Health authorities have stepped up measures to prevent an outbreak of infectious diseases after more than one million chickens died last weekend in closed poultry farms in Ayutthaya's flood-hit Bang Pa-in district.

According to Bangkok Post, the authorities have been working closely with livestock officials to quickly dispose of chicken carcasses by using effective micro-organisms, Public Health Minister, Witthaya Buranasiri, said earlier this week.

Livestock Development Department director-general, Trissadee Chaosuancharoen, and his team have inspected the farms.

Mr Witthaya said chicken carcasses had to be moved out of farms as quickly as possible and disposed of properly or they could cause a bad smell and pollute water, leading to an outbreak of infectious diseases.

He added: "Though disease outbreaks caused by flooding have not yet been confirmed, people cannot afford to be complacent about prevention."

Bangkok Post reports that more than 600,000 people have been reported to have been affected by illnesses caused by months of flooding.