BANGKOK: Thailand will pay $110m to two firms to supply 1.2m tablet computers to schools across the country, the Education Ministry said yesterday, awarding the tender for the next phase of a controversial schools policy. The “One Tablet Per Child” scheme, part of the government’s election campaign in 2011, has been criticised as an expensive gimmick designed to boost the popularity of the ruling party among parents and the next generation of voters. But its supporters say the scheme will bridge the gap between rich and poor pupils by using technology to boost education standards.
Second clash hits Xinjiang
BEIJING: Fresh violence erupted in China’s restive Xinjiang yesterday, state media said, two days after 35 died in what the government called a “terrorist attack” and a week before the anniversary of major 2009 clashes. The incident in Hotan city followed riots on Wednesday that were the deadliest to hit the desert region, home to 10 million mostly Uighur Muslims, since violence on July 5, 2009 left hundreds dead. “At local time this afternoon, a violent attack occurred in Hotan city,” the CCTV state broadcaster said on an official microblog account. “The incident has been resolved and the number of casualties is being verified.”
Traffic cops battle the bulge
BANGKOK: Bellies wobbling and chubby limbs swinging, dozens of sweaty traffic cops exercise to the rhythm of pop songs as part of a scheme to reduce the number of overweight police in Bangkok. Poor diets and long hours in a sedentary job on the gridlocked streets have left traffic police prone to piling on the pounds. But their health, and the public image presented by potbellied officers, have become such a worry that police have laid on free fat-busting classes, enlisting nearly 60 for a two-month ‘Fit and Firm’ programme.
Flood survivors die in landslide
KATHMANDU: Two Nepalese workers who survived floods in north India were killed when a landslide triggered by heavy rains buried their hotel in a remote village in Nepal, police said yesterday. The men, in their 40s, had stopped at the hotel in northwestern Nepal en route to their home in Kalikot district. Agencies
