Interior Ministry steps up efforts to ensure safe Songkran nationwide
The Interior Ministry has instructed its officials to ensure people can travel safely and conveniently during the Songkran festival.
Sutthipong Chulcharoen, the ministry’s permanent secretary, said on Friday that this move is in line with the government’s bid to promote the festival, as it was included in the UNESCO list of intangible cultural heritage on December 6, 2023.
Provincial governors, district chiefs, local organisations, village headmen and relevant officials have also been instructed to ensure people can return to their hometowns safely, he added.
He also said that officials have been tasked with ensuring people mind their manners during Songkran festivities.
“People should be polite, avoid harassing or sexually assaulting others or getting drunk. This way everybody can enjoy the celebrations together,” he said.
Sutthipong added that officials have been deployed to ensure peace and order at hotels nationwide. They have also been tasked with ensuring that event organisers refrain from selling alcoholic beverages, as drunkenness is often the cause of conflict.
Wishing everybody a safe journey, he added that people could call the ministry’s 24-hour Damrongdhama Centre 1567 hotline.
