Showing 1 - 10 of 278
English skills receive boost
News, Sirikul Bunnag, Published on 06/07/2010
» The government is urged to announce English as its second official language to spur students to achieve English proficiency and help the nation place itself on the road map to the Asean Community in 2015.
Science prodigies
Learningpost, Purich Trivitayakhun, Published on 24/08/2010
» At Suvarnabhumi airport one late afternoon last month, throngs of teachers, students, parents and journalists were waiting for the arrival of the five Thai gold medallists who were returning from the International Physics Olympiad (Ipho) in Croatia. The champions were greeted by Deputy Education Minister Chaiyos Jiramethakorn, photo sessions and banners welcoming the triumphant students.
Flute prodigy returns to Bangkok for special concert
Learningpost, Published on 24/08/2010
» Flute prodigy Yae Ram Park will be reunited with her former classmates at Shrewsbury International School in September when she returns to Bangkok to perform in a special concert.
'Vuvuseika' propels Thais to ITC win
Learningpost, Purich Trivitayakhun, Published on 21/09/2010
» Recently, at the FedEx Express/Junior Achievement International Trade Challenge 2010 (ITC 2010) regional finals in Singapore, a pair of Thai students took first prize with their unique "vuvuseika".
NYU Tisch Asia launch Professional Certificate Programs
Published on 22/09/2011
» New York University Tisch Asia School of the Arts, Singapore to launch four Professional Certificate Programs.
Pattaya to have hi-speed trains
Published on 06/09/2012
» The Thai government will open bidding for the first phase of a hi-speed rail project linking Bangkok to Pattaya. Under the plan, the first four routes will cover 250 kilometers linking Bangkok to Phitsanulok, Nakhon Ratchasima and Hua Hin as well as to Pattaya. Construction on all the four routes will begin at the same time with the aim of opening the new track network in 2018. Government approval will be necessary for the international bidding process expected to be completed next year. China, Japan, South Korea and France have all expressed strong interest in bidding for the routes. The plan aims to boost the country’s economy by reducing energy costs by 400 billion baht as Thailand focuses more on rail travel at the expense of road transport. At the moment, rail accounts for only two percent of all traffic and roads for 80 percent. The price of oil internationally is expected to double within the next five years with likely big increases in the cost of petrol. Pansak Vinyaratn, chief adviser to the prime minister, said that hi-speed trains are necessary to ensure solid growth of the country’s economy as Thailand would otherwise lose competitiveness in the long run. Second-phase construction would mean that Bangkok would link by hi-speed rail to Chiang Mai, Nong Khai, Rayong and Hat Yai by 2022. The new railway networks will serve both passengers and cargo, including faster transport of agricultural goods which tend to deteriorate if carried long distances by slow lorries. The details of the new routes, including the exact location of stations, have not yet been decided. Pattaya’s tourism industry is expected to gain hugely with the arrival of a 20 minute fast train service from Bangkok or Suvarnabhumi to the seaside resort. A City Hall source told Pattaya Today, “The current rail station is far out of the city in east Pattaya, so we are hoping that the railhead for the new hi-speed trains will be nearer the downtown area.” Another suggestion is to build a monorail track to take passengers directly from the hi-speed train to the centres of Pattaya and Jomtien. The latest rail project will be a huge step forward in enabling Pattaya to triple its receipts from tourism by the end of the decade or soon afterwards. Other infrastructure improvements already agreed to or in the pipeline are a beach reclamation project, more by-pass roads and tunnels, a better waste disposal system, increased supplies of potable water and several “green” projects. Critics of the scheme caution that the Pattaya authorities must ensure that the infrastructure improvements are in place before the deluge of visitors expected once the hi-speed train is operational. “Thousands may arrive and depart by train but they will need to use the roads during their stay. The traffic queues and pollution could easily get a lot worse if the timing is wrong,” said a prominent Pattaya businessman and estate agent. With the advent of the Asean Economic Community in 2015, a free-trade area of 10 countries in the region, economists say that the hi-speed rail plans will enhance Thailand as the logistics hub of South East Asia with all the basic infrastructure such as inland transport and rail and deep seaports to carry the expected increase in freight across national frontiers. Also scheduled for completion in 2018 is Dawei port in Myanmar, a deep water facility with major Thai funding, which will speed up the transport of goods between Asean countries and beyond to India.
S. Korea on alert for typhoon
AFP, Published on 16/09/2012
» South Korea was Sunday bracing for the arrival of its third major typhoon in two months, with school classes cancelled, ferry routes closed and thousands of ships sheltering in port.
Fake cards net 10 million baht
Published on 19/09/2012
» Following a stakeout by Pattaya police and investigators from Thai Farmers Bank, two Estonian nationals were arrested and charged with using fake credit cards. Mr Prijatkin Maksim and Mr Melnik Aleksandr, both in their early 20s, were said to have come directly to Pattaya after arriving in Thailand on tourist visas last August. They were in possession of 40 fake credit cards from Scandinavia, UK, US and South Korea and extracted cash from ATM machines and as well as having a spending spree in upmarket malls. Their last residence was in Soi 13, Thepprasit Road, where police found a huge pile of incriminating evidence suggesting that the scam had succeeded in stealing 10 million baht.
Santos seeks World Cup farewell gift for Greeks
AFP, Published on 13/05/2014
» Greece will create a little bit of history in Brazil in June and reach the World Cup knockout stages for the first time, coach Fernando Santos has confidently predicted.
Park the bus! World Cup slogans go down like a flat tyre
AFP, Published on 20/05/2014
» As World Cup fever mounts in Brazil, the unveiling of slogans to be splashed on team buses has gone down like a flat tyre.