Deadline looms for state welfare applications
>> The government has urged low-income earners to register with authorities for extra state welfare by tomorrow.
Government spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd said registration for the programme would close tomorrow and urged eligible people to apply.
Registration can be made at the Government Savings Bank, Krung Thai Bank and the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives. It can also be carried out at all district offices in Bangkok and the provincial office of the Comptroller General.
The second round for registration opened on April 3.
According to Lt Gen Sansern, 12,416,211 people had registered to join the programme as of Thursday.
This year alone, nearly four million people have registered with authorities.
People have faith in a government that it is able to take care of them, he said.
The government spokesman urged people to prepare the required documents to be handed over to authorities and strictly follow registration procedures.
People who fail to complete an application form will be not eligible to join the programme, he added.
People who are eligible to join the programme must be Thai, unemployed and aged over 18; or those who have an income of less than 100,000 baht in the last year; or people who have assets of less than 100,000 baht.
The financial assistance for low earners is part of the state’s assistance programme aimed at improving the quality of lives of the poor.
Other government programmes include land allocation, housing assistance and loan assistance.
Last month the government issued a new public health service law on Universal Coverage for Emergency Patients that provides emergency admissions for people who require emergency care within 72 hours.
The government wants to help shoulder people’s living costs and help them to cover their expenses, Lt Gen Sansern said.
He added the government also has other welfare plans that will be implemented in the future.
The plans include economy price programmes aimed at cutting energy and water use at homes and reducing costs, and a natural disaster assistance scheme intended to give financial help to farmers whose land is affected by natural disasters.