Thailand PM fined for not wearing face mask; Indians not allowed to visit country from May 1
Bangkok, Apr 26: Thailand Prime Minister Gen. Prayut Chan-o-cha was fined 6,000 baht (Rs 14,270) on Monday for not wearing a mask, as his government struggled to combat a new wave of coronavirus cases in the country.
Thailand, which has barred the entry of travellers from India, with the exception of Thai citizens, from May 1, on Monday announced 2,048 new infections and eight new deaths, the fourth consecutive day with over 2,000 new COVID-19 cases.
Gen. Prayut was fined as he did not wear a mask during a meeting with his vaccine procurement advisers on Monday, the Bangkok Post reported.
The Thai capital Bangkok has made mask-wearing compulsory from Monday.
Thai officials are imposing fines of up to 20,000 baht (Rs 47,610) on people who fail to wear face masks in public in 48 provinces, as the government in struggled to cope with a new wave of coronavirus cases that is straining the country's medical system.
Bangkok Governor Aswin Kwanmuang posted on Facebook on Monday that he had filed a complaint against the prime minister with the police.
City officials swing into action after social media criticised the Prime Minister. His Facebook page showed him sitting with his face unprotected at the head of a meeting table while everyone else was wearing a mask.
In his Facebook post in the afternoon, Police General Aswin wrote Gen Prayut had asked him to check whether he had done wrong.
I told him he had violated a Bangkok Metropolitan Administration announcement, which requires everyone in the capital to wear a mask at all times while outside his or her home or residence. Violation results in a fine up to 20,000 baht under Section 51 of the 2015 Disease Control Act, he wrote.
Since investigators may determine the fine for the offence based on a fining regulation, Gen Prayut was asked to pay 6,000 baht, the Bangkok Post reported.
Meanwhile, Thailand will close its border to travellers from India, with the exception of Thai citizens, from Saturday, the Thai embassy in New Delhi announced on Sunday.
The embassy said it will not issue certificates of entry for non-Thai nationals until further notice. From May 1, only Thai nationals will be able to enter Thailand from India, the mission announced on Sunday.
"The issuance of Certificate of Entry (COEs) for non-Thai nationals who will be arriving in Thailand from India from 1 May 2021 onwards will be suspended until further notice," the embassy said in a press release.
"Therefore, the Embassy will not accommodate non-Thai nationals on the flights on 1, 15 and 22 May 2021," it said.
Thailand has reported a total of 57,508 COVID-19 cases and 148 deaths.
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Rahul Gandhi unveils 5 poll guarantees for Kerala, targets PM Modi and CM Vijayan
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): In a high-stakes campaign here, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday combined five populist electoral pledges with a fierce assault on Kerala’s ruling Communists, alleging Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is being "controlled" by Narendra Modi in the same manner Donald Trump exerts influence over the Prime Minister.
Speaking at the valedictory function of the state-wide ‘Puthuyuga Yatra’ led by Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan as part of the Congress-led UDF’s preparations for the upcoming Assembly elections, Gandhi said, “The same way Trump is controlling Modi, the Prime Minister is controlling the Chief Minister of Kerala."
Announcing five guarantees for the people of poll-bound Kerala, he said, “The first guarantee is free travel for all women in KSRTC buses."
The other guarantees announced by him were a monthly financial assistance of Rs 1,000 for college-going girl students, increase of welfare pension to Rs 3,000 per month, a new health insurance scheme worth Rs 25 lakh coverage for every household in the name of former chief minister Oommen Chandy and interest-free loans of up to Rs 5 lakh for youngsters who want to start businesses.
In addition, he said a dedicated ministry would be created for the welfare of senior citizens.
Launching a scathing attack on Pinarayi Vijayan, Gandhi said PM Modi is "controlling the Chief Minister".
He alleged that even CPI(M) workers were aware of this and would admit it.
“I want to understand why the CBI and ED take action against opposition politicians but do not take action against the Chief Minister of Kerala,” he said.
Gandhi said there were 36 cases against him and that he was interrogated by the Enforcement Directorate for 55 hours.
“Why has the ED taken no action against the Chief Minister and his family? The reason is they are working together,” he alleged.
According to him, in Kerala, it was not the CPI(M) and BJP, but the “CJP” that was working together to defeat the UDF.
Gandhi also accused the LDF government of "functioning in the interests of big corporates".
“This is the most corporatist government Kerala has ever seen. It is against the interests of workers, small businesses and farmers and is working for the interests of the biggest businessmen,” he alleged.
He said the CPI should be renamed the “Corporate Party of India”.
“At least stand for what you say you are,” he said.
Referring to the alleged gold theft at Sabarimala temple, Gandhi claimed that the investigation was prevented from reaching the top leadership.
“Don’t worry, we will take strict action against those who dishonoured Sabarimala."
He also alleged that the LDF government had created a serious unemployment situation in the state.
“Modi has destroyed the employment system in India and the CPI(M) has destroyed it in Kerala,” he said.
Taking on the Centre, Gandhi alleged that the Prime Minister had “let the country down”.
“He has betrayed the country,” Gandhi said.
He said he was using the word deliberately and believed the Prime Minister had "betrayed the country" by signing the trade deal with the United States.
Gandhi claimed that the consequences of the agreement would be borne by the people of India.
“No Prime Minister before him opened our agriculture to American agriculture. Large American mechanised firms are going to compete with small Indian labour-intensive firms,” he said.
He said the deal would lead to devastation for farmers cultivating crops such as cotton, corn, pulses, fruits and soybeans.
Gandhi also claimed that the Prime Minister had "compromised" the country’s energy security.
“Imagine the Prime Minister of India committing to President Trump that we will buy oil from where America wants us to. Imagine a country as powerful as ours having to take permission from the US if we want to buy oil from Russia,” he said.
Referring to the trade deal, he said the US could extract data from India, which he described as the "most valuable asset" in the era of artificial intelligence.
“AI is all about data and India, with 1.4 billion people, is the largest producer of data. All of it has been signed away by Prime Minister Modi,” he alleged.
Earlier in the day, during a dialogue with the Information Technology (IT) Fraternity at Technopark here, Gandhi said that if India had said that its data was the most valuable in the world, there would have been no taxes on agriculture or on small and medium businesses.
He claimed that, except him speaking out against it, there was "not a peep" in India when its data was "handed over" to the US as part of the deal signed by the central government.
During his interaction with the tech professionals, the LoP in Lok Sabha also said that China has built a "superb and unmatched" industrial system in the world, but the neighbouring nation was "coercive and undemocratic".
He was also concerned that China dominated the electric motors and batteries technology which saw wide usage in the Ukraine-Russia war and the ongoing conflict in West Asia.
"That is a huge problem," he said, adding that he was confident that if aligned properly, an Indian company can take on the Chinese in that space.
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