Page 14 - Thailand

Thailand Open 2023: Lakshya Sen goes down against world No. 5 Vitidsarn

India's challenge at the Thailand Open 2023 badminton tournament came to an end on Saturday after Lakshya Sen went down fighting in the men's singles event, here

Elections in India, Turkey and Thailand show democracy is not dead

Nevertheless, the last week has been full of reminders that, even in an age when democracy seemed to be in retreat, voters retain the power to prevent their countries from collapsing into autocracy

What lies ahead for Thailand after dramatic opposition election win?

But the exact shape of the new government is less clear as post-election coalition talks and behind-the-scene negotiations take centre stage

'Bangkok Spring' sets up showdown over role of monarchy in Thailand

Pita Limjaroenrat, the 42-year-old Harvard-educated leader of Move Forward, staked his claim to becoming Thailand's prime minister after his party won the most seats

Thailand's pro-democracy groups dominate vote after decade of military rule

Emerging as the biggest winner of the night, Move Forward leader Pita Limjaroenrat was greeted Sunday evening by supporters shouting "Prime minister! prime minister! prime minister!"

Thailand's opposition takes early lead in vote count in general election

Vote counting was underway on Sunday in Thailand's general election, touted as a pivotal chance for change nine years after incumbent Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha first came to power in a 2014 coup. He is now running against the daughter of the politician who is the military's top nemesis. The polls closed at 5 pm and some results were expected in early evening, with a fuller picture coming later Sunday night. Thai elections use paper ballots that are counted publicly at polling stations. The opposition Pheu Thai Party, headed by Paetongtarn Shinawatra, is widely predicted to win at least a healthy plurality of the seats in the 500-member lower House. After casting her ballot, Paetongtarn said every vote is important for effecting change in Thailand and that she has high hopes for the final result. But who heads the next government won't by decided by Sunday's vote alone. The prime minister will be selected in July in a joint session of the House and the 250-seat Senate. The

Thailand polls today: Voters call for change in military-dominated kingdom

As Thailand prepares for elections on Sunday, young voters spearhead 'earth-shaking' calls for change in the military-dominated kingdom, reported CNN

Indian team to take part in IIHF Ice Hockey Women's Asia and Oceania C'ship

Tsewang Chuskit will captain the India squad with Dr Noor Jahan, a conservationist by training, in charge of the goal

Thailand targets 2 million Indian tourists in 2023, same as pre-Covid

In 2022, India was the second largest source of tourists to Thailand after Malaysia. Almost a million Indians visited Thailand last year out of a total of over 11 million foreign visitors

Sri Lanka to fast-track trade pact with Thailand amid economic crisis

Debt-stricken Sri Lanka is fast-tracking efforts to seal a stalled trade pact with Thailand in order to boost trade and tourism, and improve the foreign currency shortage that has led to its worst economic crisis, a government minister said on Tuesday. Sri Lanka began talks with Thailand on a free trade agreement in 2016, held two rounds of discussions in 2018, and the latest last month. But government spokesman Bandula Gunawardena said there's been a huge delay and Sri Lanka is now determined to sign the agreement before the end of March. The trade pact aims to boost two-way trade from $550 million to $1.5 billion. Sri Lanka is also in talks with neighbouring India and China to reach trade agreements. The country is bankrupt and has suspended repayment of its $51 billion foreign debt, of which $28 billion must be repaid by 2027. Gunawardena said the agreement with Thailand would help Sri Lanka to boost trade, tourism and investment and help resolve its foreign currency shortage.

Amid backlog, now Indians can apply for US visa from other countries

Earlier, the US had launched initiatives like including scheduling special interviews for first time applicants and increasing strength of consular staff

Thai economy continued to recover in December 2022: Bank of Thailand

The country's economy continued to improve in the final quarter of 2022 from the previous quarter due to increasing foreign tourist arrivals, which bolstered services and private consumption growth

'Ready to forge development partnerships with India', says Thailand PM

Prayut Chan-o-cha called on all developing nations to carry on the momentum of the successful outcomes of COP27

RT-PCR to be mandatory for passengers from 5 countries, says Mandaviya

Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Saturday said RT-PCR test for the detection of COVID-19 would be made mandatory for passengers from China, Japan, South Korea, Singapore and Thailand for their travel to India. Any passenger from these countries found symptomatic or testing positive for coronavirus would be quarantined, he said. "Passengers from China, Japan, Singapore and Bangkok (Thailand) are being monitored through the 'Air Suvidha' portal," Mandaviya told reporters. In view of the pandemic situation, passengers of flights from China, Japan, South Korea, Singapore and Bangkok are required to upload their RT-PCR report in advance. Even after landing in India, they will undergo thermal screening, he said. "We have issued an order for them to be quarantined in the country if found positive or with fever," the minister said. With China and other countries witnessing a surge in Covid cases, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday cautioned against complacency, called for

Thai navy search for 31 sailors after ship sinks in Gulf of Thailand

Thai navy ships and helicopters searched on Monday for more than 30 sailors still missing more than 17 hours after their warship sank in rough seas in the Gulf of Thailand. As of Monday afternoon, 75 sailors from the HTMS Sukhothai corvette had been rescued and 31 were still missing, the navy said. The high waves that caused the accident had lessened since Sunday night's sinking, but were still high enough to endanger small boats, the navy said. A rescued crew member interviewed by Thai PBS television said he had to float in the sea for three hours before he was rescued. He said the ship was buffeted by waves 3 metres (10 feet) high as it was sinking on Sunday night, complicating rescue efforts. The waves are still high and we cannot search for them from the horizontal line. We have to fly the helicopters and search for them from a bird's eye view instead, navy spokesman Adm. Pokkrong Monthatphalin told Thai PBS. Eleven of the rescued sailors were being treated in a hospital. The

Thai navy ship sinks in Gulf of Thailand; rescue underway for sailors

A Thai navy ship sunk in the Gulf of Thailand and ships and helicopters were working Monday to rescue sailors from the water. As of midmorning, 75 sailors had been rescued and 31 were still in the water, the navy said. Strong winds blew seawater onto the HTMS Sukhothai corvette and knocked out its electrical system Sunday evening. The Royal Thai Navy dispatched three frigates and two helicopters with mobile pumping machines to try to assist the disabled ship by removing the seawater but it couldn't do so because of the strong winds. The loss of power allowed more seawater to flow into the vessel, causing it to list and sink. It occurred while the warship was on patrol at sea 32 kilometres (20 miles) from the pier at Bangsaphan district in Prachuap Khiri Khan province. While northern and central Thailand are seeing their coldest temperatures of the year, far southern Thailand has been experiencing storms and flooding in recent days. Ships were warned to stay ashore.

Tesla launches sales in Thailand, aims to compete with China's BYD

Tesla has launched sales in Thailand, offering its popular Model 3 and Model Y at prices aimed at competing with rivals like China's BYD. The company staged a glitzy showcase of its plans Wednesday at Bangkok's Siam Paragon mall. Online purchases have begun, with plans to deliver vehicles to buyers in the first quarter of next year. Southeast Asia's market of more than 600 million consumers is increasingly a focus for automakers looking to expand sales, especially of electric vehicles. Tesla said the vehicles will have the latest satellite navigation systems and other features such as over-the-air software updates. The company is selling its Model 3 Long Range and Performance models. The Model Y will be sold in three versions to meet the specific demands of the EV lifestyle for every Thai driver," the company said. It said prices will range from 1.76 million Thai baht-2.5 million baht (USD 50,000-USD 71,000). The price is much lower than we expected. As far as the after-sale serv

Thailand to tax stock trading, 0.05% levy for starters in 2023

A levy of 0.05% will be imposed on stock trading next year, before it's raised to 0.1%, according to a finance ministry statement

Removing vaccination mandate for incoming tourists correct move: Experts

With over 90% of population being vaccinated, it is okay at a policy level to relax the mandatory vaccination norm for entering India, they say

A narrow window of opportunity

Thailand and China are at risk of growing old before they grow rich; India must grow its GDP at 8-9 per cent or more to avoid that fate