The four plots cover roughly 16 rai.

According to the court, Charoen could no longer be considered a farmer as he owned various businesses, including the country's third largest crocodile farm.

Charoen also has 36 other plots of land covering more than 60 rai, the court said.

Charoen was not present at the court yesterday. Lawyer Benjama Abhaiwongse said his client would respect the court's decision but would ask the Agricultural Land Reform Office (ARLO) to let him lease the four plots.

Benjama said Charoen had acquired and used these plots since 1957, and that they remained rubber plantations and fruit orchards.

The ALRO has filed several lawsuits to evict people from land that had been earmarked for farmers. There are five cases before the Supreme Court and three others pending at the Court of Appeals.

Drug burn-off

Authorities will burn Bt3.6 billion worth of drugs on June 26, which is the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking.

Deputy Public Health Minister Morakot Kornkasem yesterday said the drugs would be disposed of in a special furnace in Ayutthaya.

"This will not harm the environment," he said.

Morakot said this would be the 35th time authorities had burned drugs seized from drug traffickers. About 1,120 kilograms and 5.99 litres of drugs from 12,672 drug cases would be destroyed.

The drugs include heroin, ecstasy pills, methamphetamine pills, cocaine, marijuana and opium.

According to Morakot, there were some 20 tonnes of illegal drugs still under the care of relevant authorities but they would not be disposed off until the relevant criminal cases have been completed.

IVF kids to meet

The country's largest gathering of children born from in-vitro fertilisation will take place at Chulalongkorn Hospital tomorrow.

The event is being held to mark the 20th anniversary of the first in-vitro fertilisation in Thailand.

"About 500 children will show up," Prof Pramuan Virutamasen of Chulalong-korn University's Faculty of Medicine said yesterday.

Prof Pramuan was the first gynaecologist to provide in-vitro fertilisation in the country. Over the past two decades the success rate for in-vitro fertilisation has been about 30 per cent, he said

Thailand's first baby born from in-vitro fertilisation was now an engineering student in an international programme at Chulalongkorn University.

The country's second in-vitro baby was a medical student at Mahidol University's Faculty of Medicine at Rama-thibodi Hospital.