Bangkok, Jumada II 23, 1437, Apr 1, 2016, SPA -- Thailand's government Friday declared 23 of its 76 provinces as disaster zones due to an ongoing drought, the worst to hit the country in over two decades, dpa reported. Over 3,727 villages are affected by the drought and are in need of government relief operations, according to the Department of Disaster Mitigation and Prevention. The number of villages affected represents a massive increase from the around 2,500 such villages reported in mid-March. --SPA 15:42 LOCAL TIME 12:42 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w