Thai PM follows up progress of urgent projects

BANGKOK, February 8 (TNA) - Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra called a meeting with Cabinet ministers at Bagnkok's Government House Wednesday to follow up progress of 15 urgent government projects which had been announced during vote campaigns. The projects include national reconciliation, democracy promotion, narcotic solutions, corruption suppression, integrated water management and expanded irrigation, under which the Puea Thai Party-led government has allocated some 77.29 billion baht for financing and some 51.82 billion baht have already been disbursed. Deputy Prime Minister Police Captain Chalerm Yubumrung told journalists after the meeting that the prime minister ordered serious actions on narcotic and corruption suppression. For corruption suppression, according to the Thai deputy premier, the government will amend legislation to expand corruption probes against government officials who are within the first five years after their retirement and for narcotic suppression, Thai police or narcotic control officers will be deployed in China, Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos for drug intelligence. (TNA)