#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40017876

Street arts in Bangkok, Ang Thong, Nakhon Sawan, Udon Thani and Songkhla provinces are waiting for domestic and foreign travellers to take pictures and visit attractions in each of the areas.

The street arts are part of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT)’s project to stimulate tourism in five areas, namely Bangkok’s Talat Noi community, San Chao Rong Thong Market in Ang Thong province, Yuan Island in Nakhon Sawan province, Nong Prajak Public Park in Udon Thani province and Hat Yai district in Songkhla province.

“This project aims to enable local government agencies, business operators, networks and artists to enhance potential of communities to become more creative,” said Apichai Chatchalermkit, TAT deputy governor for Tourism Products and Business.

Photo credit: Tourism Authority of Thailand

He said that street arts feature two TAT mascots named “Sukjai” and “Punsuk” visiting attractions or doing activities in each area.

Photo credit: Tourism Authority of Thailand

He added that a variety of activities are also available for tourists until July 30, such as activities to scan QR Code at street arts for special priveleges from participating stores.

For more information, visit www.travelwithsukjaipunsuk.com.

Published : July 18, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40017875

A rescue mission was launched in Nakhon Ratchasima on Sunday after a reservoir burst its banks, submerging two communities under more than 1 metre of floodwater.

Forty households were evacuated in Phimai district’s Ban Nikhom Pattana (Moo 10) and Ban Nikhom Samakkhi (Moo 11) after the Nong Kradon reservoir overflowed following heaving rain.

The resulting flash flood rose to over 1 metre high, prompting officials to evacuate women and children from about 40 households.

The flood victims have been moved to temporary shelters on higher ground.

The Phimai district office is coordinating with Tambon Rangka Yai Municipality officials to assess the damage to houses so that authorities can provide help and compensation.

Published : July 18, 2022

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40017873

The Bangkok outdoor film festival and “Music in the Park” events did not spark any Covid-19 clusters, the governor said on Monday.

Governor Chadchart Sittipunt spoke to the press after attending a Public Health Ministry, Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) meeting to discuss cancelling or cutting down on public events to prevent possible clusters.

The governor said the number of Covid-19 patients in Bangkok is stable, while the number of those testing positive via ATK tests has risen only slightly.

He added that the situation is not worrisome because most patients had been infected either at home or at work.

Chadchart also urged Bangkokians not to worry about infection clusters being sparked and said he will discuss the use of more prevention measures with the Public Health Ministry.

He added that BMA will hasten the administration of vaccinations and will extend walk-in vaccination services offered at the Bangkok Youth Centre in Din Daeng district. There will also be more proactive testing and administration of booster doses in communities.

Dr Wantanee Wattana, BMA’s deputy permanent secretary, also confirmed that the “Krung Thep Klang Plang” and “Music in the Park” events had not sparked any infection clusters.

She said the BMA has followed the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration’s guidelines on easing prevention measures to stimulate the economy while preventing the spread of Covid-19 at the same time.

Published : July 18, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40017868

The Cabinet on Monday agreed to earmark close to 4 billion baht for the purchase of Favipiravir and rapid antigen test kits (ATK) to prepare for a new Covid-19 wave.

The purchases were proposed by the National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC), and the 3.995 billion baht needed for it will be taken from the 500 billion baht loaned to the Public Health Ministry.

NESDC reasoned that the Public Health Ministry needed the medication and test kits to cope with the Covid situation, which is expected to worsen due to the highly infectious BA.4/5 subvariants of Omicron.

Meanwhile, government spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said the prime minister urged the Cabinet to use the rest of the loan wisely and said all state agencies should jointly work towards preventing new Covid-19 clusters.

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has also called on all agencies to strictly enforce Covid-Free Setting, especially when big events are held.

He has also urged all government agencies to be ready in case there is a new surge of infections.

The Cabinet moved its weekly meeting from Tuesday to Monday this week because the ministers will have to monitor the no-confidence debate that kicks off on Tuesday and continues to Friday.

The Public Health Ministry is scheduled to meet the Bangkok governor to discuss what can be done to prevent Covid clusters in the capital.

On Monday, Thailand recorded 1,813 new Covid cases and 17 more fatalities over 24 hours. These numbers do not include those who tested positive with ATK tests and are not seeking treatment.

Published : July 18, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40017866

Hundreds of lottery vendors marched to Government House to call for the removal of the Government Lottery Office (GLO) director and board and demand lottery quotas.

The protesters started gathering on Phitsanulok Road in front of the Rajamangala University of Technology Phra Nakhon at 10am and then marched to Government House to submit their demands.

The group said they were small lottery vendors from around the country. They did not disclose their numbers. On Saturday evening, the main group of protesters, who are lottery vendors from Loei province, said some 500 of them had travelled in 14 chartered buses to camp outside the university on Sunday evening to join the demonstration on Monday morning.

The protesters started their activities at 8am by organising their own “registration of real lottery vendors” with the hope of submitting their names to the GLO to seek lottery quotas.

Their leader, Jirasak Noikam, who said he was a tentative general election candidate for the ruling Palang Pracharath Party in Loei, said the group wanted Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha to sack the GLO director and board of directors and to provide a fair share of lottery quotas to small vendors.

The group said they were also opposed to the GLO’s plan to launch new products of online three-digit and six-digit lotteries as they fear the popular digital version of lottery tickets would affect small vendors because the current vendors have not yet received quotas of the digital tickets.

Police were deployed to keep security in front of Government House and the Chamai Maruchet Bridge was closed to traffic.

The protesters also sent their representatives to file a complaint with the Central Investigation Bureau in Chatuchak district at 9.15am.

In the complaint, they alleged that the GLO had unfairly revoked the quotas of 50,000 small lottery vendors and they called on the CIB to investigate alleged irregularities in the sale of digital lottery and the plan to issue three-digit and six-digit online lotteries.

They said they had to seek the CIB’s help because the Central Administrative Court had rejected their lawsuit against the GLO for alleged unfair revocation of the quotas of the 50,000 vendors.

The GLO said the 50,000 vendors’ quotas were cancelled because their tickets were found to be sold on the online platforms of some major investors at inflated prices.

The complaint claimed that the 50,000 vendors sold their tickets at 80 baht each to general people and they did not know why the tickets ended up being resold on online platforms.

The digital system was launched to combat overpricing that has plagued the government lottery for years. The Paotang digital lottery tickets are sold at the original price of 80 baht. They have proved so popular with the public that vendors are complaining they no longer have customers for their paper tickets.

Published : July 18, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40017860

The Department of Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicine and other related agencies launched a campaign to boost awareness of the proper usage of cannabis.

The campaign was launched at Khao San and Silom roads on Sunday.

Yongyot Thammawut, the department’s director general, said the campaign aims to share knowledge about the Public Health Ministry’s notification on controlled drugs, which was released to prevent people from misusing cannabis now that it has been legalised.

He said the notification focuses on three aspects:

• Preventing people aged below 20, pregnant women and nursing mothers from consuming cannabis, hemp or extracts.

• Allowing practitioners of traditional medicine to lawfully use knowledge related to cannabis.

• Enabling patients to use cannabis properly and safely.

“Cannabis has many beneficial properties but should not be used improperly,” he said.

He added that e-books on traditional medicine, in the Thai language, can be downloaded via the department’s website at: https://ockt.dtam.moph.go.th/

Cannabis was removed from Thailand’s list of narcotics on June 9, allowing people to grow the herb for medicinal and commercial purposes.

Published : July 18, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40017851

Thai Tourist Police won a feather in their cap when they tracked down the luggage of two Saudi Arabian tourists in the early hours of Sunday.

At around 1.40am on Sunday, the two women called the police to say they had left their luggage in the taxi from Suvarnabhumi Airport to their hotel.

The police took a while to track down the taxi and eventually managed to get in touch with the cabbie, and had him return the luggage.

One of the tourists, Algarz Rehub Saleh A, immediately gave a feedback thanking the police for their efforts.

“No words can describe how thankful we are. Love. Bangkok is very lucky to have such an incredible and friendly team. We will visit again because of them, they are the BEST,” the post read.

Pol Maj-General Apichart Suriboonya, Tourist Police deputy chief and spokesman, said the feedback helped boost officers’ morale and further motivated them to work towards making Thailand the world’s best destination.

He also thanked the taxi driver for cooperating and called on all Thais to be good hosts and warmly welcome foreign visitors.

“We believe this incident will impress Saudi Arabian tourists and boost their confidence in travelling to Thailand,” he said.

Published : July 18, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40017849

The Public Health Ministry reported on Monday (July 18) that over the past 24 hours, 1,814 Covid-19 patients have been admitted to hospitals.

The death toll has risen by 17, while 2,361 patients have recovered and discharged from hospitals. 

The number of cumulative cases in the country since January 1, 2022, stands at 2,337,408.

The country’s total caseload from Covid-19 stands at 4,560,843 – 4,507,095 of whom have recovered, 22,735 are still in hospitals and 31,013 have died.

Separately, another 1,319 people were given their first Covid-19 shot in the last 24 hours, 2,085 their second shot and 24,578 a booster, bringing the total number of Covid-19 vaccine doses administered nationwide to 140,743,315.

According to Worldometer, confirmed cases globally had risen to 567.84 million on Monday, 538.95 million of whom have recovered, 22.5 million are active cases (39,062 in severe condition) and 6.39 million have died (up by 628).

Thailand ranks 27th in the global list of most cases, which is topped by the US with 91.28 million, followed by India with 43.77 million, Brazil with 33.3 million, France with 33.02 million and Germany with 29.69 million.

Published : July 18, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40017842

Police have arrested a man accused of stealing seats used by Manchester United and Liverpool reserve players during last Tuesday’s match at Rajamangala Stadium in Bangkok.

The arrest came after CCTV cameras at the stadium spotted a group of people carrying away four of the dugout chairs and loading them on to a white truck at 6am on Saturday.

Two of the stolen chairs were for Manchester United reserve players, while the other two were for Liverpool reserve players.

The suspects managed to escape after security guards at the stadium assumed they had been sent by the match organiser to collect the chairs.

Police have also seized the suspect’s truck, Metropolitan Police Division 4 chief Pornchai Kajonklin said on Sunday. There was no news on whether the stolen chairs had been retrieved.

Vinij Lertratanachai, CEO of match organiser Fresh Air Festival, confirmed the chairs had been made exclusively for the pre-season clash between the two Premier League giants.

He said the chairs had been kept at the stadium for a media event on Friday evening.

Manchester United got their pre-season off to a flying start with a 4-0 rout of arch-rivals Liverpool in Bangkok, handing new manager Erik ten Hag a big boost in his first match in charge.

Published : July 17, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40017841

More than 5 million digital lottery tickets were snapped by Paotang users in the first seven hours after being put on sale on Sunday morning.

Lawan Saengsanit, chairman of the Government Lottery Office (GLO)’s board of directors, said 7,167,500 digital lottery tickets for the August 1 draw had been put on sale at 6am on Sunday and 5,143,748 had been bought up by 1pm. The tickets were bought by 737,634 users of Krung Thai Bank’s Paotang app.

This is the fourth lot of digital lottery tickets sold by the GLO at 80 baht each, and the lot has been increased from 5.15 million to 7.17 million in response to surging demand.

Lawan said the GLO will gradually increase the number of lottery tickets by one or two million per draw.

He said this gradual increase will give small vendors time to adjust, adding that the GLO will try to strike a balance between the two sorts of tickets to help small-time vendors survive.

He also dismissed rumours that the digital lottery tickets were being snapped up by a handful of people to resell at their websites. It has been alleged that these rumours were started by angry vendors unable to sell their tickets due to the popularity of the digital version.

Lawan said data shows that the 5.1 million digital tickets for the previous draw had been bought by some 900,000 individuals, which means each person bought only five or six tickets. He said there was no indication that any one person bought an unusually high number of tickets.

He also said that the GLO did not find any large-scale vendors reselling digital tickets, but did catch and take action against some small vendors who were reselling them.

Meanwhile, GLO director Noon Sansanakhom on Sunday warned people against buying previously bought digital lottery tickets. He explained that the Paotang app records details of who has bought the ticket and since digital tickets cannot legally be resold, the initial buyer will be the winner.

“If you buy tickets from someone else, you will have problems in claiming the winnings,” he said.

Published : July 17, 2022

By : THE NATION