Government spokesman Chai Watcharong said on Monday that Thailand was the largest agricultural exporter among ASEAN member states and the seventh largest exporter in the world in 2023. Chai said more FTA will expand the export market further as agricultural export to countries with free trade agreements with Thailand rose by 4 percent last year and is worth 19.5 billion US dollars.

Eighty one percent of prisoners, or 350,000 inmates, end up in prison due to drugs related convictions and communities must play and active role in drugs prevention and treatment, said Somsak Thepsuthin, chairman of Thai Health Promotion Foundation. Community-based treatment must be supported, he said, adding that Thai prison system can only accommodate 200,000 prisoners, and is currently congested.

Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has outlined Thailand's goal to become the leading aviation hub in the region, catering to over 150 million international passengers annually and becoming a top 10 global air cargo distribution center. The plan aims to elevate Suvarnabhumi Airport's global ranking from 68th to one of the world's top 20 airports within five years. The expansion plan for Suvarnabhumi Airport involves increasing capacity from 60 to 150 million passengers by 2030, with ongoing developments such as a third runway in 2024, a fourth runway thereafter, and additional terminals on the east-west and south sides. For Don Mueang Airport, a focus on a point-to-point model is set to boost capacity from 30 million to 50 million passengers by 2030. This involves renovating existing terminals, expanding Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 for domestic passengers, building a new international terminal, and creating a commercial Junction Building. The airport will also be connected to the SRT Red Line and establish a Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul center in collaboration with the private sector. For Phuket Airport, the government plans to construct a second airport, the Andaman Airport, with a capacity of 40 million passengers. Additionally, there are plans to develop the Sarasin Bridge to enhance road traffic capacity and expand Phuket International's capacity from 12.5 million to 18 million by 2030. Currently, the Seaplane & Ferry Terminal development project is underway to facilitate high-end passengers, connecting to destinations such as Koh Samui, Koh Chang, and Hua Hin. For Chiang Mai Airport, the government plans to construct an international passenger terminal and renovate the existing passenger terminal to accommodate an increased number of tourists, aiming to handle up to 16.5 million passengers per year by 2029. Additionally, there are plans to build a second airport for Chiang Mai, named "Lanna Airport," with the capacity to accommodate an additional 20 million passengers per year. Furthermore, the government will elevate airports nationwide by integrating modern passenger service technologies to enhance efficiency. There are also plans to optimize flight schedules, aircraft numbers and types, passenger tickets, and services. The government also aims to expand the maintenance industry into a hub for both commercial and private aircraft. It will establish a temperature-controlled cargo warehouse system (Cold Chain) to distribute goods to over 280 million people in Thailand, Malaysia, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam.

The Parliament's committee examining the fiscal 2024 bill rejected the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM)'s 950-million-baht request to buy a KA-32 multi-role helicopter from Russia, citing the department's recent acquisition of helicopters in the previous year and concerns about potential overpricing in the proposed purchase. Yutthapong Charasathien, deputy chair of the committee, explained that the committee voted 6-3 against the acquisition. He highlighted that the DDPM already possesses four Russian multi-role helicopters, which are still relatively new, with the last two delivered in August of last year. There is additional concern regarding the 950 million baht price tag, deemed excessively high when compared to the same helicopter being sold for no more than 500 million baht abroad. The four helicopters owned by the DDPM are currently stationed at an air force camp in Lopburi due to the lack of a proper facility in Bangkok. This arrangement means that in the event of a fire in high-rise buildings in the capital, it would take at least 45 minutes for the helicopters to reach the scene. Furthermore, these helicopters have never been utilized to extinguish fires in high-rises. Notably, the DDPM agency in Bangkok possesses four firefighting trucks capable of reaching higher places as well. Yutthapong pointed out that the DDPM's helicopters are primarily deployed to assist in extinguishing forest fires. However, he clarified that this is not the DDPM's direct responsibility, as the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment is tasked with this duty and has its own helicopters.

In an apparent tit-for-tat, the Agricultural Land Reform Office (ALRO) has decided to take legal action against Chaiwat Limlikhitaksorn, chief of the National Parks Office at the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, for allegedly removing demarcation stones from Sor Por Kor land around Khao Yai National Park.

People who received the disputed Sor Por Kor land on the fringes of Khao Yai National Park were not local residents, and they might be intending to build hotels and resorts instead of utilizing the land for farming, said Pheu Thai list-MP Nikhom Boonwiset. He said Sor Por Kor lands are designated for landless farmers, but some individuals who obtained the lands are not even from the area. He also highlighted that the disputed lands, which were designated as farmlands, have never been used for agricultural purposes before and are still teeming with plants and animals. His comments mirrored those of Chaiwat Limlikit-aksorn, the director of the National Park Office, who pointed out earlier in the month that some of the 2,900 disputed lands granted by the Agricultural Land Reform Office went to real estate developers. This includes the 29 rai in Pak Chong District that stretches along a waterway and rests on a 35-degree angle slope, which is typically not granted for agricultural use. Related agencies involved in the Khao Yao land dispute have already agreed that the disputed land in the "buffer zone" cannot be classified as Sor Por Kor land. According to Chaiwat, a forest buffer zone is marked 3 kilometers away from the boundary of a national park or a conserved forest. Nikhom, who is the deputy chair of Parliament's Committee on Land, Natural Resources, and Environment, suggests that the related agencies in the Khao Yao land dispute should resolve the issue using the One Map system. This system involves a single map with a detailed scale ratio of 1:4,000, serving as a reference for all government agencies. Completion of this system is expected within two months.

With claims of poor network quality and rising prices for access to networks making headlines, the Office of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) has been told to report within seven days on its progress on supervising True and Dtac after their recent merger.

Nipa Nirannoot, the Thai consul-general in Dubai, said many Thai women have been lured to work in massage parlours, but end up being forced into prostitution. Others work in online gambling or scam networks, lured with the promise of work in oil fields and abandoned once they arrive there, she said.

The Office of the Attorney General has decided to not indict military officers involved for premeditated murder of ethnic activist Chiyaphum Pasae in March 2017, said Cross Cultural Foundation reveals on Saturday. The Foundation said no reason was cited.

The Office of the Attorney General has ruled against indicting military officers accused of killing indigenous Lahu activist Chaiyaphum Pasae.