Imagine highland villages at 1,400 meters elevation where cool air enables quality coffee cultivation, or fishing communities living on lake platforms above dams teeming with aquatic life. Yet these naturally abundant areas remain trapped in darkness because they lack electricity or have only intermittent supply, cutting residents off from essential healthcare, education, and communication services. This is why Gulf Development Company has been deploying solar power systems to remote electrified communities across 20 locations nationwide for over five years, including highland areas, islands, and border regions, believing that electricity access creates jobs, generates income, and sustainably improves people's lives.

Ban Doi Wiang in Chai Prakan District, Chiang Mai, sits at 1,400 meters in Doi Wiang Pha National Park as a Lahu hillside community of roughly 100 households and 400 people living harmoniously with the forest. About 80 percent grow coffee as their primary livelihood, cultivating it under shade trees in a sustainable cycle that protects the upstream forest. The altitude and soil create distinctive, high-quality coffee. However, the community relied on unstable hydropower electricity available only 3 to 4 hours per day, and during dry season when water runs low, the entire village had no electricity around the clock. Villagers could only sell fresh coffee cherries at 25 to 30 baht per kilogram to middlemen, unable to process the crop into higher-value products, leaving income unreliable and vulnerable to market fluctuations.

When Gulf installed solar power systems at the Mae Fa Luang Highland Thai Learning Center at Ban Doi Wiang, light sparked real change. Electricity enabled satellite internet and phone signal, giving children and youth access to new knowledge and global learning opportunities equal to urban students. Gulf also supported construction of a coffee processing shed and donated a solar-powered coffee roaster to the community. Village headman and coffee farmer representative Uela Cahued reflected: "Before, we could only sell fresh coffee cherries. Some years prices fell so low it barely covered our effort, even though our coffee is excellent quality. When Gulf brought in solar power and support,"

The Department of Highways is deploying staff, machinery, and equipment to restore routes devastated by flash flooding in Nan province, with ten locations severely damaged out of 16 affected highways across four provinces. Two temporary bailey bridges are being urgently installed and are expected to reopen to traffic on August 21-22, while many other routes remain impassable. Authorities are urging the public to avoid affected areas and verify conditions before traveling.

As of August 20 at noon, 16 highway sections across four provinces have been damaged by flooding, with eight open to traffic and eight closed. Nan province has been hardest hit with ten damaged sections, of which only two are passable. The Department of Highways is coordinating with local highway offices and divisions in neighboring provinces to tackle damage on each route.

Two temporary bailey bridge installations are underway: Highway 1256 at Ban Mon bridge in Pua District, where a 10-meter section of the bridge deck is missing, with assembly beginning on August 20 and traffic expected to reopen on August 21; and Highway 1371 at Huay Tat bridge in Pua District, where two bridge sections are missing and one pier has subsided, with a 30-meter bridge installation planned for the morning of August 21 and traffic expected to reopen on August 22.

Repairs to bridge abutments and road surfaces are underway at Ban Phai bridge on Highway 1371 and Sop Bua bridge on Highway 1170, expected to reopen by evening on August 20. Highway 1256 between kilometers 1+500 and 2+100 in Ban Kaem village is being restored, while the section at kilometer 8+000 at Huay Yen curve remains heavily damaged and inaccessible to vehicles as officials assess the situation. Crews are also clearing landslides to open temporary routes on highways 1371, 1071, and 1256 around the clock.

The Department of Highways is asking the public to plan travel carefully, avoid flood-affected roads, and strictly follow warning signs. Updates on the disaster situation can be tracked through the Department of Highways HDMS system, and the 24-hour hotline 1586 is available for road information and assistance.

Police commanders led by Deputy National Police Commissioner Pallop Arunmahla announced the arrest of seven suspects aged 29 to 38 in connection with a major drug trafficking operation in Bang Pakong district, Chachoengsao province. Seized items include 221 kilograms of ketamine, 4,090 methamphetamine pills, one firearm with 41 rounds of ammunition, nine vehicles, eleven motorcycles, nine mobile phones, and 620,000 baht in cash, with a combined estimated value of 30 million baht.

The investigation began after police received information about a drug distribution network operating in the Bang Pakong area. Officers conducted surveillance on August 17, 2569, and observed suspicious activity at a residential house in Tha Sauan subdistrict. After obtaining a search warrant, police discovered one kilogram of ketamine and nearly 4,100 methamphetamine pills inside the house. Further searches of vehicles parked outside revealed 100 kilograms of ketamine in a sedan and 120 kilograms hidden in a van.

During questioning, the suspects revealed the existence of three additional houses used for drug trafficking operations. Police conducted follow-up raids at two of these locations and recovered additional drugs and related items. All seven suspects were charged and informed of their legal rights.

Bangkok authorities have suspended an additional municipal employee from the Din Daeng District Office for cooperating with brokers to illegally register foreign nationals in residential records, enabling them to obtain Thai pink ID cards. On August 20, Pol. Maj. Gen. Adisr Ngamjitsukhsri, advisor to the Bangkok governor, announced an update on the "Sweep the Middle of Bangkok" operation targeting the fraudulent issuance of ID cards numbered with 7 to foreign nationals in the Din Daeng area.

The Din Daeng District director has ordered the suspension of an additional permanent employee of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration's Din Daeng District Office, effective August 19. This employee allegedly collaborated with brokers to facilitate the transfer of foreign nationals into household registries at a Din Daeng condominium belonging to relatives and coordinated related documentation to enable the acquisition of pink ID cards. Police have charged the individual with aiding officials to act improperly, presenting false evidence in household records, and jointly entering false data into computer systems.

Pol. Maj. Gen. Adisr stated that this order represents an expanded enforcement action following the earlier suspension of three registry division officials on August 18, all of whom face charges for acting or failing to act improperly in their duties, certifying false documents, and jointly entering false data into computer systems.

Thai man seeks understanding after hotel room mix-up incident in SongkhlaLegacyA Thai man defended himself after being charged with allegedly trying to open the door of a female guest’s hotel room in Hat Yai district of Songkhla, saying he had no ill intentions and was heavily intoxicated at the time. He also claimed that the woman’s boyfriend had threatened him. The incident came to light after the woman shared footage of the incident on TikTok. She said it happened at about 4am on Monday, August 17, while she was staying alone at the hotel. In the footage, the man appears to be unable to fully open the door because of the safety latch. A small gap remained between the door and the frame, through which he pushed his hand and attempted to unlock the door. The woman then called hotel staff to her room. The man appeared to be intoxicated, prompting staff to accompany him back to his nearby room. Photo via TikTok/ @rapanor No further action was taken at the time, prompting the woman to check out of the hotel because she feared for her safety. She later reported the incident to officers at Kho Hong Police Station and said she wanted to pursue legal action against the man. The accused man spoke to the media yesterday and claimed that he had been heavily intoxicated after attending a concert at an entertainment venue near the hotel. He said a friend dropped him at the hotel at about 4am while he was barely conscious. He claimed he could not remember his room number and went to Room 238, which was next to his own Room 236. The man insisted that he did not behave in any other disturbing way. He said he tried to unlock the door but was unable to do so before sitting on a sofa outside the room until hotel staff arrived and helped him access his own room. Photo via Channel 7 He said he later apologised to the woman, but claimed that she did not accept his apology and demanded 30,000 baht in exchange for not pursuing legal action. The man also alleged that a group of men threatened him, with one claiming to be the woman’s boyfriend and a police officer. He claimed the man threatened to fabricate a drug offence against him if he refused to pay the requested compensation. He also said the man pressured him by threatening that he would be jailed if he did not pay. The man denied having any ill intentions and said he said the incident happened because he was heavily intoxicated and unaware of his surroundings at the time. He appealed for public understanding over the incident. The claims concerning the 30,000 baht payment and alleged threats have not been verified by police. According to Channel 7, the man was charged with causing a disturbance, with police describing the offence as a minor offence. Related news

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The Po Teck Tung Foundation spent over 3.3 million baht in Phichit Province to advance its mission of saving, caring for, and improving lives. Between August 19–20, 2025, foundation leaders including Vice Chairman Wichit Shinwongwarkul, Board Member Chankij Withayawrakorn, and Public Services Manager Duangchuta Tiyapatchnprogul attended the opening ceremony of a medical oxygen production building and donated medical equipment worth 3,022,860 baht to Bung Naran Hospital. The equipment included six electric patient beds, one automatic blood pressure monitor, four walking aids, and ten canes.

The foundation also supported the 179th Royal Mobile Prosthetics Project by providing 500 baht transport allowances and supplies to 280 prosthetic recipients, technicians, and volunteers—totalling 279,340 baht. This was offered as a merit tribute to Queen Sirikit, the late Queen Mother, and Princess Bajrakitiyabha. The ceremonies were presided over by Phichit Governor Thanicha Naipinij and other provincial officials at Bung Naran Hospital and Phichit Technical College.

Over 116 years, the Po Teck Tung Foundation has expanded its programmes to improve quality of life across communities regardless of ethnicity or religion, embodying its pledge to save lives, provide care, and create better futures. For more information, visit the foundation's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/atpohtecktung or call the Po Teck Tung hotline at 1418.