST

AS everybody knows, this year’s monsoon brought more rain than average. The Myanmar Academy of Agricultural, Forestry and Livestock and Fishery Sciences, of which I am vice president, assisted the farm sector in preparing for monsoon season after the Department of Meteorology and Hydrology forecast heavy rain. For farmers with fields near waterways that were affected by flooding we helped in two ways. First, if the planting season was not over, we encouraged them to plant a second crop. If the planting season was over, we suggested alternative crops. The Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation helped farmers prepare for the wetter weather. It issued weather alerts and advised farmers to make the necessary preparations by making announcements in newspapers and on radio and television. Because of the critical role which the weather plays in agriculture, most farmers throughout the country listen to the daily forecasts from the Department of Meteorology and Hydrology. Being well-prepared helped the farmers to deal with the situation more effectively. For example, many established their nursery plots on higher ground than usual to ensure they were not damaged. But farmers who grow high-stem paddy varieties have not had to worry about high water levels.

DAW KHAING THAZIN HAN Sales EXECUTIVE

FOR a commuter such as myself the wetter than average weather during the monsoon season has been an inconvenience. It’s irritating when other bus passengers allow their wet umbrellas to drip on me or when they step on my feet with their muddy slippers. When that happens I’m not in a good frame of mind when I reach the office. If I have been drenched by a downpour on my way to work the air conditioning there leaves me too cold. The frequent rain during the monsoon has meant that I have had to be more careful about my health. It has also disrupted my routine at home because clothes take longer to dry. It is a big problem for a young woman living in a hostel. Public servants are fortunate to have transport to and from work but I think they also have to deal with the problem of clothes taking a long time to dry. Despite the inconveniences of the rainy season I enjoy its cooler weather. On rainy weekend days I enjoy the luxury of relaxing on my bed and reading magazines. It helps to relieve the stresses of the previous week. I’ve been distracted this monsoon by concerns about my parents, who are paddy farmers in Ayeyarwaddy Division. Levels in the Ayeyarwaddy River have been high this year and I worry what affect they will have on the land farmed by my parents and relatives.

U TUN LWIN METEOROLOGIST

AS deputy director-general of the Department of Meteorology and Hydrology I was interested in the unusual weather patterns at the start of the monsoon. Rain began falling in northern Myanmar during the cool season. And during the pre-monsoon period strong winds blew from the north and affected middle and lower Myanmar. We can say that the monsoon arrived twice this year and on both occasions a typhoon was involved. The first typhoon arrived in May and its effects were mainly felt in Rakhine State. Rainfall throughout the country this monsoon was higher than average. The upper reaches of the Ayeyarwaddy River were already at high levels when the monsoon arrived because of rain during February. So when the monsoon arrived there were floods. One of the advantages of floods is that they deposit a layer of silt on farmland which helps to replenish the fertility of the soil. Weather forecasts helped to ensure that precautionary measures, such as the building of embankments, could be taken in time to minimise the effects of high water levels. It highlights the importance of weather forecasting in making the preparations necessary to avert natural disasters. The forecasts issued by the Department of Meteorology and Hydrology this monsoon were accurate.