Resident population continues to register

PHUKET: The island’s official population rose by 2,976 to 321,514 people between May 21 and June 20.

The rise is being attributed to Phuket Governor Niran Kalayanamit’s campaign, initiated late last year, to increase the number of Thai citizens in the province whose names appear on household registration forms.

Muang District saw the biggest jump with 1,622 new registrations. There were also 222 births and 69 deaths reported, along with 1,370 people deregistering.

The registration drive was proposed as a way to more accurately report the number of residents on Phuket, which could lead to a larger slice of government funding.

Phuket’s actual population, partly due to the large number of migrant workers, is believed to be at least double the reported figure.