His Majesty the King left Siriraj Hospital on Monday to inspect his royal project at Chitralada Villa at the Dusit Palace.
The king left the 16th floor of the Chalermphrakiat Building for the Dusit Palace on Rajvithee Road at 3.48pm amid cheering crowds and the loud chanting of "long live the King" along the royal motorcade. At the palace he observed a model rice mill and an exhibition on solar energy for rice milling.
His Majesty established the facility with his own funds in 1971 to be a prototype mill to address farmer poverty following his countless trips to provinces around Thailand, which made him understand that farmers remained poor and indebted because the price of unhusked rice, which they sell, is much lower than the milled rice they buy. Instead of hiring commercial rice mills to process their crop, His Majesty advocates that farmers get together to procure communal rice mills.
The king later proceeded past the royal Suan Chitralada Dairy farm to rest at a solar energy home built to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of His Majesty's accession to the throne in 1996 before leaving the palace. The king returned to Siriraj Hospital at 5pm.
