China coal mine accident kills at least 10
Six missing as authorities pledge to launch more safety checksAn excavator loads coal onto a train in Pingdingshan in Henan province of central China. (Reuters File Photo)SHANGHAI - At least 10 people have died and six are missing after a coal mine accident in the city of Pingdingshan in central China, the local emergency management agency said on Saturday. A safety inspection campaign in coal-rich Pingdingshan, in Henan province, could disrupt coal production there and strain coal supplies. Last November, coal prices in China jumped after the country’s cabinet vowed to ramp up safety checks as deaths from accidents in Shanxi, the top coal producing region, had risen sharply. The Pingdingshan emergency management bureau said in a statement that the accident occurred around 2.55pm local time on Friday due to a coal and gas outburst at a mine owned by Pingdingshan Tianan Coal Mining.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 13, 2024 19:44 UTC
Bangkok Post - Stingy on students
Intestinal length: The length of the human intestines is much more like that of herbivorous animals than that of carnivores. Humans tend to have intestines that are 10 to 11 times their body length. How did humans end up eating meat? Scientists believe that it was climate change that originally caused the shift towards meat eating. Even once our early ancestors began eating meat, they primarily scavenged the leftovers of larger predators instead of hunting for themselves.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 13, 2024 11:35 UTC
Bangkok Post - Why so unpatriotic?
Re: “No delay to digital wallet plan”, (BP, Jan 10). There has never been so much double talk on the legitimacy of the government’s proposed digital wallet plan in the media. An example of a critical problem was when Thailand was facing financial bankruptcy in 1997 and had to borrow from the IMF. Unfortunately, it is impossible for the council to define in a clear-cut way what is a critical problem. The alternative is to drop the plan, which is politically suicidal, after drumming up great hopes.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 12, 2024 05:40 UTC
Innobic sells entire AMOLH stake
Innobic sells entire AMOLH stakeBuranin Rattanasombat, chairman of Innobic (Asia)Innobic (Asia) Co, the life sciences arm of national oil and gas conglomerate PTT Plc, has sold its entire stake in its pharmaceutical firm to restructure, aiming to refocus in the segment. Innobic holds shares in AMOLH through its subsidiary Alvogen Emerging Markets Holdings. It holds a 37% share in Lotus Pharmaceutical. Up to 85% of the earnings came from Lotus Pharmaceutical. Innobic is preparing to build a 1.3-billion-baht production facility of active pharmaceutical ingredients, which contain active ingredients able to relieve illnesses.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 11, 2024 11:32 UTC
New AI-powered facial recognition system reads vital signs
Hitoshi Imaoka, a fellow with IT and network technologies company NEC, has unveiled a new system that combines AI with facial recognition technology to take vital signs in elderly individuals, winning a CES 2024 Innovation Award in Artificial Intelligence.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 11, 2024 09:00 UTC
Land rights upgrade to cover 22 million rai
(Photo: Ministry of Agriculture)Over 22 million rai covered by Sor Por Kor 4-01 documents, widely known as land rights for the poor, will be upgraded to land title deeds for agriculture within five years, according to Agriculture Minister Thamanat Prompow. The ministry hopes to convert the status of 22 million rai of land under its responsibility within five years. Capt Thamanat said that more than 200,000 people have registered for the land title upgrade and that the Agricultural Land Reform Office branches in each province are ready to support them. Some 22 million rai of Sor Por Kor land is now occupied by 1.6 million families. In 1995, then-agriculture minister Suthep Thaugsuban was accused of overseeing the granting of Sor Por Kor land to wealthy and connected people in Phuket.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 11, 2024 05:30 UTC
Ecuador TV hostage recounts 'surreal' armed takeover
An Ecuadorean journalist who was held hostage by gunmen during the takeover of a Guayaquil TV station and obliged to appear on camera at gunpoint told Reuters on Wednesday (January 10) the experience was "surreal."
Source:Bangkok Post
January 11, 2024 04:50 UTC
India cracks down on offshore crypto exchanges
Bitfinex, HTX and Kucoin are among eight exchanges whose apps are no longer available on the App Store in India. The move marks a significant escalation of India’s crackdown on offshore crypto platforms, which started on Dec 28 when authorities notified nine exchanges that they were suspected of misconduct. Indian crypto traders had already began moving deposits to local exchanges that abide by the country’s regulations, fearful of losing access to their funds. In 2022, authorities delivered a major blow to local crypto exchanges by introducing a tax on transactions that caused trading volumes to plummet. Local exchanges had complained that the 1% levy drove Indian crypto traders to offshore platforms that did not impose it, further hurting their revenues.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 10, 2024 20:58 UTC
Govt gets green light to borrow to finance digital handout plan: minister
Govt gets green light to borrow to finance digital handout plan: ministerDeputy Finance Minister Julapun Amornvivat welcomes supporters of the digital wallet scheme at the Pheu Thai Party's headquarters in October last year. (Photo: Somchai Poomlard)The government’s plan to fund a 500 billion baht cash handout with special borrowing legislation got the green light from its legal adviser, clearing a key hurdle to Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin’s controversial stimulus programme. The Council of State said it is within the government’s power to enact the borrowing bill for the cash stimulus scheme, Deputy Finance Minister Julapun Amornvivat told reporters on Monday. The so-called digital wallet plan could still face legal challenges from those opposed to the handout. A committee tasked to oversee the cash handout programme will meet soon to discuss the draft bill and plan the timeline of cash distribution, Mr Julapun said.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 08, 2024 20:40 UTC
Bangkok Post - Gender not important
Gender not importantRe: "Robbery done to 'fund revenge plot'", (BP, Jan 6). In regard to your recent article about a "transgender woman" robbing a gold shop in Sadao district, I fail to understand why her gender identity is an important issue. This is especially unfortunate in the article's final sentence which mentions that the police "obtained clues about her whereabouts, confirming her transgender identity". What does this even mean, and again, why is it important? This is the same problem with headlines that read, "Hmong man robs store", when there would never be a headline about "central Thai man robs store".
Source:Bangkok Post
January 08, 2024 12:42 UTC
Thaksin's daughter denies she will soon join cabinet
Thaksin's daughter denies she will soon join cabinetPheu Thai Party leader Paetongtarn Shinawatra inspects universal healthcare service at Chaturaphakphiman Hospital in Chaturaphak Phiman district of Roi Et on Sunday. (Photo: Pheu Thai Party)Pheu Thai Party leader Paetongtarn Shinawatra on Sunday denied that she would be appointed a cabinet minister amid speculation about a cabinet reshuffle. The Pheu Thai leader also declined to comment about cabinet posts involving three Pheu Thai ministers who were speculated to resign as list-MPs. She said the matter should be addressed by the prime minister because she had nothing with this matter. Deputy Prime Minister and Pheu Thai heavyweight Phumtham Wechayachai on Sunday reiterated that there would be no cabinet reshuffle to include Ms Paetongtarn in the cabinet or nominate her as the prime minister.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 07, 2024 13:32 UTC
Indian solar mission reaches destination
The Aditya-L1 solar probe is seen at an Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) facility prior to its launch. (Photo: ISRO)BENGALURU - India’s first solar mission, Aditya-L1, has reached its destination within the anticipated four-month timeframe, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Saturday. Named after the Hindi word for the sun, the mission by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) follows the first successful landing of any kind on the moon’s south pole, after a Russian attempt failed. The mission to study the sun is among several projects that ISRO has lined up through the year. Key among them is its first human space mission and a low-Earth orbit observatory system jointly developed with NASA, called Nisar.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 06, 2024 23:01 UTC
NTT Data renews vow for Asian leadership
NTT Data recently introduced its new operating model, effective from April 2024, along with a new executive. The company said the merger of NTT Data with NTT Ltd highlights its commitment to maintaining leadership in the IT and technology sectors. This approach enables NTT Data to combine global capabilities with local expertise, fostering close proximity and strong client relationships, he said. The merger also turned NTT Data into a financial powerhouse, gaining access to both capital and lots of cutting-edge innovation, Mr Dubey said. MARKET LEADERThailand holds a significant position as a top 15 market globally for NTT Data and its business overseas.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 06, 2024 11:42 UTC
Bangkok Post - Covid strikes again
As so many have noted, the total fatalities in these holiday periods are no more or less than the annual average. Figures for the number of drunk driving detections are listed, but with no information on whether those drivers were allowed to continue their journey or locked up. It is a troubling acceptance of this ongoing tragedy that many Thais seem to equate road deaths with the randomness of lightning strikes. We paid for my Thai wife's daughter to do a one-week course, which included a mere 1.5 hours on trafficked roads. In Australia, learner drivers have to do 120 hours of logged driving in all conditions with a fully licensed driver.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 05, 2024 23:03 UTC