Bangkok: Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin announced the 3.48 trillion baht budget bill for 2024 as the three-day debate began on Wednesday. In today's parliamentary session, marking the commencement of the budget deliberations, the Cabinet presented a proposed budget of 3.48 trillion baht, with a central budget of over 606 billion baht. The Prime Minister stated that the budget allocation aligns with the six strategic areas, namely security with a budget of 390 billion baht, competitiveness with 393 billion baht, human resource development with 561 billion baht, creating social opportunities and equality with 84.3 billion baht, environmentally friendly quality of life with 131 billion baht, and balancing and improving the state management system with 604 billion baht. The Prime Minister said that the National Economic and Social Development Council projected economic growth in the range of 2.7% to 3.7% this year. However, there are potential risks, including household debt, business sector challenges, droug ht problems, and global conflicts. The inflation rate is expected to be between 1.7% and 2.7%, and the current account surplus is projected to be 1.5%. On the opposition front, Mr. Chaithawat Tulathon, leader of the opposition and head of the Move Forward Party said that the government's budget allocation remains unchanged from the previous administration. He criticized the budget as not addressing the people's issues, with excessive projected income. Thus, he called for a scrutiny of the budget, which, in his view, lacks specificity, clear priorities, and is not aligned with the current national crisis. The lower house will vote on the budget bill this week and is expected to be ready by May Source: Thai News Agency