Govt offers B10k to all flood-affected households

The government will distribute 10,000 baht to households affected by flooding nationwide to help cover cleanup expenses.
Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said that the Comptroller General’s Department had approved a budget allocation request from the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM).
No cabinet approval was needed, Mr Anutin said, adding that the cabinet only acknowledged the matter at Tuesday’s meeting.
He said the 10,000 baht in financial aid for post-flood cleanup is separate from the 9,000-baht compensation payout for each flood victim.
“The 10,000-baht aid will be given to house owners who either have to clean up the mud left behind by flooding themselves or hire others to do the cleanup.
“If officials or volunteers already helped them clean up their houses, they are not eligible for the aid,” Mr Anutin said.
The DDPM will now survey houses most in need of financial aid in Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai, said Mr Anutin, also a deputy prime minister.
Speaking after Tuesday’s cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said the cabinet had approved a change in the criteria for flood compensation payouts. All households are now eligible for a single payment of 9,000 baht.
Under the old criteria, households that were flooded for 30 days or less received 5,000 baht each, while those inundated for more than 30 days but less than 60 received 7,000 baht each. Households flooded for more than 60 days were previously the only ones afforded 9,000 baht.
On Sept 17, the cabinet approved a budget allocation of 3.04 billion baht to compensate flood victims nationwide.
On Tuesday, the post-flood cleanup in Chiang Mai municipality continued along the Ping River, including downtown Waroros central market and the Night Bazaar.
The effort had started on Monday in the wake of the city’s worst flooding in memory last week. Last Saturday, the Ping River rose to a record 5.3 metres deep at the Naowarat monitoring station.
The water level in the Ping River has continued to drop. On Tuesday, the level measured at the Naowarat monitoring station was 3.22 metres, 48cm below the bank. However, officials in neighbouring Lamphun on Tuesday warned people living along or near the Kuang River to move valuables and essential items to safe places as the river was rising and approaching a crisis point.
The DDPM reported on Tuesday that flooding persists in 19 provinces in the North, the Northeast, the Central Plains and the South, affecting more than 66,000 households.
A total of 1,556 villages in 65 districts were inundated and 66,202 families remain affected, said the department.