#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

NHSO scraps contracts of 108 more private clinics, hospitals for alleged overbilling

NationalSep 30. 2020

By THE NATION

The National Health Security Office (NHSO) announced on Tuesday that the service contracts of 108 clinics under the Chum Chon Ob Oon (community warmth) project and some private hospitals had been scrapped with effect from October 1 for alleged fraudulent claims for treatment of patients under the government’s golden card scheme, NHSO secretary-general, Dr Sakchai Kanjanawattana, said.

This is the third time this year that the NHSO has revoked contracts with private clinics and hospitals for the same reason. In July, 18 establishments were affected. On September 18, another 64 establishments were removed. Contracts of 190 private clinics and hospitals have been terminated so far.

It is estimated that around 2 million patients would be affected by the annulment as they would no longer be able to use their golden card for treatment at these clinics and hospitals. Of these, 400,000-500,000 are patients who require continuous treatment. The NHSO also estimated the damage from alleged overbilling by these establishments at Bt198 million.

The names of clinics and hospitals whose contracts were scrapped can be found at www.nhso.go.th. Affected patients can also search for available alternative healthcare institutes under the NHSO at this website to resume treatment.

Related Story: NHSO scraps contracts with 64 private clinics, hospitals in Bangkok for alleged overbilling

#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

Isolated heavy rain forecast for upper Thailand

NationalSep 30. 2020

By THE NATION

Showers will continue to soak most of the country with isolated heavy rain over the North, the Northeast, the Central and the East, the Thailand Meteorological Department forecast on Wednesday.

The monsoon trough lies across the lower North, the upper Central and the Northeast while the moderate southwest monsoon prevails across the Andaman Sea, Thailand and the Gulf, the department said.

People in risky areas should beware of severe conditions. All ships in the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand should proceed with caution and keep off thundershowers, the department cautioned.

The weather forecast for the next 24 hours:

North: Mostly cloudy with thundershowers in 60 per cent of the areas and isolated heavy rain; minimum temperature 24-25 degrees Celsius and maximum 32-34°C.

Northeast: Mostly cloudy with thundershowers in 60 per cent of the areas and isolated heavy rain; minimum temperature 24-26°C and highs of 30-33°C.

Central: Mostly cloudy with thundershowers in 60 per cent of the areas and isolated heavy rain; minimum temperature 23-25°C, maximum 31-33°C.

East: Mostly cloudy with thundershowers in 60 per cent of the areas and isolated heavy rain; minimum temperature 23-27°C, maximum 29-33°C; waves 1-2 metres high and over two metres during thundershowers.

South (east coast): Mostly cloudy with thundershowers in 60 per cent of the areas; minimum temperature 23-25°C, maximum 32-35°C; waves 1-2 metres high and over two metres during thundershowers.

South (west coast): Mostly cloudy with thundershowers in 60 per cent of the areas; minimum temperature 22-24°C, maximum 29-33°C; waves two metres high and over two metres during thundershowers.

Bangkok and surrounding areas: Mostly cloudy with thundershowers in 60 per cent of the areas; minimum temperature 25-26°C, maximum 32-34°C.

#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

Pageant contestant denies any wrongdoing amid suspicions of conflict of interest

NationalSep 30. 2020

By The Nation

Miss Universe Thailand (MUT) contender Chayathanus “Cheraim” Saradatta, who is in the eye of a storm over alleged conflict of interest, told a media conference on Tuesday that she would not back out of the beauty pageant after entering the next stage with 29 other contestants.

She said she would leave the decision on whether she should continue to the contest organisers.

There was a question mark over her continuance in the contest after it was discovered that a phone number on Chayathanus’ Instagram account was that of her manager Sithichai Reoviroj who is also working for the pageant organisers.

Cheraim claimed that she did not have a personal manager initially but she used to seek advice from Sithichai for a health problem.

She said the reason she chose Sittichai to manage her career was because she used to contact him in the past and sometimes he also gave her jobs.

Asked about suspicions that Sittichai may have told her about the questions she would be asked during the contest to help her prepare, Cheraim said that she was not given any advance information and she had no advantage over the other contestants.

She emphasised that she did not want to give up her legitimate right to take part in the contest and she would let the pageant organisers decide on her fate. She said she hadn’t decided yet if she would register for next year’s contest.

Sittichai revealed that he had joined the MUT organisers as a freelancer. He attended staff meetings three times but did not pass on any information to Cheraim. He said he only arranged her schedule and found jobs for her. However, he admitted that he had not told the organisers about his involvement with a contestant.

#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

Education minister orders close inspection of complaints against controversial school

NationalSep 30. 2020Nataphol Teepsuwan 

By THE NATION

The Ministry of Education has told the Office of the Private Education Commission (OPEC) to monitor complaints against the branches of Sarasas Witaed School nationwide.Minister of Education Nataphol Teepsuwan said on Tuesday that 34 out of 42 of the school’s branches faced complaints via the OPEC.

Most of the complaints were about severe punishment, unlicensed teachers, and charging parents fees not allowed by the ministry.

Nataphol has told the OPEC to check the issues and take appropriate action.

He said that the most important issue of Sarasas Witaed School this time was about an alleged abusive teacher, Onuma Ploadprong, at the Ratchaphruek branch in Nonthaburi province, as well as other cases found later.

The minister added that his ministry prohibits teachers from punishing their students, and the legal punishments consisted of warning, placing on probation, cutting educational scores, and holding correction activities.

Nataphol also said that education officials found initially that Sarasas Witaed School had assigned babysitters to be teachers. The minister warned that this was illegal. If the school’s alleged illegal activity is proved, the assigned babysitters will be imprisoned for two years and the school director for three years.

He said that he had told the OPEC to keep an eye on issues at private schools across the nation.

Last week, Sarasas Witaed Ratchaphruek School came under the spotlight after CCTV recordings showed kindergarten teacher Onuma physically assaulting children by banging their heads on their desks, pushing them to the ground or twisting their ears until they screamed in pain.

A recent video published online on Tuesday showed the teacher dragging a child along the floor by the collar.

The subject is still a hot issue on social media, with some netizens sharing their personal experiences of abuse in school, making the point that this problem needed to be addressed as soon as possible.

Some social media users see the abusive problem as the tip of the iceberg in the Thai educational system.

#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

World Bank revises Thai GDP forecast for the year to 8 3 per cent contraction

NationalSep 30. 2020

By THE NATION

The World Bank expects Thailand’s gross domestic product (GDP) to contract 8.3 per cent this year, more than the earlier estimate of minus 5 per cent.

The bank expects the economy to expand by 4.9 per cent next year, with more than two years required for the economy to return to pre-Covid-19 levels.

Kiatipong Ariyapruchya, World Bank’s senior country economist for Thailand, added that political uncertainty was another factor affecting the economy at this time, in addition to the Covid-19 situation in the country or natural disaster.

Pro-democracy protesters gather at Sanam Luang in Bangkok on September 19.

He explained that these factors could lower investor confidence and cause the Thai economy to contract 10.4 per cent. In such a scenario, the economy would grow only 3.5 per cent in 2021, and would take at least three to recover from the virus crisis.

The World Bank also estimates that the economy in the East Asia and Pacific region will grow by 0.9 per cent in 2020, the lowest rate since 1967. It also expects China’s economy to contract by 1.8 per cent in the first half of this year, and by 4.0 per cent on average in the rest of the region.

Political uncertainty is another factor affecting the Thai economy, apart from Covid-19 or natural disaster, says the World Bank.

#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

Govt urged to hold job expo every year after last one a resounding success

NationalSep 29. 2020Suchart Chomklin 

By The Nation

This year’s job expo won a better-than-expected response from both job seekers and employers, with both sides calling on the government to hold this event every year.

Labour Minister Suchart Chomklin said on Tuesday that 243,566 job applications had been collected in the Job Expo Thailand event held at Bitec Bangna on September 26 to 28.

The minister said the overall picture of the event was very satisfactory.

Most participants said hunting for a job at the expo was very convenient, especially since many government agencies, state enterprises and private firms had set up booths. Job seekers could also submit their documents and be interviewed for the job right away.

Employers also appreciated the event, saying apart from being given a chance to recruit staff, they also had a chance to introduce their organisation to people.

The three-day event saw 125,383 job seekers, 104,933 of whom attended in person while 20,450 attended virtually via their closest provincial employment office.

The biggest group of job seekers were new graduates.

Meanwhile, 1,048 companies have filled 78,885 positions, while there are still 181,145 vacancies up for grabs.

An opinion poll showed that 55 per cent of participants had learned about the expo via social media, while the rest had heard of it from news sources, friends and relatives or via television ads.

Attendees said they want this event to be held every year, especially during September when students usually graduate, and want it to be extended to five days as that will give people more time to choose the right job.

#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

Thailand gets new Army chief

NationalSep 29. 2020Gen Narongphan Jitkaewtae (left) Gen Apirat Kongsompong (right) 

By The Nation
Photo Credit: Nation Photo by Korbphuk Phromrekha

Outgoing Army chief General Apirat Kongsompong and his successor Narongphan Jitkaewtae greet reporters as they make their way to a ceremony to announce the new Army chief outside the Royal Thai Army Museum on Tuesday.

The ceremony featured a troop parade, paying respects at the King Rama V monument and a ceremonial signing over of duties.

Narongphan will officially take over as Army chief from October 1.

During the ceremony, Narongphan confirmed that he will keep General Apirat’s policies and ideologies alive and maintain unity among military officers to provide unity for the country and monarchy.

#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

Buri Ram thief steals pickup, but leaves his bike behind

NationalSep 29. 2020

By THE NATION

A thief made off with a pick-up truck in Buri Ram province on Saturday, but left his bicycle behind as evidence of his crime.

The vehicle owner, 55-year-old Khampan Onnumkum, said he could not find his pick-up truck after returning from the farm on Saturday evening.

He then asked his relatives and neighbours if they had any idea of where his pick-up truck may be, but when nobody could provide any information, he decided to file a police complaint.

Khampan also said that a bicycle had been left where the vehicle was parked.

Footage from a neighbour’s CCTV showed a man in a red shirt, white shorts and wide-brimmed hat cycling in the direction of Khampan’s house. He was about 165cm tall, and was seen hanging around the house for a while.

CCTV cameras installed along roads also picked up images of the stolen pick-up truck on Saturday. It was seen being driven from Buri Ram’s Non Din Daeng district to Sa Kaew’s Ta Phraya district. Khampan believes the thief plans to sell his truck in Cambodia, which borders Sa Kaew province.

#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

Thai seniors have until Wednesday to register for govt allowance

NationalSep 29. 2020

By THE NATION

A local group called on the elderly on Monday to register at a local government organisation for the state allowance by the end of this month.

The new allowance applies to people born before September 2, 1961.

People can register for the allowance at municipality, provincial administrative and sub-district administrative organisations.

As per the subsidy, people aged between 60 and 69 will get Bt600 a month, those between 70 and 79 get Bt700, 80 to 89 Bt800 and Bt1,000 for those aged 90 and above.

#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

Lawyer slams Nonthaburi kindergarten teacher for weak apology

NationalSep 29. 2020

By The Nation

Ronnarong Kaewphet, who leads a justice-seeking advocacy network, on Tuesday posted on Facebook a copy of an apology from Onuma Ploadprong.

The former teacher at Nonthaburi’s Sarasas Witaed Ratchaphruek School sparked a furore last week after CCTV recordings were released showing her assaulting kindergartners.

The apology posted in the school’s Line group read: “I want to apologise for the incident. I had no intention of assaulting the children and am ready to take responsibility. I apologise from the bottom of my heart and am ready to take punishment. I always love and have goodwill toward children.”

In his Facebook post, Ronnarong slammed Onuma, saying quitting is an easy way out for someone caught beating children. He also said American psychiatrists had volunteered to provide online counselling for parents or students affected by this teacher’s behaviour.

Ronnarong and students’ parents have been meeting police officers at Nonthaburi’s Chaiyapruek Police Station since last Saturday to take legal action against Onuma and other teachers for assaulting students in class. Their allegations are backed by CCTV recordings.