BANGKOK, Jan 22 (TNA) - After a barrage of criticism from the public and the media, Thailand's Minister of Labour Phaithoon Kaeothong said on Thursday he had scrapped a plan to offer five kilogrammes of rice to each of 9.3 million people insured by the government's Social Security Fund.

The Social Security Committee recently had approved a plan to set aside Bt1 billion to be spent on buying rice to offer 9.3 million citizens covered by the Social Security Fund at five kilogrammes each.

Reiterating that the programme was initiated by the previous government and was sent to the Social Security Committee six times for consideration, Mr. Phaithoon said if the programme took effect, it would not offer significant benefit to those who are insured because five kilogrammes of rice costs little more than Bt100 in markets, but critics questioned the economics of running an entire programme that would cost the government Bt1 billion, far more than the cost of the rice.

Now, the government plans to help social security recipients whose monthly income is less than Bt15,000 by simply distributing Bt2,000 in cash to each, he said.

Mr. Phaitoon said he had ordered Permanent Secretary for Labour Somchai Choomrat to ask the Council of State to consider whether it is legal to giving away cash to those who are insured by the state.

According to Mr. Phaithoon, the Social Security Committee plans to reduce the cash contribution by employers and employees to the Social Security Fund to 2.5 per cent from 5 per cent each party is paying now.

If the special programme is implemented, the Social Security Fund would not be affected if, for example, one million people become jobless and the Fund will have to pay more than Bt40 billion to assist them, said Mr. Phaithoon.

It would not affect the Fund in future, he asserted, because the scheme will help business players and employees only for this year. (TNA)