Every July, Sarpang Dzongkhag receives maximum rainfall and swollen rivers leave most of the places in the dzongkhag inaccessible. But this year, it is a different story.
The dzongkhag records the lowest rainfall for the month of June and July in five years.
The in-charge of the flood warning section at Serzhong, GB Gurung, visits the base of the bridge every hour to check the water level of the Mao River. He said the water level has not increased much. It is only 2.9 metres.
Monsoon usually starts by May, peaks in July and then drops from August and ends by October. But this year, Sarpang Dzongkhag has received very minimal rain in the month of July.
In fact it is said to be the lowest in five years according to records maintained by the flood warning section.
It is also much lower than the rainfall received in the month of June in the previous years.
In July last year, Sarpang experienced 1,664.7 mm of rainfall and in the same month in 2010, it received 1,794.4 mm. However, this year, it received only 928.7 mm.
Meanwhile, the low rainfall has affected farmers the most with paddy cultivation going on.
While some have managed to plant the paddy saplings with the help of one or the other source of water, there are others who depend completely on rain water.