Commentary: Are preschoolers equipped to care for classroom pets?

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THE RIGHT LESSONS

Ultimately, when it comes to the child, the onus is on both the educators and parents to instil the right lessons.

My son grew up with our seven-year-old cat and has shown that he understands what it means to respect animals. But getting to this point required dedication on our part as parents, to supplement what they learn in school.

Credit goes to our cat too for being so patient with a toddler who sometimes gets a little carried away when hugging (more like squeezing) or petting her. Once, after my son learned about facial features in school, our cat was subjected to some accidental poking as he tried to point out her eyes, ears, nose, and mouth to us (“Where are her eyebrows?”).

I’ve had three late pets and believe me when I say my former charges wouldn’t have made it easy for us – and that’s exactly what I mean, not all animals are suitable for a life living in such close proximity to curious kids.

So, if class pets are brought in to either complement lessons or provide a forever home to rescue pets, the animal’s well-being should be given higher priority and importance.

Perhaps make pet care workshops compulsory for schools with class pets, with limits to the number of pets a centre can have, along with occasional checks to ensure the pet’s basic needs are met and it is not living under stress.  

As responsible adults, we should treat all living things with care and respect. Children, after all, look to us to show them the way.

It is only right we lead by example.

April Zara Chua is a freelance content developer and mother to a preschooler and 7-year-old cat. She was also formerly from the pet industry covering topics on responsible ownership, care, health, and welfare.

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Government eyes B11bn power subsidy

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Scheme would cover bills for four months

The government plans to allocate more than 11 billion baht to subsidise low-income earners for another four months to help with their power bills, starting in May.

However, the matter must be sent to the Election Commission (EC) for consideration before a final decision is made.

Speaking after Tuesday’s cabinet meeting, Caretaker Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said the government is trying its best to address the problem of costly electricity bills for households.

“As for political parties promising to cut power tariff rates, they should know that there are reasons and necessities as well as complicated details regarding the issue,” Gen Prayut said.

“Please trust in the government. We are trying our best,” Gen Prayut said, adding that a budget allocation of more than 11 billion baht is needed.

The cabinet has signed off on the subsidy so the matter will now rest in the hands of the EC, he said.

A naval officer holds a child dressed in a sailor’s uniform in front of the newly built HTMS ‘Chang’, which arrived at the Sattahip naval base from China on Tuesday. The new warship serving as a submarine tender will support HTMS ‘Ang Thong’ until the navy receives its S26T submarine order. (Photo: Nutthawat Wicheanbut)

Under Section 169 of the constitution, a budget allocation for emergencies approved by an outgoing cabinet after a House dissolution must be endorsed by the poll agency first.

“I assure you that the government will ensure fairness to all sectors that play a role in energy management as the government cannot invest solely and needs investment from the private sector.

“Everything must be in line with the law. The Energy Ministry has sent contracts [made with the private sector to produce power] to public prosecutors to consider. Several contracts have existed for a long time,” Gen Prayut said.

“We must be careful in spending the budget by focusing our attention on necessary targets. The government will do its best to look after vulnerable groups.”

The government has already provided a 3.2-billion-baht subsidy for vulnerable groups — such as low-income earners and households that consume fewer than 300 units of electricity per month from January to April. They get a cut-off from the fuel tariff (Ft) before the VAT calculation.

Government spokesman Anucha Burapachaisri fleshed out the subsidy plan, saying the power subsidy will be extended for another four months from May. It will apply to households that consume less than 300 units per month.

Those that consume 1-150 units a month will get a reduction of 92.04 satang per unit while those using 151-300 units will be given a reduction of 67.04 satang per unit, he said.

About 7.6 billion baht will be drawn from the 2023 budget for emergency purposes to finance the plan. About 18.36 million households will benefit.

Another way to help people with costly power bills is to give a reduction of 150 baht before VAT to households using no more than 500 units per month, valid for May only. The measure will need funds of no more than 3.5 billion baht from the 2023 budget, Mr Anucha said, adding that more than 23.4 million households will benefit.

The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) will also start lowering the Ft next month following a recommendation by a subcommittee responsible for its calculation.

According to Khomgrich Tantravanich, secretary-general of the ERC, the new rate will result in a seven-satang reduction in the price of electricity, from 4.77 baht a unit to 4.70 baht.

Mr Khomgrich said the ERC’s next move would be to issue the adjustment guidelines for Egat, the Metropolitan Electricity Authority, and the Provincial Electricity Authority ahead of next month’s billing cycle.

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Govt eyes B11bn power subsidy

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In: South-East Asia

Scheme would cover bills for 4 months

A naval officer holds a child dressed in a sailor's uniform in front of the newly built HTMS 'Chang', which arrived at the Sattahip naval base from China on Tuesday. The new warship serving as a submarine tender will support HTMS 'Ang Thong' until the navy receives its S26T submarine order. Nutthawat Wicheanbut
A naval officer holds a child dressed in a sailor’s uniform in front of the newly built HTMS ‘Chang’, which arrived at the Sattahip naval base from China on Tuesday. The new warship serving as a submarine tender will support HTMS ‘Ang Thong’ until the navy receives its S26T submarine order. Nutthawat Wicheanbut

The government plans to allocate more than 11 billion baht to subsidise low-income earners for another four months to help with their power bills, starting in May.

However, the matter must be sent to the Election Commission (EC) for consideration before a final decision is made.

Speaking after Tuesday’s cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said the government is trying its best to address the problem of costly electricity bills for households.

“As for political parties promising to cut power tariff rates, they should know that there are reasons and necessities as well as complicated details regarding the issue,” Gen Prayut said.

“Please trust in the government. We are trying our best,” Gen Prayut said, adding that a budget allocation of more than 11 billion baht is needed.

The cabinet has signed off on the subsidy so the matter will now rest in the hands of the EC, he said.

Under Section 169 of the constitution, a budget allocation for emergencies approved by an outgoing cabinet after a House dissolution must be endorsed by the poll agency first.

“I assure you that the government will ensure fairness to all sectors that play a role in energy management as the government cannot invest solely and needs investment from the private sector.

“Everything must be in line with the law. The Energy Ministry has sent contracts [made with the private sector to produce power] to public prosecutors to consider. Several contracts have existed for a long time,” Gen Prayut said.

“We must be careful in spending the budget by focusing our attention on necessary targets. The government will do its best to look after vulnerable groups.”

The government has already provided a 3.2-billion-baht subsidy for vulnerable groups — such as low-income earners and households that consume fewer than 300 units of electricity per month from January to April. They get a cut-off from the fuel tariff (Ft) before the VAT calculation.

Government spokesman Anucha Burapachaisri fleshed out the subsidy plan, saying the power subsidy will be extended for another four months from May. It will apply to households that consume less than 300 units per month.

Those that consume 1-150 units a month will get a reduction of 92.04 satang per unit while those using 151-300 units will be given a reduction of 67.04 satang per unit, he said.

About 7.6 billion baht will be drawn from the 2023 budget for emergency purposes to finance the plan. About 18.36 million households will benefit.

Another way to help people with costly power bills is to give a reduction of 150 baht before VAT to households using no more than 500 units per month, valid for May only. The measure will need funds of no more than 3.5 billion baht from the 2023 budget, Mr Anucha said, adding that more than 23.4 million households will benefit.

The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) will also start lowering the Ft next month following a recommendation by a subcommittee responsible for its calculation.

According to Khomgrich Tantravanich, secretary-general of the ERC, the new rate will result in a seven-satang reduction in the price of electricity, from 4.77 baht a unit to 4.70 baht.

Mr Khomgrich said the ERC’s next move would be to issue the adjustment guidelines for Egat, the Metropolitan Electricity Authority, and the Provincial Electricity Authority ahead of next month’s billing cycle.

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Uneven terrain, obstructed paths: This is how wheelchair users navigate public pavements in Singapore

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LACK OF ACCESSIBILITY INFORMATION 

Mr Lim, who works as a community partnerships executive at K9Assistance, admitted he ventures out “more than most people with my condition” because he has a family car that is designed for his wheelchair. 

He doesn’t take public transport as it is “too stressful and triggering”. The gap between the platform or pavement and the vehicle also “frightens” him. 

Moreover, his housing estate poses “not so much of a concern” as there are no steps on his regular routes.

But many other wheelchair users may not be as fortunate. They face the key challenge of “a general lack of accessibility information”, making it difficult for them to plan their trip ahead of time, said Mr Alvin Tan, assistant director of independent living and caregiver support at SG Enable. 

“Accessibility information could refer to the gradient of the path, the presence or absence of ramps and even the presence of trees with exposed roots along a route. Real-time road conditions such as roadworks, damaged pavements and shifted obstacles also affect wheelchair users, as they make a route temporarily inaccessible,” he told CNA. 

“While non-wheelchair users can easily walk over or around obstacles, wheelchair users have more difficulty with these, and barrier-free accessible routes are essential for them.” 

Needing to detour or find alternative routes is “time and energy-consuming”. And for motorised wheelchair users, their wheelchairs could run out of battery power before reaching their destination, added Mr Tan. 

In wet weather, things can get even trickier as not all sheltered routes are accessible. Neither umbrellas nor ponchos offer full protection, he highlighted. 

Slippery road surfaces are difficult for wheelchair users to navigate, and motorised wheelchair users could be subject to “rainwater seepage through the battery compartment of the wheelchair, causing costly repairs”.

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Remembering Gemini Shankaran: The Indian circus legend who had world leaders as fans

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Gemini ShankaranSaji James
By Sharanya Hrishikesh
BBC News, Delhi

MV Shankaran, who died this week at the age of 98, was a legendary figure in the Indian circus industry.

The trapeze-artist-turned-circus-owner was popularly known as Gemini Shankaran, after the famous Gemini Circus that he established with a partner in 1951.

For decades, it was among India’s most popular circuses – thousands of people thronged to watch its acrobats, clowns and menagerie of animals across the country.

Its big and bright logo – often hand-painted and sometimes in neon – would bring smiles to people’s faces in India’s smaller towns and villages for decades. A ticket for a Gemini show was highly sought after in most corners of the country.

They were also in demand abroad. In the 1960s, India’s prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru sent Shankaran and a team of his performers to represent India at an international festival in the USSR. The team was given an official reception at Nehru’s residence before they left India. When they reached Moscow, Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space, came to greet them.

Years later, Shankaran recalled in interviews the thunderous applause their shows got in countries such as the Soviet Union and Zambia. Fans of the circus ranged from Nehru to Zambia’s first president Kenneth Kaunda. Shankaran also had albums with photographs of himself with US civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr and several other leaders.

Gemini Shankaran with India's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru

Gemini Shankaran’s Album

Over Shankaran’s lifetime, he saw both the glory days and difficult times of the circus industry.

Shankaran was born in 1924 in Thalassery town in Kannur district in the southern state of Kerala. When he was around nine or 10 years old, he was fascinated by a circus performance given by a man called Kittunni (he didn’t use a surname).

Kittunni did everything himself, from announcing his own feats and selling tickets to performing stunts.

When Kittunni finished his performance and walked away, Shankaran was among a group of children who trailed behind him, says journalist Thaha Madayi, who co-wrote the circus owner’s Malayalam-language memoir Malakkam Mariyunna Jeevitham (When life does a somersault).

Thalassery was the hometown of Keeleri Kunhikannan, a gymnastics teacher who trained “countless” circus performers. Young Shankaran got permission from his school-teacher father to begin training with Kunhikannan.

A young Gemini Shankaran

Gemini Shankaran’s Album

But he didn’t join a circus immediately. He first opened a grocery shop, which later shut down, and then joined the army. He was posted in Calcutta (now Kolkata) as a wireless operator during World War Two.

After the war, he returned to Kerala and restarted his training under another teacher (Kunhikannan had died by then). In 1948, Shankaran joined a circus in Calcutta as a trapeze artist.

Three years later, he and a partner bought a small circus called Vijaya, which only had one elephant and two lions at the time. They renamed it Gemini, and its first performance was on 15 August 1951 in the western state of Gujarat.

Gemini soon became a phenomenon. Shankaran said in interviews that the troupe – which had hundreds of people and several animals including lions and elephants – travelled for performances in special trains.

Mr Madayi says that Shankaran was inspired by the iconic Ringling Brothers circus in the US.

“He dreamt of reaching the high standards set by international circuses. While there were many limitations, he did manage to bring in many innovations and modernised his circuses,” he says.

Several prominent Indian politicians – including former prime ministers – and celebrities came to watch the performances by Gemini and Jumbo (another big circus set up by him in 1977) artists. Many scenes from the 1970 Hindi classic film Mera Naam Joker and the 1989 Tamil hit Apoorva Sagodharargal were shot at the Gemini Circus.

Gemini Shankaran

Saji James

Though Shankaran had a remarkably action-packed life, Mr Madayi says he was struck by his humility when they first met.

“We met at a book release function, where he came and introduced himself to me. Though he had lived such an exciting life, he spoke less about himself and more about others in the circus industry,” he recalls.

It’s an impression shared by academic Nisha PR, who has worked extensively on the social history of the Indian circus. When she interviewed Shankaran for her research, he was “full of stories, gentle and approachable”, she told the BBC in an email.

Shankaran’s reluctance to speak about himself, however, made Mr Madayi’s job of documenting his memories difficult, the journalist recalls.

“His answers were sparse and brief. I had to ask him many questions over several sessions to elicit details from him,” he laughs.

Shankaran was insistent that the book should be as interesting as a circus performance.

“He would say that the chapters should be brief, that one should move on to the next ‘item’ without giving the reader a chance to yawn,” Mr Madayi says.

In his final years, Shankaran – whose sons manage Gemini and Jumbo now – was both hopeful and concerned about the future of Indian circus.

“Circus was like oxygen for him,” Mr Madayi says. “He did not look at it as a means to earn a living, but as a reason to live.”

With his death, a great chapter in India’s glorious circus history has ended.

Circuses have struggled to thrive in recent years.

“With the advent of TV and cinema, people have many more things to watch, so they’ve stopped going to the circus. Also, India has banned some wild animals from being trained as performing animals. The younger generation doesn’t want to work in the circus. How long can the old generation perform?” says Mahendra Dhotre, whose grandfather Damoo was one of the greatest circus performers in the world.

But those who knew Shankaran say that his legacy has enough lessons for circuses and performers to stay relevant and reinvent themselves.

And that’s something he always hoped that the new generation would do.

Additional reporting by Cherylann Mollan in Mumbai

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Thai and two Lao accused of smuggling

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Hong Kong officials find suspected heroin concealed inside the packaging of 37 packs of coffee powder on April 21. The total weight of the heroin is about 53kg. (Photo: Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) Facebook)
Hong Kong officials find suspected heroin concealed inside the packaging of 37 packs of coffee powder on April 21. The total weight of the heroin is about 53kg. (Photo: Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) Facebook)

One Thai national and two Lao citizens have been accused of involvement in the shipment of a consignment of heroin that was seized at Hong Kong International Airport last week, according to the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB).

Wichai Chaimongkol, ONCB’s secretary-general, said Thai authorities launched an investigation into the shipment after being alerted by their Hong Kong counterparts on April 21.

Hong Kong officials examined the batch and found suspected heroin concealed inside the packaging of 37 packs of coffee powder. The total weight of the heroin was about 53kg.

Mr Wichai said Thai narcotics and customs officials had found that the shipment was linked to a major transborder trafficking ring which is believed to have sent three shipments to Hong Kong in March/April this year.

Thai officials have asked their Hong King counterparts for the details of one Thai and two Lao nationals employed by the private transport company handling the shipment so that arrest warrants can be issued, he said.

The information will also be forwarded to narcotics control authorities in Laos to widen the investigation into the drug trafficking ring, he said.

According to Mr Wichai, the Thai Airport Interdiction Task Force (AITF) and Seaport Interdiction Task Force (SITF) have been working closely with Hong Kong authorities and have, since January, confiscated nine shipments containing 74.6kg of crystal meth and 47.5kg of heroin.

Meanwhile, anti-drug authorities in Chiang Rai on Tuesday arrested two men and a woman and seized 239kg of crystal meth and 10kg of ketamine from them.

The arrest followed a tip-off about the smuggling of narcotics from the Chiang Rai border to inner provinces.

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Six Chinese peddlers of fake gold arrested

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Jiangxi Dragon gang used call scam tactics

Six Chinese men accused of duping wealthy Thai-Chinese in Chinatown into buying fake gold worth about 10 million baht have been arrested with almost 200 fake ingots.

Investigators from the Metropolitan Police Bureau apprehended the six suspects in front of Hua Lamphong railway station in the Rong Muang area of Pathumwan district on Monday on charges of colluding in theft and criminal association, Pol Maj Gen Teeradej Thumsutee, chief of investigation at the Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB) said yesterday.

They were identified as Zhong Xiaocong, 44, Li Xiaoyuan, 45, Zeng Nanjing, 54, Yang Cuiyuan, 51, Zhu Zhihua, 48, and Guo Xianyu, 49.

Officers also seized 179 fake gold bars, 10 fake gold statues, 8 thin sheets of real gold, 46 books belonging to a Chinese association in Thailand, 24 ATM cards, 12 mobile phones and goldsmithing tools, Pol Maj Gen Teeradej said.

The suspects were members of the “Mangkorn Jiangxi” [Jiangxi Dragon] gang and allegedly swindled Thais of Chinese descent in Chinatown out of about 10 million baht.

The suspects found their victims in a book detailing names of Thai-Chinese descendants. They selected wealthy people and then phoned them, using the same methods as call scam gangs. The gang had previously worked as phone scammers in Indonesia, Pol Maj Gen Teeradej said.

The gang included real gold among the fake gold, using the former as proof of authenticity. The suspects lied to their victims, claiming to have a gold mining concession in Ayutthaya province.

The arrests followed a complaint by a Chinese man of Thai nationality who said he had been swindled out of 500,000 baht by a Chinese gang into buying gold that later turned out to be fake.

Police investigators found the gang had used a similar ploy to swindle other victims. To entice them into the trap, the gang showed many gold bars and cut one into small pieces that the victims could test to verify.

Gold shops had confirmed the samples were real. Once the money was paid, the gang vanished. The victims only then found out the gold was counterfeit.

All suspects denied the charges. They told police that they had travelled from Jiangxi in China, but admitted they worked for a phone scam gang in Indonesia before moving to Thailand.

The suspects were handed over to police at the adjacent Noppawong railway station for legal action.

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Former MP jailed over B5m bribe

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The Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Persons Holding Political Positions yesterday sentenced Anurak Tangpanitanon, a former Pheu Thai MP for Mukdahan, to six years in jail over a 5-million-baht bribe.

Mr Anurak was indicted for demanding the bribe in exchange for passing a proposed budget allocation deal when he served on the House committee vetting the 2021 budget bill.

The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) recommended his indictment after its inquiry found there were grounds for the allegation. The case was filed with the court by the Office of the Attorney-General (OAG).

In its ruling, the court found Mr Anurak guilty of violating the Criminal Code and the anti-corruption law for demanding the bribe from Sakda Wichiansilp, director-general of the Department of Groundwater Resources, in exchange for not trimming the department’s budget in a 2021 budget allocation.

In addition to the six-year prison sentence, the court also retrospectively stripped Mr Anurak of the MP position he had held from April 19, 2021, and banned him from running in an election and holding political positions for life and from voting for ten years.

In January this year, the court found him guilty of violating the parliamentary ethical code for demanding the bribe. The misconduct was deemed an abuse of his authority as an MP to obtain personal gain, which is prohibited under Section 87 of the 2018 organic law on corruption suppression and prevention.

The scandal came to light when Mr Sakda spilt the beans during a meeting with the sub-committee reviewing the budget allocation for his department, saying a sub-committee member had demanded 5 million baht in exchange for passing this proposed budget allocation.

Mr Anurak will appeal the court’s ruling.

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Cop’s wife suspected of serial murders

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The wife of a senior police officer based in Ratchaburi was arrested yesterday on suspicion of being a serial killer.

Her alleged victims were people she accompanied on merit-making trips.

The arrest came after the Royal Thai Police (RTP) ordered a thorough investigation into seven murder cases implicating the suspect.

The suspect, Sararat “Am” Rangsiwutaporn, was nabbed at the Chaeng Watthana Government Complex on a murder charge after a warrant for her arrest was issued by the Criminal Court. She refused to give police a statement. At least two of her alleged victims were female police officers.

The case against Ms Sararat surfaced this week after the family of one of her alleged victims, Siriporn Khanwong, 32, asked the Crime Suppression Division (CSD) to file charges against her and requested a fresh autopsy of Siriporn’s body.

National police chief Pol Gen Damrongsak Kittiprapas said Siriporn passed out, and later died, as she released fish into a river to make merit during Songkran two weeks ago in Ban Pong district of Ratchaburi. The first autopsy result stated that she died of natural causes.

However, her family queried the result and sought a second autopsy. A preliminary result of the second autopsy by the Police General Hospital’s forensic department revealed Siriporn had cyanide in her bloodstream. The complete autopsy results are expected to be out within a week, said Pol Gen Damrongsak.

Pol Gen Damrongsak said theft is believed to be the killer’s motive. However, the investigators have not ruled out the possibility that the suspect suffered from a mental condition. The suspect appears to have committed the crime alone.

Deputy national police chief Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn, who leads the investigation, said at least seven people acquainted with Ms Sararat who joined her on merit-making trips died in similar ways over the past two years in Ratchaburi and nearby provinces of Kanchanaburi and Nakhon Pathom.

Many victims carried a lot of cash, reportedly to buy items to donate to temples. The cash belonging to some went missing after they passed out.

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