The Wattanaweckin Group is moving forward with development in the Bangna area, launching PADDIO, a new community neighborhood hub project with an investment of over 700 million baht on 45 rai of land, just 360 meters from the Bangna-Trat exit road. The project features over 10,000 square meters of retail space set to open in late 2025, with carefully selected tenants offering restaurants, cafes, health, beauty, and various services to meet everyday living needs and encourage repeat visits.

PADDIO is the first project under the company's broader 400-rai development plan, designed to create an ecosystem connecting residential areas, education, work, and lifestyle for Bangna residents. The company recognizes Bangna's potential as a strategic growth area in Bangkok, driven by the expansion of residential projects, office buildings, infrastructure, and international schools including Dulwich College International School and Raintree International School, which have significantly increased the population and purchasing power in the area.

Currently, over 200,000 people live within a 5–10 kilometer radius of the project, predominantly young families and high-earning workers, demonstrating the area's readiness for new-concept projects that better serve daily living needs than traditional shopping centers. Responding to changing consumer behavior and the preference for convenience near home, the company found that people seek locations that comprehensively address daily activities including dining, exercise, shopping, socializing, and family time in a comfortable atmosphere with green spaces.

"PADDIO is developed under the concept of 'Everyday Living Made Easy' to serve the daily needs of Bangna residents with one of the most accessible locations for those living in Bangna km.8 and surrounding communities such as Prawet and Suan Luang," said Supachai Wattanaweckin, CEO of Chotidhanavatana Company, adding that the project intends to become a place people choose to visit daily because it is convenient, close to home, and meets the real-life needs of users of all ages.

The project allocates over 40% of space to green areas and open spaces, exceeding typical Bangkok shopping centers, inspired by Singapore's urban development concepts, and features central family areas, connecting walkways, and over 500 outdoor parking spaces accessible without entering a parking structure. PADDIO marks the beginning of the company's development of over 400 rai, linking residential areas, education, commerce, and public spaces to grow together with the community in the long term. The company seeks not to create a new Bangna destination but rather to establish places that become part of daily life.

Advanced Info Service (AIS) reported second-quarter 2025 results on August 6, 2025, posting total revenue of 56.497 billion baht and net profit of 13.716 billion baht while maintaining its strategic direction. The company remains focused on product and service quality alongside enhanced digital experiences for all customer groups, despite challenges from economic conditions, international conflicts, and weakened global purchasing power that began improving in June.

AIS advanced its intelligent infrastructure strategy by strengthening core business growth and launching new digital ventures. The mobile business expanded its quality customer base, with 47.1 million subscribers and 19.7 million 5G users—up 1.2 million from the previous quarter—generating 6% revenue growth. The home broadband business grew 7.9% to 5.3 million subscribers through value packages and smart home innovations. Enterprise services increased 2.8% through data connectivity, cloud services, and data center offerings supporting corporate AI transformation. Retail operations grew 1%, while entertainment and digital finance services expanded across omnichannel platforms with same-day delivery options.

On August 6, Deputy Interior Minister Vorasisuth Leangpraseuth chaired a meeting of the central civil service committee to ratify a decision by the local government exam board to cancel the original candidate list and announce a new roster for 2025. The committee endorsed the exam board's findings that 5,925 candidates engaged in cheating, while 97 others whose scores were irregularly adjusted will remain on the new list pending investigation by the National Anti-Corruption Commission and police. A new roster will be announced on August 7, with notifications to provinces on August 10 and removal procedures to be completed by August 31. Vorasisuth stated that the committee has evidence of cheating and can prove its case, adding that guidelines will be issued to local authorities for implementation. He confirmed the government will not shield anyone from accountability, regardless of rank. When asked about potential legal challenges, he emphasized the process is based on verifiable facts supported by forensic analysis. Regarding criminal cases against former officials implicated in the cheating scheme, he said police and the anti-corruption commission are handling those investigations. The lengthy meeting occurred because committee members initially disagreed on legal interpretations but eventually reached consensus.

On August 6, 2026, Thontong Sukkern, known as Ton Bangkaew, requested temporary release and posted 1 million baht in cash bail, which investigators approved. The case is proceeding through legal channels. Ton Bangkaew continues to deny all charges but is cooperating fully with investigators and plans to submit a detailed written statement later. Investigators granted temporary bail for four reasons: the suspect has no history of fleeing, no history of tampering with witnesses as evidence has been nearly fully collected, the case is not serious with approximately 3 million baht in alleged damages, and the bail amount conforms to Supreme Court standards, setting it at 1 million baht.

Peerapat Korthong, secretary-general of the Office of Agricultural Economics (OAE), has revealed that accurate and current agricultural information is crucial for analyzing conditions, planning production, and implementing measures suited to actual local circumstances. Since agricultural structures vary widely between villages—including crop types, farmer numbers, cultivation areas, livestock, and aquaculture—establishing a clear village-level database is essential for developing a functional national agricultural information system.

The OAE's Agricultural Information Center is implementing a sampling frame data project with village agricultural volunteers under a 2025 fiscal-year efficiency initiative, working with the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) to create a village-level agricultural activity database for survey sampling and analysis. This frame serves as a foundation database enabling comprehensive surveys, appropriate sampling, and clearer reflection of actual production patterns.

Korthong stated that the project's core objective is leveraging village agricultural volunteers, who are close to farmers and know local agricultural conditions well, to conduct field surveys in coordination with DAE and OAE staff using the digital Frame-asa system. This enhances data accuracy while elevating volunteers to become a village-level agricultural information network, bridging on-the-ground data to policy application.

The project has run continuously from 2022 to 2025, targeting approximately 75,000 villages nationwide. The 2025 fiscal year is the final critical phase, with about 18,000 villages remaining in the responsibility zones of the OAE's northeastern regional offices (Maha Sarakham, Roi Et, Kalasin, Khon Kaen, Surin, Buriram, Chaiyaphum, and Nakhon Ratchasima). Data collection will cover 26 agricultural commodities including field crops, perennial fruits, livestock, and aquaculture, enabling efficient survey and information analysis. Operations follow an OAE-DAE coordinated roadmap using the Frame-asa web application for field data recording, with briefings for extension staff before guidance is passed to village volunteers, who will document farmer activities covering household numbers, cultivation areas, livestock counts, production standards, sales outlets, and prices, followed by progress monitoring, data verification, and quality assurance.

Actor Kaeng Thachaya Prathoomvarn showcases his talent in short anti-corruption plays that expose the dangers of scammer networks and build social immunity to corruption among Eastern Region youth through a youth theater network that refuses to tolerate corruption. The creative drama workshop program "Anti-Corruption: Youth Will Not Tolerate Corruption in the Eastern Region," supported by the National Anti-Corruption Fund, represents a compelling social movement model that uses performing arts combined with professional artists and performers who inspire and perform alongside students in the Eastern Region to cultivate consciousness and build youth networks that refuse to yield to corruption and fraud.

The program continues building social immunity by bringing together talented young artists and singers including Kaeng Thachaya Prathoomvarn, James Thanaboon Wisarungrojn, and Eve Orawun Pilaiworpetch to create outstanding work that blends performance power with new-generation audiences to expose and warn society through short dramas reflecting technology-based crime and the "scammer gang" epidemic currently spreading rapidly.

The program was created to provide youth space for creative expression while learning the full media production process, addressing pressing local problems like "call centers and international scammer gangs" that damage the economy and society by presenting them through a young person's perspective in an entertaining, easily understandable format with subtle, deep-thinking warnings.

Kaeng Thachaya revealed her feelings about participating, saying she is extremely proud and delighted to use performing arts as a voice for social movement, noting that the current scammer gang problem is not merely about simple theft but is connected to networks of complex structural corruption and fraud. When youth rise up to learn, write scripts, and perform themselves, it helps them see through deceptions, understand cyber threats, and grow into citizens who refuse to accept wrongdoing.

Ginpetchr Mingmalai, a student at Aranyaprathet School, reflected that learning through anti-corruption theater plays warning of scammer gangs and corruption makes complex or distant issues easy to understand. Youth absorb these problems through role-playing, becoming aware of dangers around them and feeling they are truly contributing to society's benefit.

Pornnapha Hokkhahm, also from Aranyaprathet School, expressed pride in being a voice for the new generation. By participating in the program and conveying important messages through performing arts, young people feel proud that their small voice through theater media can help alert their peers and society to see through deceptions and join together in fighting corruption.

Julaphakwat Srisuwan, program manager, stated that the program's success is not measured by the quantitative number of participants alone, but by "the process and qualitative results" that occur.

Making difficult issues relatable (De-stigmatization & Relatability): Corruption is often seen as a large structural issue or something distant from children, but the drama training process helps youth draw ethical problems close to home, such as school corruption, taking advantage, using connections, or ethical violations, breaking them down into short drama scripts so children can understand the core of the problems more deeply than rote memorization.

Learning through hands-on practice (Active Learning through Performance):