People register themselves through the Government Saving Bank in order to be eligible for the government's welfare. (Bangkok Post file photo)The number of registrants for the government's welfare and subsidy scheme for the impoverished through the national e-payment system in this year's round surged by 50% year-on-year, says Pornchai Thiraveja, an adviser to the Fiscal Policy Office. There were 8.27 million registrants for the scheme last year, but 1.3 million of them were later deemed unqualified. The Finance Ministry will require the underprivileged to sign up for the scheme every year as a way to update information. The cabinet last week approved a Finance Ministry proposal to establish a 50-billion-baht Pracha Rat Fund for Low-Income Earners to reduce income disparity in the long run.

Source: Bangkok Post May 16, 2017 01:07 UTC