The institute director, Som Promros, said the services included hair testing to find possible records of drug use, DNA paternity tests and document analysis.

The free service would be provided starting from June 1 and was aimed at helping people have equal access to forensic and justice systems free of charge, he said.

Som said the one-month free service would focus on low-income people who had problems.

However, from July 1, the institute will collect fees for the services at the same rates as other state hospitals such as Siriraj and Ramathibodi, Som said. The fees will be lower than those charged by private institutions.

The fees will be Bt5,000 for hair analysis to determine drug use; Bt5,000-6,000 for DNA paternity testing; and Bt1,000 to Bt50,000 for document analysis, depending on the difficulty of the case as there are only a small number of experts in the field.

Som said the document analysis service would include checking signatures, traces of erasures or changes on documents, and examination of documents or banknotes to check their veracity.

Som said low-income people who wished to receive services after July 1 should provide the institute with registration from the Interior Ministry about their economic condition.

Because the process is time-consuming, the institute will accept 50 applications for DNA testing, 20 for hair analysis for drug use and 10 for document analysis per month. Those who want to make use of the service are required to call Hotline 1111 or 02-1423620 and 062-3239000.