By Thai Newsroom Reporters
RICE FARMERS ARE NO LONGER allowed to literally put their product to dry on the surface of rural roads anywhere or else they could be immediately arrested, a government official confirmed today (Jan.11).
The Rural Roads Department has issued a regulation to terminate the common practice of literally strewing the newly-harvested rice on the surface of the road, albeit only those with more than one lane, to dry in the sun.
Such a natural way of drying the rice is practised now and then by farmers in all regions of the country since the price of humidity-coated rice could be slashed by the buying merchants or millers to the chagrin of the farmers.
Some may have literally occupied one lane of a two-lane rural road with their purposely strewn rice for a matter of days at a time whilst others may have laid tarps over their product at night.
Though the farmers may argue that many rural roads upon which they may take liberty to dry their rice have been rarely used by motorists day in, day out, they are legally no longer allowed to do so for the sake of public safety, the department’s official said.
The prohibition is primarily designed to prevent road accidents which could otherwise occur to passing vehicles which might suddenly swerve and veer off due to the rice purposely scattered on the road surface.
In some cases, the happy-go-lucky farmers were nowhere to be found at the time of road accidents caused by swerving automobiles literally with some rice scattered along the way.
Those who may violate the department’s regulation could be arrested by the authorities and be possibly subject to a maximum of three years in prison or a maximum of 60,000 baht in fine or both.
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Top and Front Page: Rice spread out on the road to dry. Photos: Matichon
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