Peeraphan Korthong, Secretary-General of the Office of Agricultural Economics (OAE), stated that the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives prioritizes elevating Thai agriculture through technology and innovation to help farmers increase production efficiency and tackle labor constraints as the sector enters an aging society. The ministry is promoting agricultural machinery use alongside the development of Agricultural Service Providers (ASP), a model that allows farmers convenient access to machinery services aligned with seasonal demands, reduces capital investment burden for individual purchases, and enables machinery owners to generate supplementary income from local service provision.

The key advantage of the ASP model is making agricultural machinery more cost-effective and widely accessible. Small-scale farmers can select machinery services as needed for specific production activities—from soil preparation and planting to maintenance, drone spraying, harvesting, and product transport—reducing reliance on manual labor, cutting work time, minimizing production losses, and improving accuracy in input use. Service providers gain opportunities for continuous income from existing machinery, stimulating local economic circulation and broadening machinery service distribution to more farmers in their areas.

Thailand's agricultural sector currently faces clear labor constraints. The average age of agricultural household heads has risen to 59.44 years as of 2022, while the proportion of farm workers over 60 increased from 13% in 2003 to 22% in 2018, while workers aged 15-40 dropped from 48% to 28% in the same period, underscoring the necessity of deploying machinery and technology to lighten labor burdens and boost efficiency.

The OAE supports a sharing economy approach in agriculture, encouraging farmers, agricultural cooperatives, and machinery-owning entrepreneurs to develop as ASP operators and serve other farmers lacking their own equipment. This enables cost-effective shared machinery use, expands technology access for small-scale farmers, and creates supplementary income for local machinery owners.

This aligns with the Department of Agricultural Extension's Agricultural Service Provider registration system via https://emachine.doae.go.th/, supporting farmers, cooperatives, and entrepreneurs to formalize service provision and tailor machinery management to regional farmer needs during each production season.

The OAE Secretary-General noted that when ASP machinery services are delivered appropriately to the area, crop type, and production period, farmers gain opportunities to raise yields and income, while service providers earn supplementary revenue from machinery service fees.

For 2025, the OAE will expand these efforts by collecting agricultural machinery service-rate data from 296 nationwide samples through its regional offices to build geographic datasets supporting cost-analysis studies, policy development, and improved agricultural machinery service planning responsive to local farmer needs.

Justice Minister Rutthapol Nueamwarat addressed the Prime Minister Anuthins Charnweerakul's policy restricting government officials from carrying firearms within the Department of Special Investigation (DSI). According to internal regulations, some DSI officers may carry guns if they have a permit and are on active duty, with a two-tier verification system requiring confirmation from the DSI Commissioner.

When asked what additional measures would be implemented under this policy, Rutthapol stated that he has instructed DSI personnel—those who require firearms for official duties—to obtain authorization from the DSI Commissioner for both government-issued weapons and personal firearms.

Regarding his own firearm, Rutthapol revealed he keeps a gun at home with proper licensing documentation for property protection, a practice he has maintained since joining the police force. He emphasized that he does not carry the weapon, especially now under the new directive. He also confirmed that the Prime Minister issued the directive both at a Phum Jai Thai party meeting on August 11 and at a Cabinet meeting, with instructions to conduct random checks even on the Prime Minister's own staff, which he views as a positive enforcement measure.

A group of rescue volunteers have been suspended after allegedly attacking a taxi driver in Bangkok, leaving him seriously injured in an incident that was captured on video and widely shared on social media.

The incident, which took place on 12 August, reportedly involved three to four rescue volunteers chasing and assaulting the taxi driver before the confrontation continued to MRT Fai Chai station.

Video footage circulating online showed several rescue volunteers surrounding and assaulting the taxi driver near the station's coin exchange area after he had run there seeking help.

Following the incident, both the rescue volunteers and the taxi driver reportedly filed complaints at Bang Khun Non Police Station.

The confrontation was reportedly sparked by a dispute over driving, with the parties allegedly cutting each other off and one vehicle following closely behind the other.

The taxi driver suffered serious injuries, including broken ribs, a broken nose and a fractured cheekbone. His taxi was also damaged after its windows were smashed, with damage reported around the vehicle.

Following the incident and the circulation of the video online, the foundation overseeing the rescue volunteers ordered the group to be suspended and barred them from carrying out volunteer duties pending further action.

Police are investigating the circumstances surrounding the confrontation.

A celebration of the 134th anniversary of Village Chief Day on August 10 at Koh Phangan has sparked intense social media criticism after images showed five long-barreled shotguns being offered as raffle prizes to lucky attendees at the event. The celebration also featured a live concert by a well-known social artist to entertain guests. The main focus of heavy criticism centered on the appropriateness of offering five shotguns as raffle prizes.

The timing of the event is particularly contentious because on August 7, Prime Minister Sanyavut Sayma and Interior Minister had just announced efforts to ensure maximum public safety regarding firearms. An Interior Ministry directive signed by the Prime Minister and Interior Minister prohibits the carrying of firearms, even for government officials when off duty, in public places or outside residences. The restriction applies even more strictly to ordinary citizens. Critics argue that offering guns as prizes contradicts the government's stated firearms safety policy.

A man with mental illness caused a school disturbance in Nonthaburi, fled on a motorcycle while being pursued, and attacked a car driver in a second incident on the street. Police are searching for him.

On August 12, 2026, at Bang Bua Thong Police Station in Nonthaburi, 44-year-old Gor filed a complaint with investigators stating that he was attacked by an unknown man riding an unregistered motorcycle who swerved left and right, nearly hitting another motorbike.

The attacker then shouted at Gor to pull over. When the victim stopped his car, the man approached him and punched him, causing injury. The incident occurred beneath a road underpass at the Sai Noi intersection in Bang Bua Thong Subdistrict, Bang Bua Thong District, Nonthaburi, at 9:10 a.m. today.

Footage from a bystander's phone camera captured the area on the Bang Kruay-Sai Noi Road heading toward the Sai Noi District crossing, opposite the Bang Bua Thong Courtesy Project area, showing the victim's white car stopped in traffic lane 2 with the trunk open. The attacker approached and spoke to the victim, who was holding what appeared to be a wooden stick. The victim pushed the attacker away, but the man punched him hard. The victim then used the wooden stick to strike the attacker.

Gor, 44, explained that while driving from Sai Noi toward Bang Bua Thong Market, he encountered the suspect beneath the underpass. The attacker was riding a motorcycle in the oncoming lane, so Gor honked. Then a motorbike overtook him and collided with the suspect's bike. They argued loudly, and the suspect swerved left and right. Fearing a collision, Gor refused to stop initially because he wanted to avoid trouble.

When Gor reached the curve leading into Bang Bua Thong Market, the attacker continued to challenge him. Unable to tolerate it any longer, Gor pulled over to confront him. Thinking the man looked physically imposing, Gor retrieved a wooden stick from his car trunk as a precaution. When the attacker approached, Gor pushed him away. The man claimed he had been hit and punched Gor in the face. Gor then struck the attacker with the stick once, breaking it, and they exchanged several more punches before the attacker rode away in the opposite direction. Gor pursued him, ready to ram if necessary. A bystander filmed part of the incident but only captured the confrontation point, not the earlier part that could serve as evidence.

Initially, the attacker has been identified as Yuttha or Bang Reem, a man with a mental health condition who caused a disturbance at a school and fled on a motorcycle from officers earlier that morning. Investigators have compiled evidence for police to pursue the suspect.