Authorities have initiated a special programme to extract groundwater in drought-affected districts as drinking water shortages intensify across the dry zone, with over 84,500 people impacted by severe dry weather conditions.

A new programme aimed at addressing acute drinking water shortages in Sri Lanka's dry zone commenced operations in Monaragala district, with plans to expand to Batticaloa and other affected areas. The initiative focuses on groundwater extraction as a sustainable solution to water scarcity affecting multiple regions across the country.

According to the Disaster Management Centre, more than 84,500 people across seven districts face water shortages due to prevailing dry weather conditions worsened by El Niño effects. The worst-affected areas include divisions within Monaragala, Badulla, Polonnaruwa, Hambantota, Ratnapura, Batticaloa and Ampara. In Monaragala alone, approximately 15,000 families spread across 75 Grama Niladhari divisions in eight Divisional Secretariat divisions require immediate water assistance, with Monaragala, Siyambalanduwa and Madagama divisions facing the most critical situations.

Current relief efforts involve distributing drinking water through 39 water bowsers to over 75,000 affected people across the seven districts. The groundwater extraction programme began in Rattapitiya village within Monaragala's Magandanamulla Grama Niladhari Division. The project includes rehabilitation of 267 existing tube wells alongside construction of 100 new large-scale water extraction tube wells to provide longer-term water security for affected communities.