Less people join this year's Loy Krathong in Bangkok

BANGKOK, November 15 (TNA) - Less people in Bangkok have come out for Loy Krathong this year, but most of them have used "green" krathong rafts to conserve the environment. Bangkok Governor Police General Asawin Kwanmuang told journalists on Tuesday that the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) opened 30 public parks in the capital in which people could visit to float their krathong rafts and found that the public turnout rate for Loy Krathong Festival this year was about 20 per cent lower than last year. The new Bangkok governor said, however, that people cooperated well with BMA's call on them to refrain from using krathong rafts made from Styrofoams and most of them used krathong rafts that were made from natural materials, instead. As the whole nation remains mourning for late His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who passed away on October 13, the Bangkok governor noted that there were no celebrations held for the Loy Kratong Festival this year and the number of krathong rafts in the Chao Phraya River declined, unlike previous years. The governor pointed out that people remained to give importance to the traditional Loy Kratong Festival, as a number of them floated their kratong rafts at public parks or canals closer to their places. Meanwhile, the BMA's Environment Department, together with the Department of Drainage and Sewerage (DDS) and district offices mobilised their officials to help clear krathong rafts from various canals and rivers across the capital and the work was completed by 4am on November 15. A total of 661,635 krathongs were collected from the city's water sources, 93.7 per cent of them were made from natural and degradable materials, while the rest were made from Styrofoams, or only about 6.7 per cent, signifying that both the general public and vendors were becoming more aware of the environmental conservation. (TNA)