Mourners who flock to pay respects to His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej are being urged not to leave their rubbish behind to help keep Sanam Luang and the grounds of the Grand Palace clean and in order.
The call was made by Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon during his inspection yesterday after the amount of garbage around the Grand Palace's compound increased over recent days.
Gen Prawit called for mourners to take their garbage with them when leaving the area for the sake of public health and order.
According to the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration's (BMA) Environment Department, about 190 tonnes of garbage have been collected each day since people started gathering to pay tribute to the late King.
However, the amount of garbage rose to 365 tonnes on Saturday when hundreds of thousands of people gathered at Sanam Luang to sing the Royal Anthem for the late monarch.
While some people place rubbish in bins provided, many others are dumping it on the ground.
Gen Prawit yesterday also reiterated calls for mourners not to place lit candles near the wall of the Grand Palace after smoke from the candles blemished the wall.
The Royal Household Bureau (RHB) earlier asked police to warn people not to do so as it blackened the wall and damaged the lawn.
Following the warning, many mourners brought flowers and placed them against the wall in honour of the King instead.
As the garbage increases, the BMA's Environment Department has deployed five-tonne garbage trucks and asked four more district offices to help clean the mess.
Initially city workers from 38 district offices around Bangkok were deployed to help with cleaning up the area.
The department has also provided more mobile toilets including those for people with disabilities, up from 30 to 49.
According to the department, workers were also deployed to collect flowers placed in remembrance of the late King six times a day. The collected flowers were not thrown away but relocated and used as part of decorations before the portraits of the late King at Sanam Luang and nearby Saran Rom park, the department said.