Thailand to postpone New Year holiday, close schools to curb coronavirus

Thailand's cabinet on Tuesday approved plans to postpone next month's Thai New Year holiday and to close schools to limit the spread of the coronavirus, a government spokeswoman said. The approvals followed a series of plans announced on Monday to close schools, bars, movie theatres, cockfighting arenas and other entertainment centres as well as postpone the Thai New Year holiday, or Songkran, which falls between April 13 to 15.

"The cabinet approved that the Songkran holiday be postponed and schools closed," Ratchada Thanadirek, the government's deputy spokeswoman, told Reuters. She added that closures of entertainment venues would be up to the discretion of each provincial governors, adding that more details would be available later.