Thailand Live Thursday 24 Nov 2011

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Dept Pattalung gov says Flooding in Pattalung only in low lands, rice fields and rubber plantations, no roads have been cut off /viaFM100.5

Heavy rain in Pattalung sends water down Banthad mount. flowing into homes in 11 subdistricts, roads leading into villages at 80cms-1m /TANN

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Huge wave hits Tha Sala beach, Nakornsrithammarat, sending ppl running for their lives, thairath reports /TANN

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11am Tunnel at Laksi-Bangkhen intersection still flooded http://yfrog.com/nxtz0rrj /TANN

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AFP: Thai floods hit migrant workers hard

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BMA collected 9,544t of garbage yesterday, 13 districts over100% collected, Bangplad collected the most at 368%/Bangkae the least at 60% /TANN

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Expert Suggests Gradual Diesel Tax Hike

An energy expert recommends the government gradually hike the diesel excise tax by one to two baht per liter, instead a one-time increase of five baht so that consumers have time to adjust.

Energy expert Manoon Siriwan suggested the government gradually reimpose the excise tax on diesel fuel as the current exemption is due to expire next month, saying that the diesel excise tax is a major source of the state's tax revenue.

While the government still needs more funds for flood recovery, it is losing revenue as a result of the corporate income tax cut.

Therefore, it is appropriate to raise the diesel excise tax although it will have some impact on transportation costs.

Manoon urged the Energy Ministry to discuss with the Finance Ministry about the appropriate time frame for imposing the diesel tax hike.

He said a steep hike of five baht at one time will put too much strain on consumers as cost of living will spiral down.

Besides, the Energy Ministry may have no money to manage diesel retail prices as the Oil Fund balance is also depleting.

The energy expert said the only option left is borrowing and the ministry has already obtained a loan to subsidize the price of liquefied petroleum gas.

He suggested that the hike should be gradual, preferably at one to two baht per time at a time.

-- Tan Network 2011-11-24

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BMA orders dry areas to quickly collect garbage, confirms Nongkaem and Onnuch garbage centers can still handle more via FM100.5 /TANN

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MWA halts water distribution at Samrong to improve electricity systems on night of Nov 26 from 11pm-4am the next day /TANN

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Royal Irrigation Dep Pledged Floodwater to Recede by Next Month

The Royal Irrigation Department is optimistic that floodwaters in Pathum Thani and Nonthaburi will recede by early December.

Director-General of the Royal Irrigation Department Chalit Damrongsak reported that the department closely cooperated with the Pathum Thani and Nonthaburi Provincial administration to tackle flooding in the west bank of the Chao Phraya River.

He clarified that the department has reinforced embankments and installed water pumps in Pathum Thani Municipality and Rangsit Municipality since November 21.

The floodwater is expected to drain completely by early next month.

Chalit stated that the flooded areas are divided into four main zones.

First, 19.77 square kilometers of Bang Kruay Municipality has had some 8.36 million cubic meters of floodwater.

Second, 19.43 square kilometers in Nonthaburi's Bang Kruay, Pakkred districts as well as Pathum Thani's Muang District have been hit with 6.96 million cubic meters.

In addition, 10.40 million cubic meters of floodwater is measured in 22.21 square kilometers of Nonthaburi's Bang Bua Thong and Muang districts.

Lastly, 37.90 square kilometers in Nonthaburi's Bang Bua Thong, Pakkred districts, and Pathum Thani's Muang District contains some 11.73 million cubic meters of floodwater.

-- Tan Network 2011-11-24

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DPM Chalerm stands firm on pushing draft of amnesty bill, says those in disagreement can rally to oppose freely , FM100.5 reports /TANN

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PM Yingluck Asks FROC and BMA to Resolve Rift on Flood Management

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11.40am Flooding at Big C Saphan Mai still at 50cm http://yfrog.com/hsyxerdj /TANN

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11.45am Vendors at Yingcharoen Market set up stalls on the road as the market remains flooded http://yfrog.com/h72biqsej /TANN

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Unknown gunmen spray bullets at locals pickup truck in Rangae district Narathiwat province killing 3 /TANN

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Ang Thong Residents Protest about Overpriced Electric Bills

Local residents in Ang Thong Province protested the Electricity Generating Authority for overcharging electricity.

A few residents were charged more than 10,000 baht as they abandoned their homes during the flood.

More than 100 local households from Pa Mok District in Ang Thong Province gathered to protest the Electricity Generating Authority for overcharging electricity during the flooding.

A few residents received electric bills of 16,000 while some of them were billed up to 41,600 baht.

Many residents left their homes since the beginning of the flood, leaving no one home, but still have been charged hundreds or thousands of baht.

A resident said some of them went to see officials at the Provincial Electricity Authority, but the bills were confirmed accurate.

The Consumer Protection Board Office and the Ang Thong governor were asked to address the issue, whereas the manager of Pa Mok's Provincial Electricity Authority, Keur Thathong admitted that the bills are inaccurate due to misleading meter numbers, and that he has prepared to punish those who have made errors.

-- Tan Network 2011-11-24

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Ayutthaya flooding forces thousands of workers out of work

AYUTTHAYA, Nov 24 - Almost four thousand workers lost their jobs at flood-wrecked plants in this historic former capital, according to the Ayutthaya provincial labour chief.

Wannarat Srisuksa, chief of the Ayutthaya labour protection and welfare office, on Thursday said so far 14 companies have laid off 3,787 workers after experiencing the most severe flooding in decades.

But the companies are paying overall compensation of Bt91 million (slightly over US$3 million) to the unemployed.

In addition, he said, the unemployed are entitled to receive payments from Social Security Fund at 50 per cent of their salaries for six months.

The unemployment is considered statistically low in comparison with a total of 5,000 businesses in Ayutthaya which hires some 300,000 workers altogether, the senior government official said.

The Labour Ministry has notified those who have been made redundant that there are 50,000 job offers available at other businesses which survived the flooding.

Workers at flood-ravaged businesses yet to resume production can register with the provincial labour protection and welfare office to seek a government subsidy to pay a portion of their monthly salary on the condition that the employers pay at least 75 per cent of their employees' salary.

Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) Vice President Tanit Sorat told a seminar on the post-flood Thai economic outlook Wednesday that 9,895 plants in eight provinces have been flooded, affecting 660,000 workers. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2011-11-24

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Nonthaburi locals meet Bkk gov, thanks him for agreeing to open sluice gate at 1 meter /TANN

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POLITICS

Chalerm to spearhead amnesty bill for Thaksin

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Floods hit Thailand’s southern provinces

PHATTHALUNG, Nov 24 – Thailand’s southern provinces have been deluged with continued heavy rain, and Phatthalung declared the whole province a disaster zone.

Phatthalung’s 11 districts were declared disaster zones after nearly half the province went under water, said Thanakorn Tabanphruk, head of the provincial disaster prevention and mitigation office.

Continued rain triggered flooding in the province and the announcement of the disaster zones will allow local authorities to offer assistance quickly under official regulations, he added.

In Surat Thani, forest runoff from Krangkrung National Park flooded Chaiya’s Pakmak subdistrict.

One bridge over a canal is damaged, cutting off about 100 families from the outside world and attempts to assist them have not succeeded. Ongoing rain and forest runoff led to floods spreading into to other sub-districts in Chaiya and Tha Chang districts. Some areas are under 1.5 metres of floodwater.

In Narathiwat, the Sungai Kolok River overflowed its banks, flooding a riverside community. About 120 local residents have been evacuated to a temporary shelter. A number of low-lying communities in three sub-districts were flooded.

Moreover, the Bangnara River has flooded low-lying areas in the provincial seat and Rangae district, while Narathiwat municipality was hit by a heavy downpour, triggering floods in eight communities. About 100 houses were damaged, with local authorities already providing initial help.

In Songkhla, Khlong U-tapao flooded houses and rubber plantations in Khlonghoikong district. The floodwater is 0.50-1 metre deep and resident must travel by boat. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2011-11-24

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RT@Biz_TheNation: 311 bank branches are still closed Nov.24,down from 631 on Nov 8; 110 are located in Bangkok,105 in Pathum Thani

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Government gears up to restore investor confidence

NONTHABURI, Nov 24 - In an attempt to restore confidence among Japanese investors in post-flood Thailand, Deputy Prime Minister/Commerce Minister Kittirat Na Ranong on Thursday said he will visit Tokyo Monday to provide better understanding among Thailand-concerned Japanese investors regarding the Thai government’s post-flood rehabilitation plan.

Mr Kittirat said Virabongsa Ramangura, head of the government’s committee to formulate strategies to reconstruct and develop the country for the future, will accompany him during the trip.

The deputy prime minister downplayed concerns that the worst flooding in decades might prompt some Japanese investors to relocate their investment elsewhere, saying he would urgently speed up solving the problem and rehabilitating the special industrial zones as earlier promised.

"Water drainage at major industrial estates would be carried out this month through mid-December so that some plants could resume operations and that will help restore confidence among foreign investors," he said.

Meanwhile, Industry Minister Wannarat Channukul told reporters after having discussion with Izumi Arai, Vice Chairman of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) that the Japanese agency stood ready to provide post-flood technical and financial assistance to Thailand.

"JICA will initially extend financial assistance of 500 million yen for construction of a flood-prevention dyke at a designated industrial estate as a prototype for future flood-prevention wall," the Thai industry minister said.

He added that the ministry would soon select one of seven flooded industrial estates for such a purpose.

Regarding the restoration of the submerged industrial estates, Mr Wannarat said the floodwaters continue to recede at the Bangchan and Latkrabang industrial estates on the eastern part of Bangkok. 32 out of 93 plants at Factory Land are now operating, while some factories in the Bangpa-in Industrial Estate are expected to resume production next week.

The Rojana and Hi-Tech industrial estates are likely to be operating again in late December. Currently, water drainage is under way at the Navanakorn, Bangkadi and Saharattananakorn industrial estates.

The industry minister said estimates of Thailand’s flood damage losses in the industrial sector will be reviewed once the floodwaters have gone. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2011-11-24

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Bkk gov receives 10 water pumps frm Japanese govt, promises Nonthaburi locals will share some pumps to manage water in their area viaFM100.5/TAN_Network

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JICA proposes flood-prevention financing

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has offered Thailand assistance to develop a pilot flood-prevention system for industrial estates.

Industry Minister Wannarat Charnnukul said today that JICA promised the investment under a budget of 500 million or about Bt120 million

-- The Nation 2011-11-24

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Thammasat University Rangsit campus: Water has dried, recoverying electricity systems, will take approximately 10 days, FM100.5 reports/TAN_Network

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Forbes Asia names CP group's Dhanin Chearavanont Businessman of the year

Dhanin Chearavanont, the chairman of Charoen Pokphand Group (CP Group), has been named by Forbes Asia as its Businessman of the Year in 2011.

Forbes Asia reported that Dharnin, 72, is recognized for transforming the group into one of the world's top global food powerhouses and raising rural incomes, and for building China's biggest megafarms

-- The Nation 2011-11-24

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Thawi Wattana,Bang Khae residents block Kanchanapisek Rd, show dissatisfaction with raising sluice gates causing higher flood /MCOT

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International and Thai tourism bodies call for aggressive crisis response: Flood

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Raminthra locals threaten to block roads after dismantling of BigBag barriers at KorPorOr junction causes water to rise, ThaiPBS reports /TANN

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Ministry Affirms No Shortages of Consumer Goods

The Commerce Ministry affirms that consumer product shortages are now on the decline while construction material supply is adequate to meet rising demand.

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Trade Council Slams Thai Govt for Flood Mismanagement

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