Flower power
Orchid decorations are displayed at the 12th Asia Pacific Orchid Conference at Impact Muang Thong Thani in Nonthaburi on March 20.
Pollution problem
North suffers bad air
Flights have been cancelled and healthcare workers are on alert as air pollution levels soared to more than double the safety threshold in two northern provinces.
Air pollution levels in Chiang Rai and Mae Hong Son posed health risks because harmful air particles on March 19 stood at twice the safety limit. The Air Quality and Noise Management Control Bureau described the situation as worrying.
The worst haze, blamed on agricultural forest fires, was reported at Mae Sai district of Chiang Rai.
Troubled times
Expensive clocks removed
Digital clocks bought for 14.8 million baht have been removed from the walls of the parliament because they regularly malfunction, a source said.
The 240 clocks were unplugged on March 19 and removed for repairs by staff of Equip Man Co, which earlier sold them to the Secretariat of the House of Representatives. The secretariat saw its image plunge after acquiring the clocks in 2013.
“These clocks haven't functioned properly since the middle of last year,” said the parliamentary source, who asked not to be named.
EASY NEWS FOR M1-3
Buying busses
BMTA has business plan
The Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA) plans to buy new busses. Officials said the busses will improve profits for the BMTA. The BMTA expects to buy 489 natural gas busses by the end of the year, officials said.
Vocabulary
- soar (v): to rise or increase to a high level very quickly
threshold (n): the level at which something starts to happen
secretariat (n): the administrative department of a large international or political organisation
acquire (v): to obtain something by buying it or being given it
profit (n): the money that you make in a business after paying the costs involved
