President Orders Relocation of Banjarnegara Landslide Victims

Jakarta (Antara)- President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has ordered the relocation of Banjarnegara residents who suffered the brunt of the recent major landslides. "The president has issued an instruction that the victims of the natural disaster comprising 43 families in Karangkobar and 42 in Wanayasa should be relocated," Syamsul Maarif, the head of the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB), remarked during a press conference held at the presidential office here on Wednesday. The BNPB along with several experts from the University of Gadjah Mada, among others, have surveyed several potential locations to relocate the victims. The construction of the new settlement area will require a funding of around Rp5 billion. The development of infrastructure such as roads, drainage systems, irrigation systems, and river normalization is estimated to cost Rp25 billion. The victims will be relocated in an area not prone to landslides. The relocation process will be carried out in a comprehensive and integrated manner. Agrarian and Spatial Planning Minister/Head of the National Agrarian Agency (BPN) Ferry Mursyidan Baldan stated that the victims will be relocated permanently to a location far from their previous homes and safe from natural disasters. (*)