Cabinet approves funds to tackle drought and floods

The cabinet on Thursday approved an additional central fund of 11.8 billion baht to tackle drought and flooding nationwide, deputy government spokeswoman Rachada Dhnadirek said.

The fund, which will be reserved for emergency purposes, will be granted to finance 14 projects run by five agencies to fight drought and flooding across the country, she said.

Of the amount, 763 million baht will be allocated to eight projects being undertaken by the Royal Irrigation Department while 10 billion baht will finance two projects by the Interior Ministry.

The Department of Groundwater Resources will receive 884.5 million baht for its two projects whereas the army will be given 5.8 million baht for it is pursuing.

Another 146 million baht will be allocated for a project under the Marine Department's supervision, Ms Rachada said.

Somkiat Prajamwong, secretary-general of the Office of National Water Resources, said the additional central fund under the current 2021 fiscal budget is in line with action plans proposed under the national strategy to ease drought and flooding.

Meanwhile, the cabinet yesterday granted the debt-ridden Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA) permission to seek a loan of more than 7.8 billion baht to boost its liquidity, with the Finance Ministry acting as a loan guarantor, said deputy government spokeswoman Traisuree Taisaranakul.

Of the loan totalling 7.8 billion baht, 3.2 billion baht will be used to pay for fuel costs while 1.6 billion baht will be spent on repair and maintenance.

The rest will be spent on boosting liquidity, said deputy government spokeswoman Traisuree.

According to the Transport Ministry, the BMTA, which operates bus services in Bangkok, had accumulated debts of 122.1 billion baht as of Nov 30, last year.