BANGKOK, (NNT) – Members of Parliament have raised the issue of water shortages in many areas of the country in a meeting of the House of Representatives. They have called for relevant agencies to quickly address the water situation.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Chuan Leekpai, presided over the House meeting on Thursday (Aug 15). Before considering a draft of the House meeting regulations, the legislators discussed a number of issues for relevant agencies to address. They discussed a shortage of water for consumption, the quality of tap water, repeated flooding in areas where there is construction, and canals and waterways that have not been dredged. Related ministries will now seek solutions to these issues. The MPs called on the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment, and the Ministry of the Interior to help people obtain permission to extract groundwater, as the arduous process has affected villagers in drought-hit areas. To hasten the process, it should be possible to gain permission from provincial governors or local administrative organizations.
The MPs also raised transport problems in their respective provinces. Roads in some areas are narrow and have many potholes. U-turns are not conveniently located and there are no bridges that cross over some waterways. There are no lights along certain roads, resulting in more smuggling of illegal drugs at night.
