US ambassador vows stronger ties with Thailand

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Pa Sak River water contains unusually low oxygen level

SARABURI, 31 August 2015, (NNT) - A large number of fish have reportedly died from lack of oxygen, caused by polluted water of the Pa Sak river, said fish farmers in Saraburi.

Upon receiving the complaints, the village head from Na Chong Sub-District of Muang Saraburi District immediately instructed fish farmers in the area to increase oxygen level in their ponds by installing water pumps.

According to the village chief, provincial officials have found that the level of oxygen of the water in the Pa Sak River is unusually low. He recommended installing water pumps as an urgent solution to the problem, asking the officials to address the issue immediately.

According to one of the fish farm owners, his farm has suffered from the ordeal in the past couple days, which has killed between 400-500 kilograms of fish, worth between 30-40,000 baht, daily.

The dead fish have been buried, eaten or sold at heavy discount to the locals, the owner said, speculating that the cause of death was the lack of oxygen caused by polluted water from the Pa Sak River. He asked the officials to check the river water quality and release into the river more water from Rama VI Dam in order to drive polluted water away from the farming areas.


-- NNT 2015-08-31

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Bangkok governor opens road accident reduction campaign



BANGKOK, 31 August 2015 (NNT) - Bangkok Governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra presided over a road accident reduction campaign held on Sunday at Taling Chan Floating Market.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852335-bangkok-governor-opens-road-accident-reduction-campaign/

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SURVEY:

The plan to slash school hours--Good or Bad?

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852258-survey-the-plan-to-slash-school-hours-good-or-bad/

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BANGKOK BLAST
More attacks may have been planned, police say
THE NATION



EMBASSY SAYS ARRESTED MAN ISN'T A TURK; SUSPECT HAS LIVED IN NONG CHOK SINCE JUNE

BANGKOK: -- THE FOREIGN suspect arrested by police on Saturday for his alleged link to the August 17 bombing of the Erawan Shrine moved into Pool Anant Apartment in Bangkok's Nong Chok district sometime in June along with another foreigner believed to be Turkish, according to the building supervisor.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852336-bangkok-blast-more-attacks-may-have-been-planned-police-say/

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SPECIAL REPORT
Experts see room for revision in controversial new draft charter
WASAMON AUDJARINT,
PRAVIT ROJANAPHRUK,
PETCHANET PRATRUANGKRAI
THE NATION



NSRRC, SENATE APPOINTMENTS DRAW THE MOST FLAK FROM OBSERVERS, FOLLOWED BY THE LACK OF PROVISIONS FOR THE ECONOMY AND EDUCATION

BANGKOK: -- THE recently-released draft constitution contains a number of unique features that need to be assessed ahead of a proposed national referendum.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852337-thai-experts-see-room-for-revision-in-controversial-new-draft-charter/

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DRAFT CHARTER
Politicians may be allowed to air their views
THE NATION

FORUMS MAY BE SET UP TO DISCUSS CHARTER

BANGKOK: -- THE ELECTION Commission is considering allowing forums for political parties to express their views on the draft charter, while a decision on whether to lift the ban on political gatherings is up to the National Council for Peace and Order, Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam has said.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852338-draft-charter-thai-politicians-may-be-allowed-to-air-their-views/

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HIGHWAY 304
Wildlife crossing will boost ecology, Tublan Park chief says
PRATCH RUJIVANAROM
THE NATION

Wildlife crossing will boost ecology, Tublan Park chief says

BANGKOK: -- THE WILDLIFE crossing on Highway 304 Kabinburi-Paktongchai will definitely boost the ecology of the Dong Phrayayen-Khao Yai Forest Complex World Heritage Site and also benefit the community through eco-tourism, Wiroj Rojjanajinda, superintendent of Tublan National Park, said last week.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852339-thai-highway-304-wildlife-crossing-will-boost-ecology-tublan-park-chief-says/

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EDUCATION REFORM
Trat school a reform role model
Pratch Rujivanarom
The Nation

Students' studies in step with local labour demands

BANGKOK: -- MATCHING education reform to the labour needs of a province is well illustrated at Trat's Khaonoi Wittayakom High School, where students learn the necessary skills for studying further at vocational schools or finding a job after graduating.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852340-thai-education-reform-trat-school-a-reform-role-model/

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Thailand needs 4,000 English teachers
The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines - The Thai government is hoping to hire up to 4,000 Filipinos who can teach English in Thailand.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852341-thailand-needs-4000-english-teachers/

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Grand Hyatt Erawan reworks business strategy after blast
SUCHAT SRITAMA
THE NATION

BANGKOK: -- GRAND HYATT Erawan Bangkok has revised its marketing strategies to reclaim lost business after the deadly bomb blast at a famous shrine located next to the hotel two weeks ago.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852342-grand-hyatt-erawan-reworks-business-strategy-after-bangkok-blast/

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Indian tyre firm mulls Thai plant
KWANCHAI RUNGFAPAISARN
THE NATION
CHENNAI

BANGKOK: -- INDIA-BASED Apollo Tyres is studying setting up its first tyre manufacturing operation in Indonesia, Vietnam or Thailand that will be large enough to support not only the automobile market in the region but also beyond.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852343-indian-tyre-firm-mulls-thai-plant/

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REGIONAL PERSPECTIVE
Imagining Thailand in the next 50 years
Kavi Chongkittavorn
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- At a glance, it is ridiculous to propose to average Mr Somchai or Ms Somsri that they should start to think about how their country will look in 2065 - in 50 years time.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852344-imagining-thailand-in-the-next-50-years/

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EDITORIAL
Krisda Mahanakorn case embodies our problems
The Nation

Big corruption scandals often take way too long to settle

BANGKOK: -- The good news is that a massive and strong verdict has finally been delivered, but the bad news is that it took a decade. And the curtain is not quite completely drawn on the Krisda Mahanakorn loan scandal despite the legal punishment handed down on some top bankers.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852345-thai-editorial-krisda-mahanakorn-case-embodies-our-problems/

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Government spokesman tells irresponsible critics to keep quiet



BANGKOK: -- The government spokesman has hit back at critics accusing them of engaging in pure imagination and lack of responsibility for their criticisms that the government policies are nothing new and is copying the populist policies of the previous administration.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852346-thai-government-spokesman-tells-irresponsible-critics-to-keep-quiet/

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Defamation verdict looms for Australian journalist in Thailand
AAP

BANGKOK: -- An Australian journalist being tried for defaming the Royal Thai Navy says he is fearful, but hoping he will be found not guilty when the verdict is handed down.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852347-defamation-verdict-looms-for-australian-journalist-in-thailand/

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Draft seen as a flawed compromise: expert
WIRAJ SRIPONG
THE NATION

Henning Glaser, Director, German-Southeast Asian Center of Excellence for Public Policy and Good Governance (CPG), Faculty of Law, Thammasat University

BANGKOK: -- THE DRAFT CHARTER is seen as a compromise among the drafters themselves, according to Henning Glaser, an expert in constitutional law at Thammasat University.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852348-thai-draft-charter-seen-as-a-flawed-compromise-expert/

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Is foreigner arrest a breakthrough moment for Thai police?

BANGKOK - Police in Thailand are scrambling to find accomplices as they interrogate a foreign man whom investigators say is linked to the deadly bomb blast at Bangkok's Erawan religious shrine.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852349-is-foreigner-arrest-a-breakthrough-moment-for-thai-police/

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BANGKOK BLAST
Police seek arrest warrants against three more foreigners
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Police are seeking arrest warrants against three more foreigners suspected of being involved in Bangkok bomb attacks and having connection with the bomb suspect arrested in Nong Chok on Saturday.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852350-bangkok-blast-police-seek-arrest-warrants-against-three-more-foreigners/

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NCPO 'mea culpa' over using wrong photo in bomb case
PRAVIT ROJANAPHRUK
THE NATION

BANGKOK: -- NATIONAL Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) spokesman Colonel Winthai Suvari has admitted that his staff mistakenly broadcast the wrong photograph - what appeared to be a bomb-filled vest - when he announced on Saturday night the arrest of the foreign suspect allegedly involved in the deadly Erawan Shrine bombing.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852351-ncpo-mea-culpa-over-using-wrong-photo-in-bomb-case/

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CHALK TALK
Cutting class hours needs to be well thought out
CHULARAT SAENGPASSA

BANGKOK: -- STARTING IN November, classes at more than 3,500 schools across the country will finish at 2pm each day.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852352-chalk-talk-cutting-class-hours-needs-to-be-well-thought-out/

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Italy's Eni finds 'supergiant' natural gas field off Egypt

ROME (AP) — The Italian energy company Eni SpA announced Sunday it has discovered a "supergiant" natural gas field off Egypt, describing it as the "largest-ever" found in the Mediterranean Sea.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852353-italys-eni-finds-supergiant-natural-gas-field-off-egypt/

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White House says Mount McKinley to be renamed Denali
By JOSH LEDERMAN and MARK THIESSEN


WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama will change the name of North America's tallest mountain peak from Mount McKinley to Denali, the White House said Sunday, a major symbolic gesture to Alaska Natives on the eve of the president's historic visit to Alaska.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852354-white-house-says-mount-mckinley-to-be-renamed-denali/

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Activists say IS damages ancient temple in Syria's Palmyra
By SARAH EL DEEB

BEIRUT (AP) — Islamic State militants in Syria severely damaged the Bel Temple, considered one of the greatest sites of the ancient world, in a massive explosion Sunday, activists said.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852355-activists-say-is-damages-ancient-temple-in-syrias-palmyra/

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Poland's mixed feelings over memorial to rescuers of Jews
By VANESSA GERA

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — As a Catholic Pole, Elka shouldn't even have been in the ghetto of Czestochowa, in southern Poland. But the nanny was so devoted to the 12-year-old Jewish boy she had raised since infancy that she refused to leave. She ended up being sent to the Treblinka death camp — where she was murdered with the Jews.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852356-polands-mixed-feelings-over-memorial-to-rescuers-of-jews/

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'Awakenings' author, neurologist Oliver Sacks dies at 82
By MALCOLM RITTER

NEW YORK (AP) — There was the blind man who had the disastrous experience of regaining his sight. The surgeon who developed a sudden passion for music after being struck by lightning. And most famously, the man who mistook his wife for a hat.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852358-awakenings-author-neurologist-oliver-sacks-dies-at-82/

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6 San Quentin inmates ill with Legionnaires' disease

SACRAMENTO, California (AP) — Prison officials say they have confirmed six San Quentin State Prison inmates are ill with Legionnaires' disease.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852359-6-san-quentin-inmates-ill-with-legionnaires-disease/

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Police say Bangkok bombing suspect is not cooperating
NATTASUDA ANUSONDISAI, Associated Press
JOCELYN GECKER, Associated Press

BANGKOK (AP) — Thai police said Sunday the man arrested in connection with Bangkok's deadly bombing was being uncooperative, possibly not telling the truth to interrogators and would remain in military custody for at least seven days.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852360-police-say-bangkok-bombing-suspect-is-not-cooperating/

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Pope Francis a stranger to the US in many ways
By RACHEL ZOLL

NEW YORK (AP) — When Pope Francis sets foot on the tarmac at Andrews Air Force Base near Washington on Sept. 22, it won't just be his first time in the United States as pontiff. It will be his first time in the country — ever in his life.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852361-pope-francis-a-stranger-to-the-us-in-many-ways/

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Yuan's depreciation does not hinder Chinese from traveling. Not yet, at least

SYDNEY: -- China's currency devaluation and slowing economic growth have caused turmoil in world financial markets, but they have not really bothered Chinese tourists. Not yet, at least.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852369-yuans-depreciation-does-not-hinder-chinese-from-traveling-not-yet-at-least/

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US horror filmmaker Wes Craven dies

LOS ANGELES: -- American horror film director Wes Craven, creator of the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, has died aged 76.

Full storyhttp://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/852382-us-horror-filmmaker-wes-craven-dies/