THAILAND LIVE Thailand Live Thursday 4 Feb 2021

[webfact]

Inside Bang Sue Grand Station: Thailand's new state of the art transportation hub

 

 

It is the most significant transportation or infrastructure project Thailand has undertaken since the opening of Suvarnabhumi Airport and is set to bring a much needed revitalisation to the country’s outdated railway network.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204571-videos-inside-bang-sue-grand-station-thailands-new-state-of-the-art-transportation-hub/

[webfact]

Thailand's Phuket plans private vaccination drive, aims for October reopening

By Chayut Setboonsarng and Panarat Thepgumpanat

 

FILE PHOTO: Empty chairs are seen on a beach which is usually full of tourists, amid fear of coronavirus in Phuket, Thailand March 11, 2020. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun/File Photo

 

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand's resort island of Phuket is planning private coronavirus vaccinations for 250,000 residents in the hope the government will allow it to fully reopen to foreign tourists by October and save its battered economy, industry officials said.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204585-thailands-phuket-plans-private-vaccination-drive-aims-for-october-reopening/

[webfact]

April eyed for launch of driving licence points-deduction system

By The Nation

 

 

Thailand’s delayed points-deduction system for driving licences should finally be launched in April, said the Department of Land Transport (DLT) on Tuesday.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204588-april-eyed-for-launch-of-driving-licence-points-deduction-system/

[webfact]

MRTA scraps Orange Line bidding

By The Nation

 

 

In a blow to Bangkok’s mass-transit plans, bidding for the Orange Line to link the east and west of the city was cancelled on Wednesday.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204638-mrta-scraps-orange-line-bidding/

 

[webfact]

UPDATE:

 

BOT keeps interest rate at 0.5% amid weak economic recovery

By The Nation

 

 

The Bank of Thailand (BOT) kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged on Wednesday.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204548-thai-central-bank-keeps-policy-rate-at-record-low-as-expected/?do=findComment&comment=16223057

 

[webfact]

Thai investor confidence rises for second month in a row

By The Nation

 

 

Thailand’s Investor Confidence Index was up 1.5 per cent in January for its second successive monthly rise, the Federation of Thai Capital Market Organisations (Fetco) reported on Wednesday.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204639-thai-investor-confidence-rises-for-second-month-in-a-row/

 

[webfact]

2 districts of Maha Sarakham declared Red Zones as Thailand records 795 new COVID-19 cases Wednesday

 

 

The Muang and Kantharavichai districts of the northeastern province of Maha Sarakham have been declared Red Zones, and 17 high-risk venues have been closed, after a cluster of 21 COVID-19 infections, including a doctor, were recorded, according to CCSA spokesman Dr. Taweesin Visanuyothin on Wednesday.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204640-2-districts-of-maha-sarakham-declared-red-zones/

 

[webfact]

Land price in central Bangkok remains unchanged

By The Nation

 

 

The price of land in the heart of Bangkok has remained unchanged despite the Covid-19 crisis, Kulwadee Sawangsri, executive director of investment and land services for CBRE (Thailand), said on Wednesday.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204641-land-price-in-central-bangkok-remains-unchanged/

 

[webfact]

Murder fugitive husband arrested in Phang Nga

By Eakkapop Thongtub

 

Suchart Gunpai, 45, today retraced his steps in killing his wife Ms Sopa and disposing of her body. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

 

PHUKET: Police today arrested the missing husband of Sopa Thanimkarn, 39, whose body was found dumped beside the road south of Patong last Friday (Jan 29).

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204643-phuket-murder-fugitive-husband-arrested-in-phang-nga/

 

[webfact]

Days before coup, IMF sent Myanmar $350 million in emergency aid; no precedent for refund

By David Lawder

 

Myanmar's military checkpoint is seen on the way to the congress compound in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, February 1, 2021. Picture taken

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund last week sent $350 million in cash to the Myanmar government, part of a no-strings-attached emergency aid package to help the country battle the coronavirus pandemic.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204644-days-before-coup-imf-sent myanmar 350-million-in-emergency-aid-no-precedent-for-refund/

 

[webfact]

Golf-Authorities turn focus to reining in big hitters

 

Sep 17, 2020; Mamaroneck, New York, USA; Bryson DeChambeau hits his tee shot on the 2nd hole during the first round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Winged Foot Golf Club - West. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204645-golf-authorities-turn-focus-to-reining-in-big-hitters/

 

[webfact]

Work and play: for some Europeans, Dubai is ideal lockdown location

By Tarek Fahmy

 

Zane Scotland plays golf amid the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Dubai, United Arab Emirates February 2, 2021. Picture taken February 2, 2021. REUTERS/Rula Rouhana

 

DUBAI (Reuters) - Some Europeans have extended their stay in Dubai this winter to avoid strict coronavirus lockdown at home and make the most of lighter restrictions to work, learn, dine out and relax by the pool.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204646-work-and-play-for-some-europeans-dubai-is-ideal-lockdown-location/

 

[webfact]

U.S. COVID Task Force says new cases on decline but variants pose threat

 

FILE PHOTO: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci addresses the daily press briefing at the White House in Washington, U.S. January 21, 2021. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations appear to be on a downward trajectory in the United States as the Biden administration remains confident that it can hit its target of 100 million vaccines in 100 days, the White House Coronavirus Task Force said on Wednesday.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204647-us-covid-task-force-says-new-cases-on-decline-but-variants-pose-threat/

 

[webfact]

Biden tells Democrats he would consider limits on who gets COVID-19 checks

By Susan Cornwell and Lisa Lambert

 

U.S. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden pay their respects to U.S. Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick, who died on January 7 from injuries he sustained while protecting the U.S. Capitol during the January 6 attack on the building, as he lies in honor at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S., February 2, 2021. REUTERS/Leah Millis/Pool

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Joe Biden told congressional Democrats on Wednesday he would not back down on including $1,400 checks for struggling Americans in his COVID-19 relief plan but would consider tighter limits on who gets them, lawmakers and aides said.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204648-biden-tells-democrats-he-would-consider-limits-on-who-gets-covid-19-checks/

 

[webfact]

Exclusive: U.S. mulls using law designed to prosecute Mafia against Capitol rioters

By Mark Hosenball and Sarah N. Lynch

 

FILE PHOTO: Supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump climb on walls at the U.S. Capitol during a protest against the certification of the 2020 U.S. presidential election results by the U.S. Congress, in Washington, U.S., January 6, 2021. REUTERS/Stephanie Keith/File Photo

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department is considering whether to charge members of far-right groups involved in the deadly Jan. 6 storming of the Capitol under a federal law usually used against organised crime, according to two law enforcement sources.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204649-exclusive-us-mulls-using-law-designed-to-prosecute-mafia-against-capitol-rioters/

 

[webfact]

How The Pandemic Has Upended The Lives Of Thailand's Sex Workers

AURORA AMENDRAL

PHOTOS BY ALLISON JOYCE

 

Above: N., a sex worker at a bar in Pattaya, Thailand. The sex trade has offered good-paying jobs for many people from rural areas who were facing a life of tending rice paddies and digging up cassava roots. 

Allison Joyce for NPR

 

Mos, 26, was a "moneyboy" — a sex worker — at a gay bar in the Thai tourist hub of Pattaya. For him, it was a dream come true. Now the pandemic has put his dream on hold.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204650-how-the-pandemic-has-upended-the-lives-of-thailands-sex-workers/

 

[webfact]

Ambitious plans for Pattaya to become global hub for film industry and movie production

 

Picture: Sophon Cable TV

 

Officials in Pattaya on Wednesday held a meeting to discuss ways in which to transform the city into a global hub for movie production and film.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204651-ambitious-plans-for-pattaya-to-become-global-hub-for-film-industry-and-movie-production/

 

[webfact]

Echoes of Big Joke as immigration chief busts "cruel and intimidatory" loan shark gang

 

Picture: Daily News

 

In a raid reminiscent of his high profile predecessor, Thailand's immigration chief Pol Lt-Gen Sompong Chingduang led a team of officers to bust a big loan sharking operation in Bangkok.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204653-echoes-of-big-joke-as-immigration-chief-busts-cruel-and-intimidatory-loan-shark-gang/

 

[webfact]

GLO announces bounty to nail lottery price gougers

By THE NATION

 

 

The Government Lottery Office (GLO) has come out with a Bt1,000 cash reward for citizens who provide information on lottery price gouging, while officials who make arrests will be rewarded according to the fine in each case but not exceeding Bt2,000, director-general Boonsong Jantrisri said on Wednesday.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204661-glo-announces-bounty-to-nail-lottery-price-gougers/

 

[webfact]

Road Rage video! Vicious fight after car drives over motorcyclist on bridge in Samut Prakan

 

Picture: 77kaoded

 

Dashcam footage showed some terrible driving and some nasty violence that happened around 7.45 am yesterday in Bang Poo 37 (Soi Yuasa) south east of the Thai capital Bangkok.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204662-road-rage-video-vicious-fight-after-car-drives-over-motorcyclist-on-bridge-in-samut-prakan/

[webfact]

Puppy rescued after 50 km trip trapped under car

 

Picture: Facebook Boonnum Num

 

Dog-mad Thailand was swooning over the story of a little female puppy that survived a 50 kilometer journey under a car.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204663-puppy-rescued-after-50-km-trip-trapped-under-car/

[webfact]

U.S. rescuers brave cracking ice to pull two from sinking truck

 

Rescue workers help a person who was in a truck which had fallen into the harbour at Cummings Park, Stamford, Connecticut, U.S. February 1, 2021, in this still image taken from a social media video. Stamford Fire Department/via REUTERS

 

(Reuters) - U.S. firefighters battled crumbling ice in Long Island Sound to rescue two people trapped after a truck broke through and sank in the frigid waters beneath, authorities said on Tuesday.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204665-us-rescuers-brave-cracking-ice-to-pull-two-from-sinking-truck/

 

[webfact]

Cabinet earmarks Bt275 million for hosting BIMSTEC meetings

By THE NATION

 

 

A Cabinet meeting on Tuesday approved a budget of Bt275 million to organise the 6th Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) meeting and other related meetings in 2022, a news source revealed.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204667-cabinet-earmarks-bt275-million-for-hosting-bimstec-meetings/

 

[webfact]

Brits and Russians go to DSI claiming housing rip off - they paid deposits for property on protected forest land

 

Picture: Manager

 

Manager reported that around 100 foreigners - some of them British and Russian nationals - have lost millions of baht each in what is claimed to be a corrupt land deal for the building of luxury homes.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204669-brits-and-russians-go-to-dsi-claiming-housing-rip-off-they-paid-deposits-for-property-on-protected-forest-land/

[webfact]

Couple in Isaan used regular printer to create fake 100 baht notes

 

Picture: Daily News

 

A married couple from the north east of Thailand have been caught counterfeiting 100 baht notes. 

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204671-couple-in-isaan-used-regular-printer-to-create-fake-100-baht-notes/

 

[webfact]

How a flaw in the system lands Thailand’s elderly in trouble

 

An elderly woman sits along an alley in a low-income neighborhood in Bangkok on May 4, 2020. (Photo by Romeo GACAD / AFP)

 

A 99-year-old grandmother says she will go to prison if the government sues for repayment of Bt100,000 in subsidies whose overlapping claim rules were too complicated for her to understand.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204674-how-a-flaw-in-the-system-lands-thailand’s-elderly-in-trouble/

 

[webfact]

Bangkok’s century-old Hua Lamphong station makes tracks towards railway history

 

Photo by Robert van der Sluijs

 

After more than a century serving passengers, Thailand’s largest railway hub will reach the end of the line this year.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204676-bangkok’s-century-old-hua-lamphong-station-makes-tracks-towards-railway-history/

 

[webfact]

FTI Still Hopes to See Economic Growth at 2.5-2.6%

 

   

BANGKOK (NNT) - The Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) believes Thailand still has a chance to see 2.5-2.6% economic growth this year if the ongoing outbreak ends within March.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204681-fti-still-hopes-to-see-economic-growth-at-25-26/

 

[webfact]

Rewat confirmed PPAO President, ready to work

By Chutharat Plerin

 

Rewat Areerob has been confirmed by the ECT to be the new president of the Phuket Provincial Administration Organisation (PPAO, or OrBorJor). Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

 

PHUKET: The Election Commission of Thailand (ECT) has dismissed the complaint filed against Rewat Areerob and confirmed him to be the new president of the Phuket Provincial Administration Organisation (PPAO, or OrBorJor).

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204684-rewat-confirmed-ppao-president-ready-to-work/

 

[webfact]

Leatherback turtles hatch at Khok Kloi

By Eakkapop Thongtub

 

The baby turtles hatched late last night (Feb 3). Photo: DMCR

 

PHUKET: A total of 81 baby leatherback turtles hatched and made it across the sand at Bang Kwan Beach in Khok Kloi, Phang Nga, north of Phuket, late last night (Feb 3).

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1204685-leatherback-turtles-hatch-at-khok-kloi/