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https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40013060

Storms will hit the North and Northeast from Sunday before spreading southwards across most of the country until Tuesday, according to the Thai Meteorological Department.

“Outbreaks of summer storms, thunderstorms, strong winds and hail are expected in the North and Northeast first, and then Central Region including Bangkok and its vicinity, the East and the upper South regions,” the department said.

The department advised people to stay away from open area, big trees and unsecured billboards. Farmers are also advised to prepare for crop damage.

The storm warning covers the following provinces:

March 6

– North: Nan, Uttaradit, Phitsanulok, Phichit and Phetchabun.

– Northeast: Loei, Nong Khai, Bueng Kan, Nong Bua Lam Phu, Udon Thani, Sakon Nakhon, Nakhon Phanom, Chaiyaphum, Roi Et, Yasothon, Amnat Charoen, Si Sa Ket and Ubon Ratchathani.

March 7

– North: Nan, Phrae, Uttaradit, Tak, Sukhothai, Phitsanulok, Phichit, Kamphaeng Phet and Phetchabun.

– Northeast: Loei, Nong Khai, Bueng Kan, Nong Bua Lamphu, Udon Thani, Sakon Nakhon, Nakhon Phanom, Mukdahan, Kalasin, Roi Et, Yasothon, Amnat Charoen, Ubon Ratchathani, Si Sa Ket, Surin, Buriram, Nakhon Ratchasima, Chaiyaphum, Khon Kaen and Maha Sarakham.

– Central: Nakhon Sawan, Uthai Thani, Chainat, Lop Buri, Saraburi, Sing Buri, Ang Thong, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, Suphan Buri, Kanchanaburi, Ratchaburi, Samut Songkhram, Samut Sakhon, Nakhon Pathom, Bangkok and its vicinity.

– East: Nakhon Nayok, Prachin Buri, Sa Kaew, Chachoengsao, Chon Buri, Rayong, Chanthaburi and Trat.

– South: Phetchaburi and Prachuap Khiri Khan.

March 8

– North: Tak and Kamphaeng Phet.

– Northeast: Surin, Buriram and Nakhon Ratchasima.

– Central: Nakhon Sawan, Uthai Thani, Chainat, Kanchanaburi, Ratchaburi, Samut Songkhram, Samut Sakhon, Nakhon Pathom, Bangkok and its vicinity.

– East: Chachoengsao, Chon Buri, Rayong, Chanthaburi and Trat.

– South: Phetchaburi and Prachuap Khiri Khan.

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Bangkok on alert for summer storm

Summer storm and gusty winds forecast for upper Thailand

Thailand to officially enter summer on Wednesday, with storms forecast

Published : March 05, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40013059

Ministry of Public Health reported on Saturday (March 5) morning that in the past 24 hours there are 22,818 new patients who tested positive for Covid-19, 137 of whom have arrived in Thailand from abroad.

Death toll increased by 52, while 18,462 patients were cured and allowed to leave hospitals.

Cumulative cases in the country since January 1, 2022 are at 781,379.
 

The country’s total caseload from Covid-19 stands at 3,004,814 – 2,749,491 of whom have recovered, 232,147 are still in hospitals and 23,176 have died.

Separately, another 87,203 people were given their first Covid-19 shot in the last 24 hours, 28,665 their second shot and 137,820 a booster, bringing the total number of Covid-19 vaccine doses administered nationwide to 124,649,712.

According to Worldometer, confirmed cases globally had risen to 444.1 million on Saturday, 376.77 million of whom have recovered, 61.32 million are active cases (72,009 in severe condition) and 6.01 million have died (up by 7,910).

Thailand ranks 33rd in the global list of most cases, which is topped by the US with 80.9 million, followed by India with 42.96 million, Brazil with 28.97 million, France with 22.96 million and the UK with 19.12 million.

Published : March 05, 2022

By : THE NATION

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https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40013053

The multinational Cobra Gold 2022 military exercises concluded on Friday with no Covid-19 cases among the participants, the organisers reported.

Thailand’s Armed Forces deputy supreme commander General Supachok Thawatpirachai, and Jim Wayman, acting deputy chief of mission at the United States Embassy, co-chaired the closing ceremony through an online system.

More than 3,460 military personnel from Thailand, the US, Singapore, Japan, Indonesia, South Korea, and Malaysia took part in this year’s drill, held in Rayong province.

None of the participating military officers was infected with Covid-19, thanks to the strict preventive measures, the organisers said.

Cobra Gold, which marked the 41st exercises this year, is one of the largest multinational exercises in the Asia-Pacific region.

Published : March 04, 2022

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https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40013052

A new nature trail has been opened at Khao Yai National Park to mark 160 years of diplomatic relations between Thailand and Germany.

The 3.4-kilometre-long route, linking the park’s Orchid Cliff and Haew Suwat Waterfall, was developed in a collaboration between the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, the German embassy, B Grimm Power, and Amata Corporation.

There are waterfalls at both ends of the trail, which passes along a creek, bamboo forests and evergreen woodland.

In the dry season, formations of ancient volcanic rocks can be found along the route, in addition to a variety of blooming wild orchids in April on the cliff, which takes its name from the flower.

A walk through the nature trail takes an estimated two to three hours.

Former prime minister General Surayud Chulanont, German Ambassador Georg Schmidt, B Grimm chairman Harald Link, and Amata Foundation chairman Vikrom Kromadit attended a ceremony to launch the new trail on Wednesday. They also joined a walk along the route.

German-born Link said the nature trail underlined the cooperation between Thailand and Germany about the preservation of natural resources and the environment when both countries mark 160 years of their ties.

“This is an important new route for nature study in Thailand. It’s a good coordination to mark this special occasion,” he said.

Published : March 04, 2022

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40013050

The Supreme Administrative Court on Friday accepted the government’s request for a retrial of the Hopewell case – a two-decade-long legal battle related to Bangkok’s doomed multibillion-baht mass-transit project.

The decision came after the judges voted 40-10 to accept the petition filed by the Transport Ministry, State Railway of Thailand (SRT) and former justice minister Pirapan Salirathavibhaga in his capacity as adviser to the prime minister and chief of the House of Representatives working group tasked with studying contractual issues involving the Hopewell project.

The Supreme Administrative Court on Friday decided to reverse an earlier ruling by a lower court rejecting the Transport Ministry and SRT’s retrial request, citing last year’s Constitutional Court verdict as “new evidence” that warrants a retrial.

In March last year, the Constitutional Court overturned the Supreme Administrative Court’s 2002 resolution on the statute of limitations for the Hopewell case.

The resolution stated that the statute of limitations should be counted from the time the Administrative Court began operating in 2001.

The Constitutional Court explained that this resolution — made by a general meeting of the Supreme Administrative Court’s judges — was invalid because it had not been sent to Parliament for inspection or published in the Royal Gazette as required by the Constitution.

That ruling revived Thai authorities’ hopes of escaping the Supreme Administrative Court’s order to pay 25.4 billion baht in compensation for the 1998 cancellation of the 80-billion-baht elevated highway and railway project. The Transport Ministry cited repeated delays in the project’s construction for cancelling the project.

Hopewell brought its case to the arbitration tribunal in November 2004 – more than a year after the legal deadline. In November 2008, the tribunal ordered both the SRT and Transport Ministry to pay 11.8 billion baht in compensation to Hopewell for “unfair contract termination”.

The two agencies then took their case to the Central Administrative Court, which in March 2014 annulled the arbitrators’ order.

Hopewell appealed the verdict, and the Supreme Administrative Court in April 2019 reversed the lower court’s ruling, ordering that the state agencies pay the compensation plus interest calculated at 7.5 per cent per annum, which came up to 25.4 billion baht.

The Supreme Administrative Court had ruled that Hopewell sought the arbitration tribunal’s judgement within the statute of limitations.

Published : March 04, 2022

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https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40013045

The Thai Department of Livestock Development has warned poultry farmers to keep a close eye on their stocks, especially now that many cases of severe bird flu have been reported in several Asian countries, including Vietnam and China.

Sorravis Thaneto, the department’s director-general, said on Friday that Thai poultry farmers should immediately report any uncommon deaths to local officials for effective disease control.

He also warned that birds dying suspiciously should not be consumed or distributed.

The World Organisation for Animal Health last year reported the discovery of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) at 5,213 locations in 61 countries, Sorravis said.

Late last month, he added, HPAI of the H5N1, H5N6, H5N2, H5N5 and H5N8 strains were reported in more than 30 countries across the globe, covering Europe, Africa, the Americas and Asia.

In Asia, bird-flu instances were reported in Vietnam, Taiwan, Japan and South Korea.

The World Health Organisation has also recently reported human H5N6 infections that led to deaths in China.

Sorravis said on Friday that the Department of Livestock Development has taken pre-emptive measures to prevent a domestic outbreak of the new bird flu strains.

Poultry farmers have also been advised to implement safety measures such as cleaning and disinfecting poultry cages regularly and keeping wild birds away from the breeding area.

Published : March 04, 2022

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https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40013043

Thailand has won the United Nations Public Service Awards (UNPSA) for five years running thanks to the government’s efforts to improve public services, a government spokesperson announced on Friday.

Deputy government spokesperson Ratchada Thanadirek said Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has instructed all state agencies to continue making reforms in line with the national master plan to improve people’s quality of life and public services.

She added that efforts to improve state services over the past five years has led to better public satisfaction and helped Thailand win the UNPSA award every year from 2017 to 2021.

The UN surveyed and evaluated public satisfaction with the efficiency of government services before granting the award.

Ratchada said the biggest contributor to public satisfaction was the fact that the government has either reduced or abolished fees and eased rules for the acquisition of 111 types of licences and has also unlocked certain restrictions in public administration.

The authorities have also reduced the time it takes for the approval of 532 types of licences and the process has been accelerated by 41.71 per cent, she added.

Citing several surveys, the spokesperson said the level of public satisfaction in government agencies has been rising and stands at 84.81 per cent as of 2021.

She also claimed that 86.53 per cent of the population appears to be happy with e-services provided at the district administration level and the Damrongtham public complaint centres.

Thailand’s standing in the World Competitiveness Ranking of the IMD Business School has also started improving. In 2021, Thailand rose three points to be ranked 20th among 64 countries and jumped to 21st in 2020 from 49th in 2016 for Ease in Doing Business.

Ratchada added that Thailand has also risen 20 points to be ranked 57th among 193 nations in 2020 in the UN’s E-Government Development Index.

She said state agencies in the provinces are also improving their digital service capabilities in the past five years under the master bureaucracy reform plan.

Published : March 04, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40013041

A team of Malaysian officials will conduct an on-site inspection at Thai chicken slaughterhouses and processing factories over the next two weeks to determine if they meet Malaysia’s standards on food safety and halal products.

The delegation from Malaysia’s Department of Veterinary Services and Department of Islamic Development on Friday attended a video-conferencing session with senior Thai officials from the Department of Livestock Development, National Institute of Animal Health, Bureau of Livestock Standards and Certification, and Central Islamic Council of Thailand.

During the online meeting, Thai officials told their Malaysian counterparts about Thailand’s systems for monitoring poultry health, transportation, quality control on poultry products, certification of halal products, and halal inspection at poultry slaughterhouses for exports, according to Sopat Chavalkul, deputy director-general of the Department of Livestock Development.

He attended the meeting as head of the Thai delegation welcoming the Malaysian team to Thailand.

The Malaysian officials are scheduled to conduct their inspection from March 5 to 19 at 28 locations — 26 poultry slaughterhouses and two chicken processing factories — according to Sopat.

The Malaysian inspectors each obtained three Covid-19 vaccine shots and got RT-PCR tests done before travelling to Thailand. They are required to meet Thailand’s Covid-19 preventive measures upon arrival.

A total of 28 Thai poultry factories were certified by Malaysia. Last year, Thailand exported 29,697 tons of poultry meat and products valued at 1.96 billion baht to Malaysia.

The upcoming inspection is expected to help increase Thailand’s poultry exports to its southern neighbour, Sopat said.

Published : March 04, 2022

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https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40013034

The Phulangka National Park announced on Thursday that it will now allow 700 people to visit the famous Naga Cave daily provided they make a reservation via the QueQ app.

Reservations are required to prevent overcrowding and the spreading of Covid-19.

The Naga Cave, located in Bueng Kan’s Bung Khong Long district, is known for its scale-like markings and a rock that looks like the mystical serpent, the Naga. Thais believe a visit to the cave will bring them good luck and reveal lottery numbers.

On February 8, the national park set a 500-person limit after hundreds of tourists found themselves stranded, waiting to be helped down the mountain after visiting the cave.

The park said it has improved public transportation to and from the cave and can now handle more visitors. Its capacity for more visitors will be further extended once the second road leading to the cave is completed next week.

“Though the limit for visitors has been increased, people are still required to produce their ID card along with proof of reservation via the app at the park entrance. Visitors must also produce evidence of at least two Covid-19 vaccines,” the park said. “Alternatively, visitors can present a negative RT-PCR test taken within the previous 72 hours or a negative ATK test in 48 hours.”

Entry fees are 20 baht for Thai nationals (10 baht for children aged three to 14 and free for toddlers) and 200 baht for foreigners (100 baht for children aged three to 14). Thai visitors are required to pay 10 baht per person for insurance, while foreigners pay 40 baht per person.

The park added that Phulangka National Park will be closed from May 1-31 of every year to allow nature to rehabilitate. Hence reservations will be suspended until June 1.

No changes have been made to the number of visitors allowed at the adjoining Nagee Cave.

Related News

Naga Cave only open to 500 visitors per day, reservations required, says park chief

Vandalism closes famous ‘snake’ cave in Bueng Kan

Beung Kan’s Naga Cave reopens, but to limited visitors

Published : March 04, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40013033

About 10,000-15,000 Thai children and women are illegally trafficked to Japan each year to serve its sex industry, according to a study conducted by a senior police officer.

Led by Pol Lt Col Dr Pongnakorn Nakhonsantiphap, the research found that Thailand remains a major crossroads for regional and international human trafficking.

Worry over human trafficking in the Kingdom has grown after Pol Maj-General Paween Pongsirin, the former lead investigator of a 2015 trafficking case, said he would have caught more “big fish” had he not been forced to flee to Australia. The 2015 case stemmed from the discovery of a mass grave of Rohingya migrants in Songkhla and led to prison sentences for an Army general and other senior officials for conspiring with traffickers.

Meanwhile Thailand was last year downgraded in the US human trafficking report to the Tier 2 Watchlist.

“In the case of illegal trafficking of women and children for prostitution, Japan has been the largest market for trafficked Thais in the last 10 years, with about 10,000 to 15,000 sent annually,” the research said.

It also reported that about 30,000 unskilled Thai labourers are trafficked abroad each year, mostly to Taiwan.

The police study covered two aspects of Thai trafficking: domestic and international.

The main targets for domestic trafficking were women and children from poor backgrounds in school or college. Traffickers will lure them with legitimate factory jobs but deceive them into working in prostitution operations.

Meanwhile international trafficking targeted the same group but involved either bringing people into the country or sending them abroad.

The research also found that human trafficking networks were very complicated but well managed.

The networks can be broken down to six roles.

Agents are responsible for contacting, inviting and transporting victims to dealers.

Dealers are responsible for housing victims, as well as forging any documents they may need.

Navigators are responsible for transporting victims to the destination.

Receivers are responsible for receiving victims before sending them into prostitution, illegal fishing or other sectors.

Supervisors are responsible for forcing victims to work and threatening any who resist.

Customers in different business sectors provide the demand for trafficked workers.

The research also identified problems with policy, management and cooperation of agencies involved in Thailand’s anti-trafficking campaign.

Published : March 04, 2022

By : THE NATION