The Central Administrative Court has ordered the Department of Fisheries to urgently resolve the nationwide outbreak of blackchin tilapia within 180 days from the final case ruling, and instructed the Ministry of Interior's first office to declare Samut Songkhram Province a disaster zone for urgent intervention within 90 days.
On 8 Sep 2026 GMT+7, the Central Administrative Court ruled that the Department of Fisheries, through its Director-General, must control, prevent, resolve, and suppress the reproduction and spread of blackchin tilapia in affected areas according to the 2024-2027 action plan and any other necessary measures. The Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives and its Minister are to jointly oversee and support resources to ensure the Department's duties are effectively carried out within 180 days from the final case ruling. Furthermore, the Minister of Interior must direct the Governor of Samut Songkhram to declare Amphawa, Mueang Samut Songkhram, and Bang Khon Tee districts as emergency disaster zones to provide aid to Natthaphon Laklaem and 53 others affected by the outbreak, following the criteria for emergency disaster assistance under the 2019 Ministry of Finance regulations on advance government funds for emergency aid. This must be completed within 90 days from the final case ruling. Other requests were dismissed.
This follows the complaint filed by Natthaphon Laklaem and 53 other fisheries farmers from Samut Songkhram Province, representing those affected nationwide by the blackchin tilapia spread. They sued the Department of Fisheries, its Director-General, the National Fisheries Policy Committee, the institutional committee on safety and biodiversity of the Department, the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives and its Minister, the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources, its Director-General, the policy and management committee of marine and coastal resources, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and its Minister, the National Environment Board, the National Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Committee, the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, its Director-General, the Ministry of Interior, its Minister, and the Ministry of Finance for neglecting their legal duties in controlling, preventing, resolving, and suppressing the spread of blackchin tilapia, as well as failing to declare disaster areas and provide emergency assistance. Charoen Pokphand Foods Public Company Limited is an intervening party in the case.
The court reasoned that since Charoen Pokphand Foods Public Company Limited was authorized to import blackchin tilapia under permit No. 41/2011 dated 12 Nov 2010, the Department of Fisheries, through its Director-General, never conducted control, monitoring, or research to verify whether the importation met its intended purpose. This constitutes neglect in preventing and controlling alien aquatic animals under the Fisheries Act of 1947, which was in force at the time. Regardless of whether the company caused the outbreak from 2012 to the present, the Department of Fisheries, through its Director-General, is responsible for resolving the issue according to the 2024-2027 action plan as mandated by the Fisheries Act of 2015.
Regarding the declaration of affected areas as emergency disaster zones for relief and rehabilitation, Natthaphon Laklaem and 53 others, following the working group's framework for assistance criteria, noted that the Governor of Samut Songkhram had not issued such declarations. This failure constitutes neglect or undue delay in fulfilling legal duties.