BANGKOK, May 9 – Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra affirmed that progress is being made towards completion of her government’s water management plan and sets an onsite-inspection to follow up work at the end of this month.
Ms Yingluck said she has closely monitored implementation of the water management plans.
The government’s budget was disbursed to run the projects, some of which have already begun.
She ordered ministers to speed up procurement and hiring processes and plans an on-site inspection at the end of this month.
The prime minister conceded that delays in initial operations is related to regulations, particularly procurement and hiring procedures, which require at least 60 days for compliance.
The government is trying to accelerate the work but is adhering to transparency. Moreover, she said students have been hired to carry out a survey in parallel with the government’s work.
Asked if she was confident in the water management plan, the prime minister said it will be able to tackle the problem but not for the whole areas. She conceded the database such as satellite images, indicating depth of land related to direction of the water flow, has yet to be completed in some areas where geographical features are still unclear.
The Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives will cooperate to make simulations of water flows to determine prospective problem areas.
She said that more progress will be seen in late May.
