ID :
124748
Fri, 05/28/2010 - 14:04
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http://m.oananews.org//node/124748
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Retailers, buyers raise spirits on Silom
BANGKOK, May 28 (TNA) -- More than 1,000 retail vendors are participating Friday and Saturday in a two-day fair on Silom Road.
Flowers, food, music, artwork and handcrafts contribute to the upbeat atmosphere as children, families and shoppers join the trade fair in downtown Silom.
'Bangkok Health Day,' another government-sponsored event, follows Sunday in the same area.
Normally congested with traffic, Silom this weekend is closed to vehicles during the ‘Together We Can Grand Sale' Friday and Saturday as retail vendors occupy the one kilometre stretch of road from Sala Daeng to Narathiwat Rajanakarin intersection. The booths are open from 9am-9pm and are aimed at helping small businesses affected by the riots.
Opening just a week after government action against anti-government protesters decisively ended six-week demonstrations and occupation of varied public areas. The turmoil claimed 88 lives and led to the burning of nearly 40 buildings and looting in several parts of the capital.
Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij and several other ministers attended the opening ceremony of ‘Together We Can Grand Sale' He said that participation by over 1,000 vendors was much more than the 600 sales sites that were projected to join the fair.
The Commerce Ministry forecasts that more than 300,000 shoppers will buy goods on the street with about Bt100 million expected to change hands.
If the fair proves successful, Mr Korn said, the government may hold similar fairs in future. The ministry has sufficient funds to organise more events, he said.
Thailand's social divisions must be reduced because “political differences have affected the country’s economy and image in general,” Mr Korn said, noting that government policy is giving increased attention to reducing economic disparities.
Commerce Minister Porntiva Nakasai said the ministry is scheduled to hold a major trade fair in late June in a bid to restore confidence among foreign importers who will be invited to join the fair.
In another development, Bangkok Metropolitan Administration governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra said public utilities in the capital which were damaged during the riots totaled about Bt180 million and said that the city will ask for funds from the central government so that repairs could be made promptly.
Bangkok Metro public relations director Chartchai Praditpong said the company and the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand will provide space at the Metro Mall at Chutuchak station for about 100 protest-hit retailers free of charge for six months. Reservation is open from May 28 to June 1.
An insurance company will finish assessing Red Shirt protest-related damage at subway stations by Monday. Fire-damaged escalators at Queen Sirikit Convention Centre station will take a month to fix, awaiting spare parts from overseas.
The subway is fully operational from 6am to 10pm and will be able to provide service to midnight when the curfew hours from midnight to 4am are lifted in Bangkok, he said. (TNA)
Flowers, food, music, artwork and handcrafts contribute to the upbeat atmosphere as children, families and shoppers join the trade fair in downtown Silom.
'Bangkok Health Day,' another government-sponsored event, follows Sunday in the same area.
Normally congested with traffic, Silom this weekend is closed to vehicles during the ‘Together We Can Grand Sale' Friday and Saturday as retail vendors occupy the one kilometre stretch of road from Sala Daeng to Narathiwat Rajanakarin intersection. The booths are open from 9am-9pm and are aimed at helping small businesses affected by the riots.
Opening just a week after government action against anti-government protesters decisively ended six-week demonstrations and occupation of varied public areas. The turmoil claimed 88 lives and led to the burning of nearly 40 buildings and looting in several parts of the capital.
Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij and several other ministers attended the opening ceremony of ‘Together We Can Grand Sale' He said that participation by over 1,000 vendors was much more than the 600 sales sites that were projected to join the fair.
The Commerce Ministry forecasts that more than 300,000 shoppers will buy goods on the street with about Bt100 million expected to change hands.
If the fair proves successful, Mr Korn said, the government may hold similar fairs in future. The ministry has sufficient funds to organise more events, he said.
Thailand's social divisions must be reduced because “political differences have affected the country’s economy and image in general,” Mr Korn said, noting that government policy is giving increased attention to reducing economic disparities.
Commerce Minister Porntiva Nakasai said the ministry is scheduled to hold a major trade fair in late June in a bid to restore confidence among foreign importers who will be invited to join the fair.
In another development, Bangkok Metropolitan Administration governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra said public utilities in the capital which were damaged during the riots totaled about Bt180 million and said that the city will ask for funds from the central government so that repairs could be made promptly.
Bangkok Metro public relations director Chartchai Praditpong said the company and the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand will provide space at the Metro Mall at Chutuchak station for about 100 protest-hit retailers free of charge for six months. Reservation is open from May 28 to June 1.
An insurance company will finish assessing Red Shirt protest-related damage at subway stations by Monday. Fire-damaged escalators at Queen Sirikit Convention Centre station will take a month to fix, awaiting spare parts from overseas.
The subway is fully operational from 6am to 10pm and will be able to provide service to midnight when the curfew hours from midnight to 4am are lifted in Bangkok, he said. (TNA)
