The development projects based on the royal initiatives of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej, such as addressing drought issues, surveying natural disasters, forecasting weather conditions, and caring for the well-being of people in remote areas to create livelihoods, have all been successfully implemented thanks to His Majesty's exceptional skills in using maps. The image of Him holding a large map has been familiar to the Thai people from the past to the present, as He consistently used maps as a tool for His work.

         During that time, King Rama IX visited various areas to meet with the people, carrying a large map of Thailand. He meticulously cut and pasted multiple maps together to study geographical information comprehensively, covering several square kilometers on a single sheet.

       Even though technology has transformed map viewing through satellites, He recognized that paper maps remain essential because they are verified through actual fieldwork, making them more reliable. Importantly, without good maps, development work would be nearly impossible.

        King Rama IX was both a user and an improver of Thailand's maps. He consistently recorded new information obtained from observing and comparing real locations or consulting local residents. If new small villages emerged, or if street names and waterways were misrepresented, He would update the maps to reflect the most current information. He graciously ordered the Military Mapping Department to create maps at a scale of 1:50,000 to facilitate development planning according to His royal initiatives, including projects like floodwater management, forest management, dam construction, and canal dredging.

         Furthermore, King Rama IX's maps serve as a model for creating maps for the construction of many modern architectural buildings, which require precise scales and geographical data to plan meticulously without impacting the environment and budget, following the path of sustainable development that He has paved.

Thank you for the images from Google