Thai military helps farmers affected by rice price slump

KALASIN, Nov 20 (TNA) – The Thai military carried out various assistance measures for local farmers, suffering from low rice prices in northeastern region of Thailand. On Sunday, soldiers were deployed to three disctricts in Kalasin province – Kuchi Narai, Naku and Khao Wong – to help local farmers harvest rice. Capt Suporn Hoompueay from the third Infantry Division in Kalasin said 14 military officers had been divided into two groups, patroling remote areas to help farmers right away without any request from farmers. The move is aimed at helping farmers cut their produciton cost to solve the problem of falling rice prices. Meanwhile, the Military Circle 210 in Nakhon Phanom province collaborated with local rice millers and the private sector in the area to buy paddies from farmers at “fair and reasonable prices”. Farmers can bring their unmilled rice to sell at the Military Circel until the end of this harvest season. Under the military’s assistance project , which began on Nov 9, jasmine rice can be sold at 12,000-13,000 baht per ton while the current market price is only around 9,000-10,000 baht. (TNA