According to Buddhist legend, when the Buddha was once reborn as a sea turtle named Mahachitrajon, he lived on an island. After a storm destroyed passing merchant ships, many survivors swam ashore to the island, desperate and starving. In their hunger and thirst, they plotted to kill the turtle. The compassionate bodhisattva turtle, understanding their desperation, voluntarily rolled itself off a cliff to sacrifice its blood and flesh as food for the survivors. The people consumed the meat and fashioned the shell into a vessel to safely return home. Later, grateful for the turtle's sacrifice, they created images to venerate and worship. This eventually led to the creation of sacred amulets shaped like sea turtles, inscribed with sacred numerals and blessed through religious ceremonies, a tradition that continues to this day.

The most celebrated creator of sea turtle amulets is Luang Pu Liu Pannakon, former abbot of Wat Rai Taeng Thong in Kamphaeng Saen, Nakhon Pathom, who became the master craftsman of the famous "Sea Turtle Medal." Luang Pu Liu began creating these amulets around 1957 at Wat Sanam Yae, initially as powder amulets, later expanding into medals, cast amulets, votive images, protective belts, and closed-eye Buddha images. Sacred talismans also include waist belts, two-tailed geckos, and other protective charms. The most famous creation is the "Sea Turtle Medal," which was developed based on teachings from Luang Pho Yan of Wat Ban Khong in Photharam, Ratchaburi.

The first edition Sea Turtle Medal, created in 1973, features a four-legged turtle design with ears on top resembling medal features. A standing Buddha image appears on the front with sacred numerals on the reverse. The first run produced 300 medals in special metal alloy and 12,000 in copper. The special metal versions were given as commemorative gifts to sponsors who funded the construction of the temple's assembly hall pavilion, while the copper versions were sold for 100 baht each for worship. According to popular accounts, when these medals are soaked in blessed holy water, all the turtles miraculously crawl out of the vessel before being distributed for worship. Believers revere these amulets for protection from illness and misfortune, hoping to enjoy long life and longevity like the turtle.

On July 24, 2025, Deputy Prime Minister Yosthana Wongsuwan announced that Chulalongkorn University has begun full implementation of the TCASFolio system for university admissions, focusing on content and genuine ability rather than design aesthetics and presentation. Wongsuwan praised Chulalongkorn University as a leading example and expressed hope that other educational institutions would adopt the system. The TCASFolio platform is a joint project funded and operated by the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation in collaboration with the Association of Thai Universities, offering free access to all students. The system ensures nationwide standardization of portfolio evaluation criteria, emphasizing substantive content and capability over visual presentation quality. It also creates a centralized database for analysis and helps prevent academic fraud and plagiarism. These measures align with government policy to reduce inequality, lower student costs, and ensure equal access to higher education for all young people, representing an important step in developing Thailand's human capital.

The seventh anniversary of the death of Luang Pu Saen Pasanno is observed on Saturday, July 25, 2026. A celebrated Buddhist monk from the northeastern region, he was known for his profound spiritual wisdom and lived at Wat Ban Nong Chik in Khun Han District, Sisaket Province. His strict adherence to monastic discipline and moral virtue made him a pillar of support for lay devotees and monks alike, earning him widespread recognition and the title "Deity of Phu Fai Mountain" near the Cambodian border.

He was born in 1907 as Saen Kumkhrop and ordained as a novice at a young age, studying Buddhist scriptures under the renowned teacher Luang Pho Mum. He later pursued additional studies in Cambodia, learning from Khmer masters with a focus on knowledge that would help others. After completing his worldly responsibilities, he returned to monastic life and eventually settled at Wat Ban Nong Chik, where he revitalized the neglected temple through his dedication and attracted monks to practice there.

He served as abbot and continued his spiritual practice, often engaging in intensive forest meditation. By age 93, he remained active in temple affairs. When he reached 97, concerned relatives persuaded him to return full-time to Wat Ban Nong Chik, where he spent his remaining years. He rarely commissioned amulets or blessed objects, preferring to allow close disciples to do so, yet his amulets—such as half-body coins and bell pendants—became highly sought after. He passed away peacefully on the night of July 25, 2019, at the age of 112.

Dr. Suphatthorn Hasuwon, a former parliamentary candidate for Songkhla District 2 representing the Democratic Party, has posted allegations of clear and serious corruption in the Public Health Ministry's volunteer nurse selection examination. The ministry designed the selection process to rely entirely on interviews conducted by six-person committees from each province, with no written exam component. The Department of Health Service Support instructed each province to submit the names of six committee members for ministry appointment, but the announced appointments did not match the nominations submitted by the provinces. This discrepancy has sparked complaints across multiple provinces via LINE group chats, prompting the department to cancel its original order and reissue appointments matching the provincial submissions. Dr. Hasuwon warned that the selection may favor high-scoring candidates and could involve position trading similar to corruption scandals in local government exams. He called on the Public Health Minister to provide an urgent explanation and suggested canceling the exam altogether if public confidence in the fairness cannot be assured. The volunteer nurse program costs the state 1.3 billion baht annually, and the budget commission should conduct a full review of the program's allocation.

Pol. Lt. Col. Tawee Sodsong, a Pheu Thai party list MP, posted on Facebook on July 24, 2025, alleging a "massive saga of corruption involving bribery in local government exam fraud spread nationwide." He called for investigations to reach senior policymakers and officials directing the exams.

Tawee highlighted statistical irregularities in local government entrance examinations over the past five years: In 2025 (Srinakharinwirot University), 213,030 applicants took the exam with 47,208 passing, a 22.16% pass rate—abnormally high compared to previous years. In 2021 (Burapha University), 281,968 applicants resulted in 18,874 passes (6.69%). In 2019 (Kasetsart University), 249,235 applicants produced 9,893 passes (3.97%). In 2017 (Burapha University), 477,102 applicants yielded 32,369 passes (6.78%). In 2014 (Suan Dusit University), 280,625 applicants resulted in 4,864 passes (1.73%).

Comparison with standard national civil service exams conducted by the Civil Service Commission showed pass rates consistently between 1% and 7%. In 2025, 450,000 candidates applied with 19,488 passing (4.33%); in 2024, 384,906 applied with 28,571 passing (7.42%); in 2023, 333,500 applied with 15,485 passing (4.64%); in 2022, 369,437 applied with 4,744 passing (1.28%); and in 2021, 719,805 applied with 11,349 passing (1.58%).

Tawee's analysis concluded that the 2025 local government exam pass rate of 22.16%—nearly four times the natural average of 7%—cannot result from normal score distribution among candidates. Instead, it suggests irregularities in data processing, altered benchmarks, or computer system manipulation of raw scores, pointing to exam fraud. The lawmaker noted that Burapha University, which had successfully administered local government exams twice with no fraud allegations and at a cost of only 275 baht per applicant (82.5 million baht for roughly 300,000 candidates in 2566), was replaced by other universities for subsequent exams, raising further questions about the process.

PHUKET: Thailand has been hit with a new 12.5% US import tariff after the Trump administration announced fresh duties on 60 trading partners, replacing temporary global tariffs that expired yesterday.